Comments Thread For: Stephen Smith Finds Support From Brothers Paul, Liam

[BIGPOPPAPUMP]

“We fight as one and lose as one,” was the defiant message from the Smiths after a mixed night for the Liverpool’s fighting family on Saturday night. Liam posted an impressive stoppage victory over Barrie Jones at the city’s Olympia venue, Paul knocked out Paul Samuels in a single stanza, but the fight and shock of the night came in the main event, Stephen losing his hard-won British and Commonwealth belts after a tough tussle with Lee Selby.

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[SAJ10]

No disrespect but Samuels and Jones are both journeyman these days and both best days are well behind them.

Groves Smith will be an interesting match up. I didn't get the opportunity to see Liam Smith but look forward to seeing his progress.

Stephen I felt had been lucky to beat Simpson, at least once. I felt that a lot of people, particularly fans had underestimated Lee Selby.

It was a good fight with plenty of ebb and flow but I thought Lee looked the stronger of the two with a lot more pop in his shots. As the fight wore on the strength differential showed.

Smith is young and can come back from this, ko's like this can have a phycological affect on fighters, so you have to hope he can come back from it.

Plenty of fighters do though - e.g. Mackin.

Selby is a far better boxer than he showed on Sat night and he's proven he can mix it too against Smith. I he should get a lot of confidence and grow as a fighter now.

Just like Jamie McDonnell seems to have done. He grown leaps and bounds on the back of picking up a belt and it's condifence and experience that enables a fighter to grow like that.

[SAJ10]

One thing I definitely don't agree on is Smith's assessment that Selby couldn't punch. Not because of the ko, but because when Selby was landing body shots you could see Smith wince and when he landed up cuts etc - Smith's head was getting rocked back and hard.

Smith punches weren't rocking or moving Selby anywhere near as much, if at all. i called the stoppage, not that round but I said within the next three.


You could see he was hurting Smith and sapping all his energy. Smith's own fault for trying to go toe to toe. He should have boxed and moved once he felt his power.

Saying he didn't have power makes little sense when you watched the fight, seeing Smith head getting rocked back and then ko'd.

That doesn't happen if the guy doesn't have power.