The critically acclaimed first season of the World Boxing Super Series comes to an end on September 28 in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia with the conclusion of its super middleweight tournament.
The finals pit two British stars, George Groves and Callum Smith, against each other in a fight with the WBA and Ring Magazine world titles at stake. Both Groves and Smith had been the top two fighters ranked by the WBSS at 168 pounds and both have provided memorable performances en route to the finals.
For Groves, who has been on a magical run as the WBA world champion since winning it in May 2017, he started the tournament with an impressive knockout win over previously unbeaten fighter Jamie Cox in the quarterfinals. Groves then followed that win with a unanimous decision victory over Chris Eubank Jr. in the semifinals back in February in what was arguably the tournament?s most highly-anticipated matchup.
The win over Eubank proved to be a grueling one as Eubank suffered an injury late in the fight. As a result, Groves had to undergo surgery which actually postponed the finals, originally set for this past summer in England. Groves? recovery in time for the finals was in doubt and Eubank was named the reserve fighter in case Groves was unable to make it to the finals. But now that Groves is back and fully healthy, the matchup against Smith remains intact.
Smith?s journey to the finals was relatively smooth. After winning the British and European titles earlier in his career, Smith was inserted as the No. 2 seed in the tournament, winning his quarterfinal fight against previously unbeaten fighter Erik Skoglund.
In the semifinals, Smith was supposed to face former world champion Juergen Braehmer but Braehmer suffered from influenza on fight week. Braehmer was replaced by Nieky Holzken and Smith turned in a record-setting performance in his unanimous decision win over Holzken. In that semifinal fight, Smith broke the all-time record for jabs thrown by a super middleweight boxer in a fight with 852 jabs.
The two middleweight stars are now ready to end the super middleweight tournament and stake their claim as the best 168-pound boxer in the world. The fight will be streamed in the United States and Canada on the DAZN platform.
Here is the full card (1 p.m. ET/DAZN USA, DAZN Canada):
- George Groves (WBA Champion) vs. Callum Smith (WBC Diamond Titleholder): WBA "Super," WBC Diamond and Ring Magazine super middleweight championship fight/WBSS super middleweight tournament finals
- Chris Eubank Jr. vs. JJ McDonagh
- Darren Surtees vs. Kane Baker
- Aliu Bamidele Lasisi vs. Artid Bamrungauea
- Kem Ljungquist vs. Mourad Omar
- Mikael Lawal vs. Tamas Kozma
- Zuhayr Al Qahtani vs. Giorgi Gviniashvili
Tale of the Tape:
George Groves:
- Record: 28-3 (20 KO)
- Age: 30
- Height: 5'11.5"
- Reach: 72"
- Titles Won: WBA "Super" Super Middleweight World Title, IBO Super Middleweight Title, WBA International Super Middleweight Title, WBC Silver Super Middleweight Title, WBU European Super Middleweight Title, WBA Intercontinental Super Middleweight Title, Commonwealth Super Middleweight Title, BBBofC British Super Middleweight Title
- Notable Wins: Chris Eubank Jr., Fedor Chudinov, Martin Murray, Glen Johnson, James DeGale, Paul Smith
Callum Smith:
- Record: 24-0 (17 KO)
- Age: 28
- Height: 6'3"
- Titles Won: WBC Diamond Super Middleweight Title, BBBofC British Super Middleweight Title, EBU European Super Middleweight Title, WBC Silver Super Middleweight Title, WBC International Super Middleweight Title, BBBofC English Super Middleweight Title
- Notable Wins: Erik Skoglund, Rocky Fielding
Betting Odds (Courtesy Of Paddy Power):
- George Groves Win: 5/6
- George Groves Win By Decision: 9/5
- George Groves Win By KO/TKO: 7/2
- Callum Smith Win: EVEN
- Callum Smith Win By Decision: 5/2
- Callum Smith Win By KO/TKO: 10/3
- Fight Ends In A Draw: 20/1
Fightful will have live coverage of the card, including round-by-round coverage of the main event.