Chris Billam-Smith vs. Richard Riakporhe Predictions – ‘Beats Him By KO’
Chris Billam-Smith defends his WBO Cruiserweight Belt against Richard Riakporhe on June 15 in a rematch of their 2019 clash.
Billam-Smith lost a split decision to Riakporhe in 2019, a fight that could have gone either way. Billam-Smith won the WBO belt with a majority decision win against his former sparring partner and friend Lawrence Okolie last year. A successful title defense followed against Mateusz Masternak. However, the performance was far from impressive. Billam-Smith was outboxed before Masternak retired in the eighth round with a rib injury.
Riakporhe is undefeated with a 17-0 record. 13 of his wins are by knockout. He has five KOs in his last six bouts. He enters the bout with a KO win over Dylan Bregeon. Riakporhe has improved since he teamed up with Angel Fernandez. His offense is well put together, with a tighter defense. With the power he possesses, he is capable of stopping anyone. Here are the predictions from some boxing insiders.
Billam-Smith Vs. Riakporhe
“Uh, good fight. You know, I’ve gone against Chris a few times. I thought Okolie would beat him. I do think Riakporhe beats him. I just think he’s a fresher fighter,” Eddie Hearn
“That’s a mouth watering one…I don’t usually sit on the fence. Whoever turns up on the day. It’s about when these championship fights about [what happens] on the day, whoever turns up on the day and executes the game plan their coach and team have devised as close as possible to the game plan will win,” Don Charles
“It’s an amazing fight for the fans, that’s a very good fight. So yeah, it’s very interesting to see what will happen. Richard hits very hard, but CBS is very tough, and he has a great game plan, and he’s been very active, but…Richard, when he was fighting, he’s knocking them out early, so it’s hard, man,” Isaac Chamberlin
Further Predictions
“I’m expecting a good fight. You know, these boys got a lot on the line. So, you know, I’m expecting maximum effort from both of them. You know, no quit… So should be good,” Jai Opetaia
“Billam-Smith has had a brilliant sort of couple of years, hasn’t he? But Riakporhe had a good couple of years as well. You know that they both improved a lot from when they first fought each other. I think Riakporhe is the fresher of the two. Billam-Smith has had a great run, but he’s had some hard fights. So there’s definitely more miles on the clock there. I don’t know yet, I haven’t made up my mind on who is gonna win that one,” Matt Macklin
“Billam-Smith has had a tough few fights and that takes a toll on the body as well. He’s shown that he’s got a great champion mentality, and he can pull through and weather those storms. For me, Riakporhe just edges it. He has beaten Billam-Smith before and knows he can do it once again,” Spencer Oliver
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