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Callum Smith has blamed the loss on unified light heavyweight champion Artur Beterbiev after being out of the ring for 17 months and having no savers in camp for five to six weeks leading up to the January 13 clash.
Beterbiev loss failure
In that fight, everything went wrong for Smith (30-2, 22 KOs). He was blown out by Beterbiev (21-0, 20 KOs) in seven rounds and made to look like an average fighter.
Kalam bounced back from that loss, knocking out little-known Colombian journeyman Carlos Galvan (20-15-2, 19 KOs) in the fifth round on November 30 last year.
Next up for the 34-year-old Smith is WBO interim light heavyweight champion Joshua Bouassi on the February 22 undercard of Riyad Beterbiev and Dmitri Bivol. If Kalam can win this fight against the undefeated Buatsi (19-0, 13 KOs), he could earn a final title shot against the winner of the Terbiev-Bivol 2 rematch.
Few boxing fans believe Smith will beat 2016 Olympic bronze medalist Bouassi. Bouassi can punch, has a strong chin and is aggressive. In his last fight, he went through pure hell with a 12-round split decision win over Willie Hutchinson on September 21st at Wembley Stadium in London.
Not known for his low punches, Hutchinson hurt Boisin several times just by staying in the fight and constantly landing shots on him. However, there were times when it looked like Boast was about to pull him out. The shots that Joshua hit Hutchinson in that fight could have been too much for Callum, and he was definitely going to fold.
No more excuses.
“I hate fighters who make excuses, but I’ve had 17 months out of the ring, after that you’d think, ‘I’ll get a lot of sparring,’ but I didn’t. I didn’t do any sparring for five or six weeks. I wasn’t prepared either,” Callum Smith told Sky Sports Boxing of his defeat to unified light heavyweight champion Artur Beterbiev on January 13 last year.
“So the arrangement was not ideal. I was out of the ring for 17 months. I really couldn’t afford to postpone it again and make it two years from the ring. That was the challenge. He had the belts, he was the champion. You live and you learn.
“I believed I would get it right at night and I didn’t. I lost the fight and paid the price. I went and reviewed what happened. I believe“What I’ve adjusted to is, I’ve gotten better and I’m a better fighter because of it,” Smith said.
Calum seems to be making excuses for his offense. Oh well, I guess he’ll have to try and say something to understand what happened to him in his bout loss against Beterbiev. It’s called ‘ego protection’.
“I didn’t do any sparring for five or six weeks before this” 🗣️
Callum Smith opens his defeat against Artur Berbiev. pic.twitter.com/4j3CdyWOd7
– Sky Sports Boxing (@SkySportsBoxing) January 14, 2025
