An injury to George Groves left fight fans having to wait for the final of the World Boxing Super Series, but the super-middleweight part of the competition will finally come to an end on September 28 when ‘Saint George’ finally steps into the ring with domestic rival Callum Smith. However, despite this being an all-British affair it will not be taking place in the United Kingdom, with promoters instead opting to cash-in and stage the bout at a stadium in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
The decision has left fans disappointed, but there is still a sense of excitement ahead of the contest. So will Britain usher in a new super-middleweight star in Smith, or can WBA (Super) champion Groves cement his status as the number one boxer in the weight class by inflicting a first professional defeat on the unbeaten Liverpudlian? As far as Groves is concerned, he is expecting a “comfortable win” in Saudi Arabia.
“In terms of in the tournament I think it'll be the toughest test yet, but it's nowhere near a step too far,” Groves said. “I feel I'm in the form of my life and I'm boxing better than ever, I don't see Callum posing a problem on fight night. Obviously we've got to be on our A-game. We know how to beat him and like always it's just another fight. If I go out and perform like I know I can and stick to the game plan it'll be another comfortable win.”
Smith, of course, disagrees and he insists he will finally complete his road to a world title by dethroning WBA (Super) title-holder Groves.
“That's his opinion,” Smith countered. “I'm in a good place, feeling good and training's going really well. It's a fight I've always liked and it's a fight I've always been confident of winning. I've finally got my chance now to go out and prove that I can become a world champion, which I feel I'm more than good enough to do. I'm expecting the toughest fight of my career and I'm training for that. I've always felt that I've always rose to the occasion and this fight is no different.”
Both men are talking a good game, but only one man can leave Jeddah as world champion and as Ring Magazine’s recognised number one in the super-middleweight ranks. For me that man is Smith. I have backed the Liverpudlian since before the tournament began and while his performances in getting this far have not been exactly headline-grabbing, I do believe there is much more to come from him.
On the opposite side, I have my concerns about Groves after suffering that serious shoulder injury in the semi-finals which required surgery to fix. I also have my concerns about his stamina. ‘Saint George’ may have gone 12 rounds against Eubank Jr earlier this year, but he is known to run out of steam in the latter rounds and Smith, a violent body-puncher, will be well aware of that. He is going to pound away at the champion’s ‘gas tank’ and force him to run out steam as the fight wears on. And of course, Smith has a big size advantage over Groves, standing four inches taller and boasting a longer reach by a massive six inches. The last time the Groves faced a man of this size it was Badou Jack three years ago this month, and the Swede worked over the body of his challenger on that night to claim a split decision victory. In some ways that fight can be a blueprint for Smith here.
So while Groves did look great against Eubank Jr last time out I believe he is in for a fall here. Smith is a much smarter, more disciplined and more intelligent fighter than Eubank Jr and he appears to have all of the tools needed to end his domestic rival’s world title reign. A late stoppage is not out of the question, but I am going to play safe and simply back Smith to win. After all, his quarter-final and semi-final outings did go the distance and Groves has been stopped just twice in his career – once in questionable fashion and once due to a thunderous shot from Carl Froch that would have KO’d just about any man on the planet.