Former WBO light heavyweight champion Joe Smith Jr. says he felt he was stronger than unified 175-lb champion Artur Beterbiev when they fought two years ago in June 2022. it didn’t end well for Smith as Beterbiev knocked him out in two rounds after dropping him four times in their clash at Madison Square Garden in New York.
Smith felt stronger than Beterbiev
New Yorker Smith says he can’t pick a winner in next month’s showdown between Beterbiev (20-0, 20 KOs) and WBA champion Dmitry Bivol (23-0, 12 KOs) on October 12 at the Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Smith attributes his loss to Beterbiev to being caught behind the ear with the right shot, being caught up with the crowd and the adrenaline of the moment. He started fast and tried to beat Beterbiev in the first round, and was dropped in the final seconds.
Rather than playing it safe, Smith came out fast in the second round and was knocked down a second time by Beterbiev. From there it was more of the same. Smith continued to attack recklessly and get knocked down by Beterbiev until the referee waved it off.
Bivol defeated Smith by a 12-round unanimous decision on March 9, 2019 in Verona, New York. That fight was also one-sided, but Smith hurt Bivol late in the match by hitting him with a shot after the bell. The scores were 119–109, 119–109 and 118–110.
“When we got into a clinch in that little bit of time, I felt I was stronger. I didn’t feel like he was overpowering me or anything,” Joe Smith told the Pro Boxing Fans YouTube channel, talking about his fight against Artur Beterbiev on June 18, 2022, at Madison Square Garden in New York.
It didn’t look like Beterbiev was trying to wrestle and was wasting energy during the clinch. This may be one of the reasons why Smith was given the impression that he was more powerful than Beterbiev, as he held tight to him. Beterbiev was too smart to waste energy putting a vice-like hold on Smith when they were in a clinch, and he didn’t need to. He dominated the entire two-round fight.
“He caught me with an accurate shot right behind the ear. Honestly, I didn’t even feel it. My legs went down, and they never came back,” Smith said of being hurt by Beterbiev in the first round. “I think he has pretty good power.
“If everything was right and the timing was right, absolutely,” Smith said when asked if he wanted a rematch with Beterbiev and Bivol. “These will definitely be great fights.”
It doesn’t look good for Smith to get a rematch with Beterbiev or Bivol at this point. Smith has lost his last two fights and is coming off a one-sided ten-round unanimous decision loss to Gilberto Ramirez on October 7th.
No clear favorite in Beterbiev-Bivol Fight
“It’s a fight that could go either way,” Smith said of who the Beterbeiv vs. Bivol fight on October 12 wins. “Beterbiev has great technical skills and great strength. He is very accurate where he places his shots. Same with Bivol, but Bivol has that in-and-out movement and a bit more agility. It’s going to be a big fight.”
Beterbiev threw his power punches between the punches Smith threw and caught him repeatedly. It looked like Smith was trying to overpower him, and that was the wrong approach to take against a fighter like Beterbiev. Smith did hit Beterbiev with some big shots, but it didn’t affect him.
“They’re both very accurate where they pick their shots and land their shots, but I can’t pick a favorite for me because I think they’re both great. Beterbiev happened to catch me early on in the right place, where I wasn’t warmed up enough. I think the crowd, the adrenaline and the hype of the fight just got to me where I rushed back to the danger zone where I was still buzzing.
“That fight, I believe, could have gone differently if I had had time to recover. We will see what happens. I think it (Beterbiev vs. Bivol) will be a great fight,” Smith said of his matchup with Beterbiev.
Smith is kidding himself if he believes his fight with Beterbiev would have gone differently had he recovered. He was never in the fight, getting nailed with right hands from the opening bell. It wouldn’t have been so bad for Smith if he wasn’t looking for a knockout against Beterbiev, as it put him in the crossfire of his heavy shots.
“Bivol does have enough power to stun you, but he’s so busy. He hits you with five or six blows that stun you, and then you’re stunned again. You start hesitating about what you’re going to throw because the busier you get, the more he starts hitting you,” Smith said.
Bivol’s combinations have good power, but not the kind that Beterbiev possesses. Bivol is smaller and weaker than Beterbiev, and he doesn’t win by knocking out his enemies unless they’re outmatched, like his last opponent, Malik Zinad. That guy had no business fighting for a world title against Bivol and should never have been given the opportunity.
