Battle with Liam Smith promises to show us what Kelly is really made of
The pairing of Josh 'Pretty Boy' Kelly (15-1-1 8KO) and Liam 'Beefy' Smith (33-4-1 20KO) as adversaries on the brilliant Joshua vs Dubois undercard was slightly out of the blue when first rumoured, however now confirmed fight fans are starting to really get behind this fascinating cross roads match up.
One slight surprise is that we will see Kelly jump up to Middleweight, when he had only recently gone up to 154lb’s. Perhaps the landscape of the division has played a part, with the Middleweight scene really being the weakest it has been in decades.
Conversely the world level landscape down at Light Middleweight is packed with killers such as Tim Tszyu, Israel Madrimov, Vergil Ortiz Jr and of course now Terrence Crawford. You would have to say Kelly’s odds of winning a world title up at 160 are far more favourable than 154.
Though not exactly a prospect anymore, this is still an engrossing cross roads battle, with the Sunderland slickster looking to finally announce himself on the world stage following a string of comeback victories over varying levels of opposition, regaining some confidence after a crushing stoppage defeat to the relentless Armenian David Avanesyan back in 2021.
For Liam Smith, defeat here would surely spell the end of a fantastic career where he has to this point only come up short against elite level opposition.
2016 Olympian Kelly has had an up and down career since switching to the paid ranks, at one stage being considered one of the best prospects in the UK, before his lack of power saw the hype train stutter as he moved up the levels, then finally reaching a crashing halt against Avanesyan. Since then, he has got himself back on an impressive run of form of five victories, the most notable being a career best performance with a shut out over domestic rival Troy Williamson for the British strap in December 2022.
Despite his resurgence, two questions remain. Will his lack of power prove to be an issue when faced with world level opposition? And finally, in spite of his slick, flashy counter punching style when given space to work, is persistent pressure always going to be his kryptonite? These were the two questions surrounding him prior to his last acid test against Avenesyan, which it turned out were more than just suspicions. After some eye-catching moments early in the fight, ‘PBK’ really fell apart after round five, unable to keep the unrelenting swarming attacks of the former WBA interim title holder at bay, with head trainer Adam Booth throwing in the towel with Kelly all at sea in the sixth.
For Liam Smith, even at this later stage of his career, providing the knee injury which was rumoured to inhibit him in Eubank Jr rematch has healed, one thing you can guarantee is that ‘Beefy’ will bring consistent pressure, body attacks and an increasing tempo down the stretch. If Kelly is to secure victory here, he is going to have to enter deep waters and overcome some demons that have seen him come unstuck before. If mental scar tissue does indeed remain from the bout with Avanesyan, the Liverpudlian war horse will rip the wound right back open for all to see.
It’s aspiring contender vs seasoned veteran in the last chance saloon. Slick counter puncher vs aggressive pressure fighter. For me it is the most intriguing fight on the entire September 21st undercard. Liam Smith is the man with the proven pedigree, however at this stage of his career, I think it is fair to say this one is a genuine 50/50 fight where come the conclusion, we will finally know if Josh Kelly truly has what it takes to go all the way.
