CALLUM SMITH, who won the WBA super-middleweight world title in September, is expected to make his first defence of the title in May of this year.
It might not be in Liverpool, with his promoter Eddie Hearn suggesting that he could go to the USA for his next fight.
โTalking to Joe [Gallagher, Smithโs manager and trainer] and the team, looking like May for his first defence. Just determining whether that will be in Liverpool or America,โ Hearn told Boxing News.
There aren’t that many superstars in boxing to fight and for the time being hopes of him taking on Gennady Golovkin can remain on hold. “GGG” is not one of the names their looking at. โNot at the moment I donโt think. But I think itโs a future fight and I think the Canelo fight is there in the future as well,โ Hearn said.
The UK does need new stars to emerge. George Groves, Smithโs last opponent, has retired as has Tony Bellew. Amir Khan and Kell Brook are nearing the end of the line. Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua are expected to fight in America next.
โYou canโt just think about the next six months. Youโve got to think about 2020 and if you donโt build them now you wonโt get those Box Office fighters because theyโre not going to be given that star billing. So itโs up to all of them to perform,โ Hearn said. โYouโve got that era thatโs sort of [ending]. Even the ones that havenโt retired, Brook, Khan, Crolla, those guys are in their last two, three, four fights.
โThe same with [Joshua] Buatsi, with [Josh] Kelly, [Anthony] Fowler, those guys theyโve got to step up and weโve got to see number one how did we do on the gate, how did we do on the ratings, what was the performance like. All these things.โ
โItโs going to take a little bit of time,โ Hearn added. โThereโs going to be that period where [Joshua] Buatsiโs going to headline, Josh Kellyโs going to headline and then youโre going to see who continues to perform, to impress, to rate and then eventually you find your next Box Office fighter because the one that does is that guy.โ