Following Liam Smith’s November victory in the rematch against Liam Williams he became first in line to challenge for his old WBO super welterweight title.
Sadam Ali tore up the script to win the belt last weekend against Miguel Cotto to set-up a meeting with ‘Beefy’ early next year.
Speaking on the BoxNation Podcast, Smith gave his thoughts on the New Yorker: “It was a very good performance, he got his tactics spot on. I think it was just that he was young, fresh, fit and with good legs.
“It was the first time Cotto looked his age, that why he announced it was his last one and this showed why,” argued the scouser.
The former champion will now look to regain his belt and is enthusiastic about the chance to face Ali.
“Yeah he is going to come up against someone a lot fresher than Cotto, 100%. Cotto’s a very strong fighter but he looked his age versus Sadam Ali," Smith said.
“Obviously I am 29 years of age, I think I’m coming to the peak of my career. Sadam Ali will have a different challenge in front of him, it’s why I’m confident I can go and take that title from him,” added ‘Beefy’.
Smith also gave some insight on the knowledge he gleaned from last weekend’s bout.
“I watched it to see what Ali did well. I tried to study him, it’s probably a harder fight than Cotto in a weird sort of way. He’s young, fresh, good and talented. I’m glad now I’m fighting Sadam Ali and I’ll be the challenger for the world title," Smith said.
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