Dalton Smith grew up admiring Ricky Hatton, and on Saturday he can follow in his footsteps by becoming another in Britain’s lineage of world titleholders.

Smith will face WBC junior welterweight titleholder Subriel Matias in a 12-round title fight Saturday at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York.

Smith, 18-0 (13 KOs), of Sheffield, England, turned professional in 2019 after a standout amateur career. He venerated Hatton, a British fighting legend and now a boxing Hall of Famer, and hoped to forge a similar path as a formidable pro representing the Union Jack. Smith, 28, even fights in the same weight class in which Hatton won his first title, and hopes to channel a bit of Hatton for his first fight in the United States.

“I looked up to one of the greatest of all time – rest his soul – the legend, ’The Hitman’ Ricky Hatton,” Smith said at the press conference. “What he did, the nights he had.”

Hatton had Kosta Tszyu, and for Smith, it will be Matias, 23-2 (22 KOs), the incredible pressure fighter. Hatton’s biggest win came against the heavy-handed Tszyu, who, not unlike Matias, had a blemish on his record and entered the contest a slight favorite. Hatton, fighting in Manchester, England, delivered an iconic performance that shocked the world, as he stopped Tszyu. Though the circumstances aren’t quite the same, they are close enough to draw inspiration from. Smith is taking on a fighter who has won all but two of his fights – and taken all but one of his wins by knockout. Smith also enters as a slight underdog. The main difference: His boots won’t be on home soil for this fight.

“[Hatton] inspired us,” Smith said. “This is the start of that journey.”

Eddie Hearn, Smith’s promoter, explained the significance of Smith winning away from England.

“When you win away from home, it is even more special,” Hearn said. “If you are good enough, you win anywhere in the world – and we are good enough.”

Smith's biggest win came in March 2024, when he knocked out former title contender Jose Zepeda. Since that bout, he has fought twice. His most recent outing was a 12-round unanimous decision over Mathieu Germain in April. Smith was then named mandatory for the WBC titleholder but had to play the waiting game as Matias defeated Alberto Puello to secure the belt. A purse bid occurred in which Fresh Productions outbid Matchroom Boxing to win the purse bid in September.

Hearn spoke about Matchroom not being the lead promoter for this bout:

“It would have been nice to have done the fight in Sheffield,” he said. “But it will be even sweeter when Dalton Smith smashes him in New York on Saturday night.”

Matias, 23-2 (22 KOs), has had a turbulent couple of years. He recorded five straight stoppage wins between 2020 and 2023 – every one of them by corner stoppage – as Matias built an aura of fear around him. Ironically, he signed with Matchroom after making his first IBF title defense, but he then lost his next bout – a 12-round unanimous decision claimed by Liam Paro. Matias followed with a pair of knockouts to set up his second title reign, but after a tight majority decision over Puello, and at 33, his aura of invincibility has vanished.

Smith, for one, is unfazed. He views Saturday as an inflection point in his own story. 

“I got into boxing at six years old, and the dream is to become a world champion,” Smith said. “And to do it in New York with traveling supporters.”

Lucas Ketelle is the author of “Inside the Ropes of Boxing,” a guide for young fighters, a writer for BoxingScene and a member of the Boxing Writers Association of America. Find him on X at @BigDogLukie.