Promoter Eddie Hearn says Callum Smith still has to decide whether to fight with the WBC lights of heavyweight champion David Banavidez or defend his WBO tussenty belt next.
Hearn mentions that Smith (31-2, 22 CO’s) wants to become a world champion of two divisions, but he has “no easy touch” between the IBF, WBA and WBO champion Dmitry BiVol or benavidez.
Benavidez or BIVOL?
The way Hearn speaks, he sounds uncertain whether Smith will take the battle with Benavidez (30-0, 24 COs). It makes sense. It would probably be a smaller payday for Callum, and his chances of winning would be less than if he was fighting. We have already seen how good Benavidez is with the fight against big punches, with his two recent victories over David Morrell and Oleksandr Gvozdyk.
BIVOL: Vulnerable for pressure
In contrast, Biblical (34) vulnerability to pressure showed in his two fights against Artur Betterbiev. Although he won the re -broadcast with Betterbiev in February last year, he looked like he was crumbling in the early and late rounds when he was put under uninterrupted pressure.
Smith would do the same with Biblical (24-1, 12 COs), but he would not abandon the way of the second half. He will continue to push Dmitri hard and carry him off with hard blows. If you are Smith, it will be the better direction to go. Fighting benavidez would be a bad idea.
“I think there is the potential for that fight. Callum must now weigh, defend the interim (WBO lights of heavyweight) world title or fight David benavidez,” Eddie Hearn said Box news When asked about a possible battle between Callum Smith and David Banavidez.
It’s a difficult decision, said Smith. He has the fight with benavidez and the nice payday there if he wants, but his chances of winning would not be good. Unless the money is out of this world, he has to wait for the winner of the Bivolol against Betterbiev III trilogy.
Smith: Two Division Champion goal
“The key for callum is to become a world champion of two divisions. This is a very difficult task because you have David benavidez and Dmitry Biblical. There is no easy touch, and he knows it. He had a big fight with Buatsi for the past few weeks, and he will make a decision for the next few weeks.
Last updated on 06/19/2025