Beterbiev vs Smith Jr

Who won Beterbiev vs Smith Jr?

Artur Beterbiev beat Joe Smith Jr by technical knockout in the 2nd round on Saturday, June 18th, 2022, at Madison Square Garden Theater, New York.

The fight was scheduled to take place over 12 rounds in the Light Heavyweight division, which meant the weight limit was 175 pounds (12.5 stone or 79.4 kg).

This contest was for the unified light heavyweight championship of the world, with the WBC, IBF, and WBO belts on the line.

The undercard featured the clash of Nova vs Ramirez.

Beterbiev vs Smith Jr stats

Back in June 2022, Artur Beterbiev stepped into the ring with an undefeated record of 17 wins, zero losses, and 0 draws, 17 of those wins coming by way of knockout.

Joe Smith Jr made his way to the ring with a record of 28 wins, 3 losses and 0 draws, with 22 of those wins by knockout.

The stats suggested Beterbiev had a large advantage in power over Smith Jr, boasting a 100% knockout percentage compared to Smith Jr's 79%.

Artur Beterbiev was the older man by 4 years, at 37 years old.

Smith Jr had a 3-inch reach advantage.

Both Artur Beterbiev and Joe Smith Jr fought out of an orthodox stance.

Beterbiev was the less experienced professional fighter, having had 14 fewer fights, and made his debut in 2013, 3 years and 7 months later than Smith Jr, whose first professional fight was in 2009. He had fought 46 fewer professional rounds, totaling 110 compared to Smith Jr's 156.

Beterbiev vs Smith Jr form

Beterbiev remained undefeated as a professional, stopping 5 of his recent opponents.

In his last fight leading up to this contest, he had won against Marcus Browne on December 17, 2021, by knockout in the 9th round in their WBC World Light heavyweight and IBF World Light Heavyweight championship fight at Bell Centre, Quebec, Canada.

Prior to that, he had won against Adam Deines on March 20, 2021, by technical knockout in the 10th round in their WBC World Light heavyweight and IBF World Light Heavyweight championship fight at Khodynka Ice Palace, Moscow, Russia.

Going into that contest, he had beaten Oleksandr Gvozdyk on October 18, 2019, by technical knockout in the 10th round in their WBC World Light heavyweight and IBF World Light Heavyweight championship fight at Liacouras Center, Philadelphia, United States.

Before that, he had defeated Radivoje Kalajdzic on May 4, 2019, by knockout in the 5th round in their IBF World Light Heavyweight championship fight at Stockton Arena, California.

He had won against Callum Johnson on October 6, 2018, by knockout in the 4th round in their IBF World Light Heavyweight championship fight at Wintrust Arena, Chicago, Illionis.

Smith Jr had beaten 4 of his last 5 opponents, stopping 2 of them, going the distance twice.

In his last fight before this contest, he had defeated Steve Geffrard on January 15, 2022, by knockout in the 9th round in their WBO World Light heavyweight championship fight at Turning Stone Resort & Casino, New York, United States.

Prior to that, he had defeated Maksim Vlasov on April 10, 2021, by majority decision in their WBO World Light heavyweight championship fight at Osage Casino, Oklahoma.

Going into that contest, he had beaten Eleider Alvarez on August 22, 2020, by knockout in the 9th round at The Bubble, MGM Grand, Nevada.

Before that, he had won against Jesse Hart on January 11, 2020, by split decision in their 10 round contest at Mark G. Etess Arena, Hard Rock Hotel & Casino, New Jersey.

He had been beaten by Dmitry Bivol on March 9, 2019, by unanimous decision in their WBA World Light Heavyweight championship fight at Turning Stone Resort & Casino, New York.

Activity check

In terms of activity leading into the fight, Joe Smith Jr had been fighting more than Artur Beterbiev.

Going into this contest, Artur Beterbiev had last fought 6 months and 1 day ago, while Joe Smith Jr's last outing had been 5 months and 3 days ago.

Beterbiev's last 5 fights had come over a period of 3 years, 8 months and 12 days, which means he had been fighting approximately every 8 months and 27 days. In those fights, he fought a total of 38 rounds, meaning that they had lasted 7.6 rounds on average.

Smith Jr's last 5 fights had come over a period of 3 years, 3 months and 9 days, meaning he had been fighting on average every 7 months and 27 days. In those fights, he fought a total of 52 rounds, meaning that they had lasted 10.4 rounds on average.

What time did Beterbiev vs Smith Jr start?

The fighters were expected to ringwalk at around 11:00 PM EST / 8:00 PM PST at Madison Square Garden Theater, New York, United States, which was around 4:00 AM BST in the UK.

Who broadcast Beterbiev vs Smith Jr?

The ESPN+ show began at 10:00 PM EST / 7:00 PM PST. The Sky Sports Main Event broadcast of the card started at 2:30 AM (BST).

What were the odds on Beterbiev vs Smith Jr?

Artur Beterbiev was a 13/100 (-770) favorite going into the contest, while Joe Smith Jr made his way into the ring at 507/100 (+510) with oddsmakers.