Callum Smith would have unquestionably preferred this opportunity under more convenient circumstances.

That was never going to become a dealbreaker, however, in his accepting the chance to defend his super middleweight crown versus the best boxer in the world and high among its leading box-office attractions.

“It’s a huge opportunity, but an opportunity I feel I deserve,” Smith insisted during a recent virtual press conference to discuss his December 19 showdown with Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez. “I worked hard to get in the position that I’m in. I’m ranked number one in the world and believe I deserve to be there.

“Once I became a world champion, I’ve set my sights on the biggest fights possible. I’ve managed to land the biggest one possible in my weight division. He’s a tough fighter and I’m looking forward to sharing the ring with him. I believe how good he is will show me how good I am.”

Their bout—which will air live on DAZN from The Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas—will mark the first piece of ring action for Smith (27-0, 19KOs) following the longest layoff of his career. The 30-year old from Liverpool has not fought since a disputed 12-round decision win over countryman John Ryder last November in his hometown.

That fight took place three weeks after Alvarez (53-1-2, 36KOs) last appeared in the ring, when the global superstar from Guadalajara, Mexico knocked out Sergey Kovalev in the 11th round. The feat saw Alvarez add a light heavyweight belt to an unmatched résumé which includes lineal championships at junior middleweight and middleweight.

From there came the desire to return to super middleweight, where Alvarez has fought just once before—a 3rd round wipeout of Rocky Fielding in December 2018 to win a secondary 168-pound belt.

Now comes a shot at the real thing, and against the man viewed by many as the best super middleweight in the world today. Smith established that claim following a 7th round knockout of countryman George Groves in September 2018. The feat earned him a 168-pound belt and top honors in the World Boxing Super Series super middleweight tournament.

Since then has come a 3rd round knockout of two-time Olympian and former secondary middleweight titlist Hassan N’Dam N’Jikam last June, followed by the close call versus Ryder last November. Obviously, the hope was to have fought again prior to December, though the ongoing coronavirus pandemic made that goal difficult to achieve.

Instead, it becomes quality over quantity and precisely the level of opposition Smith has long craved.

“It’s definitely tough, the toughest one possible for me at the moment,” Smith says of the bout, which marks just his third time fighting in the United States as a pro. “But as I’ve said, the minute I became world champion I’ve wanted the biggest fights possible. I didn’t want no routine defenses. I wanted unification fights, I wanted superstar names, which Canelo Alvarez definitely is.

“I’ve always said the better the opponent, the better the performance from myself. I think I’ve shown that throughout my career. Every time the chips have been down, I’ve always delivered. I feel this won’t be any different.”

Jake Donovan is a senior writer for BoxingScene.com. Twitter: @JakeNDaBox