Last year, WBO cruiserweight world champion Chris Billam-Smith achieved his dream by winning a world title at the home of his beloved Bournemouth football club. Before he can think about unification plans though, he enters into the lion’s den as defending titleholder itching to avenge his one pro defeat against Richard Riakporhe, a month shy of five years since their first meeting.
CBS: My mindset? An underdog challenger away from home
Chris Billam-Smith (c) vs. Richard Riakporhe 2
WBO world cruiserweight title fight at Crystal Palace’s Selhurst Park stadium
Main event ringwalks expected around 10pm BST tonight
- Who has evolved more since? Riakporhe (17-0, 13 KOs) scored a SD10 win at Billam-Smith’s expense when both were 9-0 pros back in July 2019
- Unwavering self-belief: Billam-Smith said winning while not 100% against both Lawrence Okolie and Mateusz Masternak in world title fights has confirmed he continues improving as a boxer with age and maturity
- On questions over his durability, as someone who tends to get hit a lot during fights: “If I was deteriorating, Shane would ask me to leave the sport. He’s my trainer but also one of my best friends, that’s not the case… I’ve been getting better, sparring this camp shows that and I feel it too.”
CHRIS Billam-Smith declared that his magical night against Lawrence Okolie last May would never be beaten, and perhaps the definitive nature of such a statement is part of the reason why many believe history will repeat itself when the WBO world champion enters enemy territory as the marked man in south London tonight.
He has other ideas – avenging his lone pro career defeat kickstarting a memorable weekend for travelling Bournemouth supporters to savour as Gareth Southgate’s England get their Euro 2024 campaign underway against Serbia tomorrow at 8pm.
“He’s tidied some things up, does better in some areas but it’s not going to benefit him here, that rawness got him out of situations like the Sam Hyde fight.
In our first fight, I was a different person let alone fighter… it’s hard to compare. I bounced around like an amateur and tried to dance around too much, Shane [McGuigan, his coach] wasn’t happy but I know what I have to do now.”
- Billam-Smith on Riakporhe’s improvements since their first fight in 2019, how things are different
While BOXXER were keen on organising another big homecoming after downsizing to the 4,000-seater BIC over the festive period last year to cap an unforgettable 2023, Chris is on record saying he didn’t want a return to Bournemouth’s Vitality Stadium.
“I need new dreams and goals, motivations, that’s where the siege mentality comes in as my mindset is of the underdog challenger. It’s much better that way,” he said during a roundtable media huddle with journalists hours before last month’s inaugural press conference in London.
His desire to venture Stateside and box newly-crowned WBA champion Gilberto ‘Zurdo’ Ramirez is well-documented, as were his efforts to lure both IBF titleholder Jai Opetaia and now-former titlist Arsen Goulamirian to the south Coast last summer before management issues with the pair saw those possibilities fizzle out.
He’s bullish about the voluntary title defence against Mateusz Masternak last December, mind. “I didn’t perform great, everyone was talking about my next fight but it’s still the best anyone had ever done against him.”
That night proved an uncomfortable watch as the Polish veteran was the more active and accurate boxer through six rounds before Billam-Smith grew into the contest, landing a pair of body shots in the seventh to cause an injury-enforced retirement.
Some mistake that sentiment for arrogance, but where does this confidence come from? Working tirelessly in the gym, listening to respected voices in his ear and making career-altering decisions as far as his training regimen is concerned.
When I asked the biggest thing he’s learned in the last five years, the 33-year-old pointed to his calmness through adversity, imposing and delivering intensity while patience was a common theme noted from the world’s best through his media work.
“Me and Shane have gelled for five years since [the first Riakporhe fight], we have 100% belief in one another, he knows I can follow instructions and he listens to me too. I’ve adapted my training in the last 18 months and that was a big shock for Lawrence, changed strength coaches and developed a lot there… tenacious before but now the punch power is showing and continues to do so.”
BOXXER’s Selhurst Park card, is as follows…
Main event: Chris Billam-Smith (c) vs. Richard Riakporhe for WBO world cruiserweight title, 12 rounds
Co-main: Isaac Chamberlain vs. Jack Massey for Commonwealth, vacant EBU European cruiserweight titles, 12 rounds
Light-heavyweight: Ben Whittaker vs. Eworitse Ezra Arenyeka for vacant IBF International title over 10 rounds
Light-heavy: Dan Azeez vs. Hrvoje Sep, 8 rounds
Women’s bantamweight: Francesca Hennessy vs. Dorota Norek, 8×2-minute rounds
Middleweight: Mitchell Frearson vs. Marco Simmonds, 8 rounds
Cruiserweight: Deevorn Miller vs. Edwin Mosquera, 6 rounds
Picture source: Lawrence Lustig / BOXXER
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