Hart vs Smith Jr

Who won Hart vs Smith Jr?

Joe Smith Jr beat Jesse Hart by split decision in their 10 round contest on Saturday 11th January 2020 at Mark G. Etess Arena, Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in New Jersey.

The scorecards were announced as 92-97, 95-94, 91-98 in favor of winner Joe Smith Jr.

The fight was scheduled to take place over 10 rounds in the Light Heavyweight division, which meant the weight limit was 175 pounds (12.5 stone or 79.4 KG).

The undercard featured the clash of Nelson vs Kilic.

Hart vs Smith Jr stats

Back in January 2020, Jesse Hart stepped into the ring with a record of 26 wins, 2 loses and 0 draws, 21 of those wins coming by the way of knock out.

Joe Smith Jr made his way to the ring with a record of 24 wins, 3 loses and 0 draws, with 20 of those wins by knock out.

The stats suggested Smith Jr had a slight advantage in power over Hart, with a 83% knock out percentage over Hart's 81%.

Jesse Hart was the same age as Joe Smith Jr, at 30 years old.

Hart had a height advantage of 3 inches over Smith Jr. That also extended to a 2-inch reach advantage.

Both Jesse Hart & Joe Smith Jr fought out of an orthodox stance.

Hart was arguably the less experienced fighter, having had 1 more fights, and made his debut in 2012, 2 year and 7 months later than Smith Jr, whose first professional fight was in 2009. He had fought 6 less professional rounds, 150 to Smith Jr's 156.

Jesse Hart went into the fight ranked number 4 by the WBA, 8 by the WBC, 3 by the WBO and 8 by the IBF at light heavyweight.

Hart vs Smith Jr form

Hart had beaten 4 of his last 5 opponents, stopping 3 of them, going the distance once.

In his last fight before this contest, he had won against Sullivan Barrera on 15th June 2019 by unanimous decision in their 10 round contest at MGM Grand, Las Vegas, United States.

Previous to that, he had been beaten by Gilberto ‘Zurdo’ Ramirez on 14th December 2018 by majority decision in their WBO World Super Middleweight championship fight at American Bank Center, Texas.

Going into that contest, he had won against Mike Gavronski on 18th August 2018 by technical knockout in the 3rd round at Ocean Resort Casino, New Jersey.

Before that, he had beat Demond Nicholson on 28th April 2018 by technical knockout in the 7th round at Liacouras Center, Pennsylvania.

He had defeated Thomas Awimbono on 3rd February 2018 by technical knockout in the 1st round at Bank of America Center, Texas.

Joe Smith Jr had stopped 3 of his last 5 opponents.

In his last fight leading up to this contest, he had lost to Dmitry Bivol on 9th March 2019 by unanimous decision in their WBA World Light Heavyweight championship fight at Turning Stone Resort & Casino, New York, United States.

Previous to that, he had lost to Sullivan Barrera on 15th July 2017 by unanimous decision in their 10 round contest at Forum, Inglewood.

Going into that contest, he had won against Bernard Hopkins on 17th December 2016 by knockout in the 8th round at Forum, Inglewood.

Before that, he had defeated Andrzej Fonfara on 18th June 2016 by technical knockout in the 1st round at UIC Pavilion, Chicago.

He had beat Fabiano Pena on 23rd April 2016 by technical knockout in the 2nd round at Paramount Theatre, Huntington.

Activity check

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

Going to this contest, Jesse Hart had last fought 6 months and 27 days ago, while Joe Smith Jr's last outing had been 10 months and 2 days ago.

Hart's last 5 fights had come over a period of 1 year, 11 months and 8 days, meaning he had been fighting on average every 4 months and 21 days. In those fights, he fought a total of 33 rounds, meaning that they had lasted 6.6 rounds on average.

Smith Jr's last 5 fights had come over a period of 3 years, 8 months and 19 days, meaning he had been fighting on average every 8 months and 28 days. In those fights, he fought a total of 33 rounds, meaning that they had lasted 6.6 rounds on average.

What time did Hart vs Smith Jr start?

The fighters were expected to ringwalk at around 11:00 PM EST / 8:00 PM PST at Mark G. Etess Arena, Hard Rock Hotel & Casino, New Jersey, United States, which was around 4:00 AM GMT in the UK.

Who broadcast Hart vs Smith Jr?

Hart vs Smith Jr was broadcast on ESPN in the US.

What were the odds on Hart vs Smith Jr?

Jesse Hart was a 1/5 (-500) favourite going into the contest, while Joe Smith Jr made his way into the ring at 333/100 (+330) with oddsmakers.