Will Callum Smith be able to exploit Buatsi’s vulnerability?

Callum Smith will take another shot at world level, facing interim WBO light heavyweight champion Joshua Buatsi on February 22 in Riyadh.

Is Buatsi damaged?

It’s a formidable obstacle Smith has in front of him, challenging big-hitting Buatsi (19-0, 13 KOs) for his interim belt, but he’s catching it at the right time. Buatsi, 31, comes from a war with Willy Hutchinson on Sept. 21 and hurt him several times in that fight.

Hutchinson isn’t known for his power, but he showed what a fighter can do when he doesn’t give up and keeps landing. It also showed that Buatsi can be hurt and vulnerable if he takes enough hits. Callum had much better power and could take advantage of the chinks in Buatsi’s armor that Willy revealed.

Smith, 34, was knocked out in the seventh round earlier this year by unified heavyweight champion Artur Beterbiev on January 13. Smith (30-2, 22 KOs), a 12-year pro, put in a strong effort but was outmatched by Beterbiev, who floored him with an artillery flurry in the seventh.

Smith’s power

Some of the short punches Smith hit on Beterbiev would give Buatsi big problems because he was hitting the fences in that fight. Artur wasn’t hard to find with his left hook, but he walked through the shots to finally knock him out.

In his last fight, on November 30, Smith defeated the little-known Carlos Galvan by fifth-round knockout in a confidence-building act.

Former WBA super middleweight champion Smith’s career has slowed since losing his title to Canelo Alvarez four years ago in a one-sided 12-round unanimous decision loss on December 19, 2020.

Smith has fought only four times since the Canelo match, and obviously the money he got in that match has allowed him to be inactive. If Smith is going to make the most of the time he has left in his career, he should try to fight at least three times a year instead of annually.