British light heavyweight (up to 79.4 kg), former champion of the second middle division Callum Smith (28-1, 20 KOs) gave
interview for the British media.
The winner of the first season of the Super Series spoke about a possible fight against the unified champion from Canada Artur Beterbiev (18-0, 18 KOs), a potential fight between Beterbiev and former British challenger Anthony Yarde (22-2, 21 KOs), and also commented on the WBA-sanctioned fight between “superchampion” of the organization Russian Dmitry Bivol (20-0, 11 KOs) and ex-champion of the lower division American Gilberto Ramirez (44-0, 30 KOs).
Recall that Smith on August 20 in Saudi Arabia will meet with the Frenchman Mathieu Boderlik in a duel for the right to become a contender for the WBC title, owned by Beterbiev.
– Provided that you win the next match, you will aim for the world title. Artur Beterbiev owns the WBC belt. It’s a tough option for anyone, but what do you think of a potential fight with him?
– It’s definitely difficult. His record and achievements speak for themselves. He won every fight by knockout, he has three of the four titles. In my opinion, he is not just the first number of the division. But he has vulnerabilities. He has already fallen (knockdowns) twice in the pros. You know, sometimes you watch fights of some fighters and you wonder how they would lose if I was in the ring.
I’ve seen this done before. Since others could, then I definitely believe that I can (defeat Beterbiev). I don’t mean to say it’s going to be easy, but I insisted on the final eliminator to fight for the WBC title. I know who the champion is, I know what the fight is and I’m sure I can win! I will run this final eliminator to earn the right to fight him and this is a fighter that I believe I will beat. I chose this path.
- The promoter named the fighter who will throw Beterbiev off the throne – he is also from the Russian Federation
– There is a lot of talk about the fight between Beterbiev and Yard in October. If this fight happens, what are your thoughts on it, has the WBC said anything about this fight, and will you be in line for the winner?
— No, I have to focus on my duel. After my victory, they will be able to sanction the duel. If this fight is already organized, let’s hope that the winner should fight me after a certain period of time.
All in all, it’s a good fight. Beterbiev is a better fighter, but he showed one vulnerability – he was dropped twice in the pros, and what Yard can do is hit. We need to give him a chance in this fight. He was defeated by Kovalev, but performed well during the fight until he was knocked out. Therefore, I hope and I am sure that there will be a good fight, although I am leaning towards Beterbiev’s victory.
– Recently, the WBA sanctioned a duel between Gilberto Ramirez and Dmitry Bivol. What do you think of this fight?
– Good fight. I have known Gilberto for a long time. He was going up at about the same time as me. He was the WBO super middleweight champion and I was the WBA champion. He said that he outgrew his weight and went higher. He is about the same height as me. And I also moved up to light heavyweight. I followed him. Once again, this is a fight that can take place. Our fight was supposed to take place a few years ago, but this is definitely a potential fight for the future.
Ramirez is an undefeated fighter, southpaw with good skills, he can hit and I think Bivol would be a good fight stylistically. But Bivol is on the rise now, after a great win over Canelo. But styles make fights and I think Gilberto Ramirez is a tough fight for him.
- This winter we will definitely fight Beterbiev – Bivol – promoter
