Via Dan Ambrose: WBO light heavyweight champion Joe Smith Jr could land a big bout with Canelo Alvarez in May or a unified clash with IBF/WBC champ Artur Beterbiev if he wins tonight in defense against Steve Geffrard.
(Image credit: Mikey Williams (Top Rated via Getty Images)
Smith (27-3, 21 KOs) defends against substitute Geffrard (18-2, 12 KOs) during the main event on ESPN at the Turning Stone Resort & Casino in Verona, New York.
Assuming Smith successfully defends his 175-lb WBO title against 31-year-old Geffrard tonight in New York, he’s one of the few options for superstar Canelo’s next game on May 7.
It is believed Canelo will choose one of these boxers for his next fight over the Cinco de Mayo weekend in May:
Jermall Charlo
Ilunga Makabu
Artur Betterbiev
Dmitry Bivol
Joe Smith Jr.
With Canelo, of course, he can pull a name out of his hat by choosing someone you least suspect. In that case, he could be Daniel Jacobs, John Ryder, Gennady Golovkin, David Benavidez, or Demetrius Andrade.
However, it’s unlikely Canelo will choose any of these options as he is going through a belt mania phase where he is purely driven by his need to grab the belts.
Canelo will decide
“The ball is in Canelo’s yard,“Top Rated boss Bob Arum told Sports sky on Alvarrez, who will decide his next opponent on May 7, possibly Joe Smith, Ilunga Makabu, or possibly Jermall Charlo.
“Canelo is the biggest draw in boxing right now, he’s a great talent and a great boxer, and he more or less picks his opponents.
“He also tries to get the best guys. So he can fight [Artur] Betterbiev, he could fight Smith, but that depends on Canelo, and I think he’s looking to fight in May,” Arum said.
It’s hard to imagine that Canelo will pick undefeated IBF/WBC light heavyweight champion Beterbiev (17-0, 17KOs) as his next opponent on May 7 because that’s a huge leap. in terms of class and ability compared to the fighters he has faced since 2018.
Canelo has presented a role model over the past four years for the type of opponent he likes to face, and Beterbiev doesn’t fit the description due to his abilities.
All in all, Canelo picked opponents with virtually no chance of beating him, and he steered clear of fighters that could have given him a second career failure.
Beterbiev will have a great chance of beating Canelo, as will Benavidez, Joe Smith Jr. and Bivol. Therefore, none of those fighters were selected by the Mexican star.
Joe Smith Jr. participate in the Canelo sweepstakes?
“Joe Smith Jr. fighting this weekend. He was originally scheduled to take on Callum Johnson, which I’m really interested in because you’ve got two heavyweights going to fight it in a fight that’s going to end in a knockout,” said Chris Mannix on Boxing.
“Johnson had to bow his head because of COVID, and you have Steve Geffrard walking in. Geffrard won eighteen consecutive skirmishes but was a very low level opponent.
“Not too much of an expectation for Geffrard in this fight. What I’m quite curious about is not this fight but what comes next for Joe Smith because there’s going to be a lot of fun partying going on at Joe Smith.
“If you are Top Ranked, you might want to try Joe Smith vs. Beterbiev, three-belt fight at 175-lb. If you were Canelo and Joe Smith got through this fight, would he enter the sweepstakes?
“I doubt it, but he’s got a light heavyweight belt and he’s American,” Mannix said on Canelo, likely showing interest in fighting 175-lb WBO champion Smith if he wins tonight’s game against Geffrard.
“You can probably market the fight pretty succinctly, especially if you’re willing to do the fight in New York. Daniel Jacobs is out there and will fight in February [against John Ryder].
“That’s the person that was talked about between those two [Smith and Jacobs] in the past two weeks or so.
“Assuming Joe Smith gets through this fight relatively peacefully, how do you see him going in light heavyweight in the future?”
Beterbiev one pick for Smith’s next fight
Keith Idec said: “The obvious fight to make and the one everyone wants to see is Joe Smith against Artur Beterbiev. “Beterbiev is the biggest knockout boxer of any world champion, and he has beaten every professional opponent in 17 fights and 17 knockouts.
“That fight was possible because they were both co-ranked by Top Rank. The way it was explained to me, Joe Smith was not satisfied with the financial offer he received to fight Beterbiev.
“He wanted more money for the fight. If he gets that money, [Beterbiev vs. Smith Jr] combat can be put together. It would be a big event in Montreal at the Bell Center or at Madison Square Garden, or you could have it on Long Island.
“That would be perfect because Joe Smith would draw a lot of fans from Long Island for the battle. So you can make some money for the gate for this war whether you put it in Canada or New York.
