ADAM Azim remains less than impressed with Dalton Smith’s last two performances, urging his domestic rival to grab the bull by the horns and accelerate his progression.
The unbeaten super-lightweight operators have been on a collision course for well over a year, it seems, and yet their mouth-watering matchup appears no closer to materialising.
Often, those who argue that Smith, 18-0 (13 KOs), has the upper hand will insist that his experience, more than anything else, is far superior to that of Azim’s.
The 28-year-old is, after all, sitting on the cusp of a world title shot, with his number-one WBC ranking putting him in pole position to challenge the winner of Alberto Puello vs Subriel Matias, which takes place on July 12.
But while his talent is undeniable, Smith has done very little – beyond his fifth-round stoppage victory over Jose Zepeda last year, that is – to prove that he is a leading contender at 140lbs.
In truth, his last two opponents – Walid Ouizza and Mathieu Germain – offered virtually no resistance, with the former succumbing to a first-round finish and the latter practicing his marathon training.
For that reason, Azim, 13-0 (10 KOs), firmly believes that his development has not only been more calculated, but has also kept him on an upwards trajectory.
Stoppage victories over Sergey Lipinets and Ohara Davies, in his view, far outweigh the body of work that Smith has amassed in recent years.
And while his next opponent is yet to be announced, Boxxer promoter Ben Shalom has teased that the 23-year-old could collide with former two-time world champion Regis Prograis.
In any case, though, ‘The Assassin’ did not hold back when offering his two pence worth on Smith’s career.
“It’s a bit shocking because how can you go from Zepeda into fighting two average fighters,” Azim told Sky Sports.
“Look at the fights I’ve been taking: Ohara Davies, Sergey Lipinets – two great fighters, good fighters and very tough fights. He’s not going into tough fights.
“If you’re mandatory to fight for the world title, [then] fight for the world title. I don’t know what he’s holding back for. If you don’t fight for the world title, then you’re going to lose that opportunity.”
