Chris Billam-Smith has upset the odds on multiple occasions to become an established and proven world champion but now he has the chance to etch his name further into the history books on the biggest of stages. Ahead of his biggest fight to date, the Bournemouth fan-favourite revealed that he is hoping to emulate.
‘The Gentleman’ shook up the cruiserweight division when he trumped the previously undefeated Lawrence Okolie and picked up the WBO world title in a showdown at the Vitality Stadium, home of his beloved A.F.C. Bournemouth, last May.
After a hard-fought win in a first defence against Mateusz Masternak, CBS returned to another U.K. football stadium when he rematched Richard Riakporhe on the away soil of Selhurst Park in an attempt to level the scores – Riakporhe being the only man to have defeated Billam-Smith during a 21-fight professional career.
Contrary to what the bookmakers predicted, Billam-Smith comfortably outpointed Riakporhe in London to reaffirm his status as a worthy world champion and set him up for potential unification showdowns.
In spite of rumours that he would take on IBF champion Jai Opetaia, who has knocked out three Britons in his last four outings, it was instead confirmed that Billam-Smith would meet WBA title-holder Gilberto ‘Zurdo’ Ramirez atop a Riyadh Season card billed as ‘Latino Night’.
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As he has become accustomed to, Billam-Smith will step through the ropes as the underdog as he attempts to become the cruiserweight division’s eighth unified champion since its introduction in 1979.
Speaking with the BBC, the 34-year-old explained that he is hoping to match the achievements of the only other Brit to have held multiple titles at the weight, David Haye, and bring both belts home.
“I’m just glad it’s a unification fight. The last Brit to unify at cruiserweight was David Haye, who is someone I looked up to massively in terms of fighting style and how he dismantled his opponents.
“It would be an honour to be a British unified world champion.”
“I’m confident in fighting him [Ramirez] but I’m not that experienced in fighting southpaws. He brings lots of different attributes, he’s super-tough and has a really good punch output.
“I’d say I have more of an advantage being settled at the weight, but he has his advantages too as he’ll be used to faster guys as he’s come up through the weights.
“It makes for a really intriguing fight and it’s a massive challenge for me. [Trainer] Shane [McGuigan] and I are already working on a gameplan. People saw a different side of me in my last fight but this time there will be even more surprise in what people see.”
Ramirez-Billam-Smith will take place on November 16th at The Venue in Riyadh, topping a stellar undercard which features an additional world title unification contest.
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