By Edward Chaykovsky
When IBF welterweight champion Kell Brook moved up by two divisions last Saturday to challenge middleweight king Gennady Golovkin, there was a lot of support from the British fighters and UK pundits.
This time around, WBO junior middleweight champion Liam Smith (23-0-1, 13KOs) is touching down in Texas, where later tonight he will face Mexican superstar Saul 'Caenlo' Alvarez (47-1-1, 33KOs) before a wild crowd of over 40,000 fans at AT&T Stadium.
Unlike Brook, UK fighters are not exactly leaning in the direction of Smith or giving him the same type of support. On paper, most would believe that Canelo-Smith is a more competitive fight than Golovkin-Brook.
Retired super middleweight champion and Sky Sports analyst Carl Froch has a hard time picking anyone to beat Canelo - including Smith.
"It is hard to make a case for anyone fighting beating Canelo, other than Mayweather. It is annoying that Gennady Golovkin hasn't had a go yet and we know this is going to be a really, really tough ask for Liam," Froch told Sky Sports.
If he can catch him early on with one of his power punches that is the best chance, but it is hard to go against Canelo. It could be a late finish and Liam might even take him all the way, but I have to stick with Canelo.
Another Sky pundit, and former world champion, Johnny Nelson, is also siding with Canelo to bring home the win and he could even see Smith getting stopped in the mid-rounds.
"The two are likely to meet in the middle and prove they are top dog and I think that is going to be Alvarez. It's not an impossible ask, but it's a really tough ask for Liam Smith. We have seen Khan and Kell Brook take big, big steps up and Liam is doing the same, but he is a tough kid, so it is hard one to call. I am going for Alvarez like everyone else and it could be a stoppage in the middle rounds, but it could easily go to points," Nelson said.
