By Ian S Palmer
Bragging tights will be on the lines this Saturday, Oct. 9 as former WBO Champion Liam Smith takes on Anthony Fowler at the Echo Arena in their hometown of Liverpool, England. The 12-round junior middleweight tilt can be seen live in most nations on DAZN. Smith last fought in May when he dropped a controversial 12-round unanimous decision to Magomed Kurbanov in Russia for the vacant WBO International Jr Middleweight Title. Fowler last saw action in July when he stopped Rico Mueller in the eighth round.
The 33-year-old Smith won the vacant WBO Junior Middleweight Title against John Thompson via a seventh-round TKO in October, 2015 and defended it by stopping fellow Brit Jimmy Kelly in the seventh round two months later. He then defended against Predrag Radosevic by a second-round stoppage in June, 2016. However, he lost the title three months later when Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez stopped him in the ninth round.
Smith is also a former British Commonwealth Champion and became the first world champion to hail from Liverpool in 22 years. Since losing his belt to Canelo he’s won two high-profile fights with fellow countrymen Liam Williams and stopped Sam Eggington. He also had a shot at regaining the WBO Title in 2018 when he lost a unanimous decision to Jaime Munguia.
He carries around a record of 29-3-1 with 16 Kos and has also beaten the likes of Roberto Garcia, Zoltan Sera and David Romero. His draw was a four-round affair with Terry Carruthers in 2010. Smith is on the short side for a junior middleweight at just over 5-feet-9-inches tall and has an unlisted reach. Smith made his pro debut in 2008 and has 206 rounds under his belt since then. He’s got average power in his fists and currently possesses a knockout ratio of 48.5 per cent.
The 30-year-old Fowler enters the fight with a mark of 15-1 with 12 Kos and has boxed 83 rounds since turning pro in 2017. He enjoyed a fine amateur career with a record of 190-19 and won a gold medal at the 2014 Commonwealth Games and a bronze at the 2016 European Championships. He also fought in the World Series of Boxing in 2015 and participated in the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro where he was beaten in his first bout.
Fowler’s lone pro defeat came at the hands of Scott Fitzgerald via a 10-round split decision in 2019 after being dropped in the final round. He won the vacant WBO International Jr Middleweight Title in his next fight with a 10-round unanimous decision over Brian Rose. However, he’ll be taking a step up in class this weekend as Smith is basically his first upper-echelon opponent.
Fowler has a 1.5-inch edge in height on Smith as he’s 5-feet-11-inches tall but also has an unlisted reach. He’s got more power in his fists as well as his current knockout ratio stands at 75 per cent. Fowler lacks experience as a pro but with over 200 amateur bouts to his name he certainly has enough overall experience in the ring.
Prediction…
Smith is a pressure fighter who gave a good account of himself against Canelo Alvarez, Munguia and Kurbanov in losing causes. He hasn’t got one-punch knockout power but owns a solid chin and may need it as Fowler has impressive power. Smith is a tough guy though and his pro experience against tougher opponents could be the difference. It’s definitely not going to be an easy fight but I think he’ll do just enough to pull it out.
