Although Callum Smith could have opted to remain at 168 pounds and work his way back up the ladder, following his defeat at the hands of Canelo Alvarez, the British native saw that initial thought as an incredibly bad idea. So, with his body eager for a respite, the now 32-year-old decided to try his hand in the light heavyweight division.
Thus far, Smith’s decision has yielded fantastic results as he's gone on to register back-to-back stoppage wins against Gilbert Rivera and Mathieu Bauderlique. Thanks to those victories, Smith (29-1, 21 KOs) now finds himself ranked number one in the WBC’s sanctioning body. Meaning, a date against current unified light heavyweight kingpin, Artur Beterbiev, could be on the cards.
Of course, the murderous puncher from Khasavyurt, Russia, fended off yet another title challenger just a few short months ago, stopping Anthony Yarde dead in his tracks in the eighth round during their January showdown.
Smith, unsurprisingly, tuned in to witness the WBC, WBO, and IBF titlist take care of business. Having studied Beterbiev (19-0, 19 KOs) for quite some time now, Smith acknowledges that his power is bone-chilling. Nevertheless, the former super middleweight trinket holder isn’t unnerved over the possibility of facing Beterbiev soon. In fact, not only is Smith anxious to share the ring with him, but when the dust ultimately clears, he believes that he’ll be the last man standing.
“He’s dangerous in the first round, he’s dangerous in the 12th,” said Smith to Matchroom Boxing. “He’s a big puncher, he’s a very good fighter. A fighter I respect, I rate but I do believe I can beat.”
Smith was looking to sharpen his tools against Pawel Stepien on March 11th, but last week the Liverpool fighter was forced to withdraw due to injury.
Despite the minor setback, Smith believes it won’t be long before he rewraps his waist with gold once again.
“I believe the time to become world champion is now for me. If it’s not now it’ll be never. I believe I finish 2023 as a two-time, two-weight world champion.”