Billam-Smith came in at 200 pounds (90.7 kg), while Rozicki matched him at 200 pounds (90.7 kg) for the 10-round main event. The bout headlines Zuffa Boxing’s first ever UK event and marks Billam-Smith’s debut under his new multi-fight deal with the promotion.
The former WBO cruiserweight champion will be fighting in front of his hometown fans, but Rozicki has made it clear he believes the environment will favor the local fighter.
“Obviously there’s a downside. I’m going to be up against Chris. I’m going to be up against the referee, the judges, the officials and those doctors. They’ll look for any reason to stop the fight so he can get the win. I already know that,” Rozicki told FightHype.
When asked how he plans to not leave the result in the hands of the officials, Rozicki gave a short answer.
“With my hands.”
The Canadian enters the fight with a 21-1-1 record and 20 knockouts, giving him one of the highest stoppage rates in the division. Billam-Smith, 21-2 with 13 knockouts, wants to move back to world title contention after his reign as WBO champion.
Rozicki also reflected on the lone blemish on his record, admitting that he still believes he should have lost his first fight to Emiliano Peralta.
“That should have been a loss on my record. I still say that to this day. The first one was his, and that was the mistake I made,” Rozicki said. “I underestimated him going in.”
He explained that his attention had already shifted to bigger opportunities before that fight.
“I was looking straight at the WBC world title. I thought, ‘I’m going to knock this guy out in the first round.’ That’s what I did. I looked past him.”
The co-main event also cleared the scales with no problems. Jack Massey weighed in at 200 pounds (90.7 kg), while Chev Clarke came in at 199.5 pounds (90.5 kg) for their cruiserweight competition.
Elsewhere on the card, Lee Cutler and Aaron Sutton both weighed in at 163 pounds (73.9 kg), Stevie McKenna weighed in at 160 pounds (72.6 kg) against Casey Streeter at 159 pounds (72.1 kg) and Sam Hickey and Todd Tompkins each weighed in at 173.9 kg (173.9 kg).
In the heavyweight bout, Harvey Dykes weighed in at 270 pounds (122.5 kg) and Ivan Dychko came in at 243 pounds (110.2 kg).
All fighters successfully made weight, allowing Friday night’s Bournemouth card to go ahead as scheduled. For Rozicki, the goal is clear. He expects no favors and intends to leave no room for debate.
