By Tim Royner: Callum Smith is still waiting to get the phone call from Golden Boy promotions to let him know he’s got the golden ticket to face Canelo Alvarez on May 2 in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Callum wants to find out already whether he’s got the Canelo fight so that he can start looking for a Plan-B option, but he’s got no choice. He has to wait. It won’t be long now though, since Canelo and Golden Boy must make the decision soon in order to start promoting the fight before May 2.
The 6’3″ Smith (27-0, 19 KOs) says he has no doubts that he’ll beat Canelo (53-1-2, 36 KOs). He’s sized the talented superstar up and he feels got what it takes to send him crashing down to his second career defeat.
Before Smith’s recent effort against John Ryder, he may have been too intimidating to get the big names like Canelo to fight him, but that might have changed now. Last November, Smith looked human against Ryder, and he barely escaped with a win. In fact, many of Smith’s own fans think he deserved a loss.
Canelo’s team might view Callum as beatable enough to take the fight with him now. So it’s not a bad thing that Smith didn’t look great against Ryder, because it might help him get the Canelo fight.
Smith and Saunders waiting on Canelo
Callum says that he thinks it’ll be him or Billy Joe Saunders that Canelo, 29, picks for his next fight on Cinco de Mayo on the 2nd of May. But if Callum doesn’t get the fight, he’s not worried.
Callum will have his promoters at Matchroom Boxing put him in with one of these guys:
- Billy Joe Saunders
- David Benavidez
- Daniel Jacobs
- Caleb Plant
Jacobs might be Callum’s best chance for a big fight, especially if Canelo selects Saunders (29-0, 14 KOs) as his May 2 options. ‘The Miracle Man’ Jacobs has already expressed interest in challenging Callum for his WBA super middleweight title.
If Canelo chooses to go in a different direction, then Callum will have a shot at facing Jacobs in his next defense. Jacobs just got a nice payday against Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. last December, and he might not want to get back into the ring against a live body so soon against Callum. Going from fighting Chavez Jr. to Callum would be a big shock for Jacobs, who isn’t young at 33.
Callum Smith: I’ll beat Canelo Alvarez
“The decision lies with Canelo who he fights. I’m sitting and waiting,” said Callum to Boxing Social. “If it happens, great. I believe it’s a fight I win. If it doesn’t, I’m in a very good division with Billy Joe Saunders, Danny Jacobs, and a lot of top names.
“If not Canelo, I’ll be ready for a big fight, whoever it is,” said Callum. “I believe it’s 50-50 between me and Billy Joe, that’s what I’m reading. I’m probably closer to the fight than I’ve ever been. And I’m not complaining, but I would like a date, and I would like the opponent confirmed now.
“I’m waiting for the confirmation. Probably only Canelo’s team knows,” Callum said. “I’m just waiting for the phone call. If it’s not Canelo on May 2nd, I’d like to fight around that time anyway. It could be Canelo. That’s the fight I want,” said Smith.
Canelo-Callum is a more entertaining fight on paper than Canelo-Saunders, but it depends on what version of Callum we see. If it’s the Callum Smith that defeated George Groves, then Canelo is going to be in for a hard fight on May 2. But the Callum that we saw go life and death with Ryder, he loses to Canelo badly, and possibly by a knockout. the way that Ryder was able to walk Callum down, get inside to land shots, that’s something that Canelo will be doing all night.
The difference in punching power between Canelo and Ryder will be dramatic. The shots that Ryder was bouncing off Callum’s chin and body at close range would likely be knockout blows with Canelo throwing them.
Callum wants Saunders, Jacobs, Plant or Benavidez if no Canelo fight
“If I don’t get Canelo, then Billy Joe will, and that fight goes [off the table] as well. But of course, if neither of us get it, then that’s a fight [Smith vs. Saunders] that can be made. Danny Jacobs is a good fight.
“There’s other champions obviously with PBC, and it’s not impossible to make those fights,” said Callum. “Caleb Plant and [David] Benavidez. I’m in a good division, and not all roads lead to one fighter. There’s a lot of other good fighters out there for me. I believe I’m the best super middleweight in the world, and I believe I’ll beat anyone at 168.
“I think this year or next year, I’ll be able to prove it, and I’ll be involved in a big fight. It’s really quiet right now. I never felt I’d get this fight, but I think I’m closer than I’ve ever been,” said Callum.
Whoever Callum ends up with, it’s going to be a good fight. Callum’s promoter Eddie Hearn will match him against a good fighter regardless, but we’d like to see it be Canelo.
It would be in Canelo’s best interest to take the fight with Smith so that he could show the boxing world that he’s not a cherry picker, who fights guys when they’re on the downside of their careers. Canelo has gotten that reputation with his recent fight against Sergey Kovalev. He could have fought IBF/WBC 175-lb champion Artur Beterbiev, but he went with the faded 36-year-old Kovalev.