Callum Smith (left) and John Ryder (right) alongside promoter Eddie Hearn
The head coach says relationship with owner Marinakis is ‘not so good’
SATURDAY night sees two world title defences take place on opposite sides of the Atlantic.
In Liverpool at the M&S Bank Arena, Callum Smith puts his WBA world, WBC diamond and Ring Magazine super-middleweight titles on the line against John Ryder in a mandatory defence, while at the MGM in Las Vegas, the self-styled Bronze Bomber, Deontay Wilder, risks his WBC heavyweight title in a rematch with Cuba’s formidable Luis Ortiz.
For Smith, who cemented his status as an elite-level fighter with his clinical demolition of George Groves in the final of the World Boxing Super Series super-middleweight tournament in Saudi Arabia just over a year ago, victory over Ryder will set up the likely prospect of a massive legacy fight at his beloved Anfield next year against the likes of Canelo Alvarez, Gennady Golovkin or perhaps even Britain’s Billy Joe Saunders in what would be a classic domestic clash.
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Mary Kom’s fists made history in the boxing world. Malak Mesleh’s never got the chance. One story ends in glory, the other in grief — but both highlight the defiance of women who dare to fight, writes JOHN WIGHT
