Russian WBC and IBF light heavyweight champion Arthur Beterbiev cannot be considered a clear favorite in a fight with American Joe Smith Jr., who owns the WBO belt, the ex-WBO belt contender and former rival of Smith, the Russian, told Maxim Vlasov .
The unification bout between Beterbiev and Smith will take place on June 18 in New York City.
– It’s hard to say. Arthur is already a fairly old boxer (Beterbiev is 37 and Smith is 32 – “”). And Arthur has unstable performance, while he does not show himself very well in battles with not so serious opponents. There are problems in defense, he sometimes misses clean shots. And Smith can punch. Yes, Arthur also has power and punch, but that’s hard to predict. Two punchers meet in this fight, anything can happen in such fights,” Vlasov said in an interview with .
– So you don’t consider Beterbiev a big favourite? It’s just that this is the most common opinion.
“No, I don’t consider him an undisputed favourite.
– Another champion of your weight is Russian Dmitry Bivol. At the beginning of May, the WBA (Super) champion beat Saul Alvarez, the best boxer of the time, all weight categories combined. How did you react to this result?
– I was happy for Dima. In such a fight, he showed himself as a high-class boxer. Dima is a good boxer and a good person. I love it in every way. Very happy for him. For Russian boxing, this victory is very, very important.
I think Alvarez’s team underestimated Bivol and, on the contrary, overestimated themselves. Yes, they could look at his previous fights, where Dima might not look so bright. But you have to understand that it all depends on the motivation. Depending on this, a boxer can look different in their fights.
Beterbiev has 17 fights and 17 knockout wins, Smith Jr. has 31 fights (28 wins and three losses). In March 2019, Smith lost the current WBA (Super) light heavyweight champion to fellow Russian Dmitry Bivol via unanimous decision. And in April 2021, Smith defeated Vlasov by majority decision of the judges in a duel for the vacant belt.
Source : MatchTV
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