Liam Smith would welcome a possible rematch against Jaime Munguia, who defeated him via unanimous decision last July. But first he has a long-awaited Liverpool homecoming Saturday against fellow Brit, Sam Eggington, live and exclusively on DAZN. If he defeats Eggington and does it convincingly, Smith thinks he'd have a better faring in a rematch against Munguia.
"I don’t feel that [Munguia's] a top fighter — he can punch fairly hard for a young kid, but he is still very green and that’s what frustrated me a little bit," Smith told Sporting News about his loss last year. "He was very clumsy. I countered his jab very easily, but then his engine kicked in during the back end of the fight. He kept going and mine faded off. I feel it was more down to myself than it was down to Jaime Munguia. I faded in that fight which I don’t normally do. I can’t put my finger on what that was, but I had one fight in November 2017 then in July 2018 and that may have played its part. I didn’t go out to Vegas until June 24, so that didn’t help either. But I put my performance down to something like that. I’d welcome a rematch with Munguia, definitely.”
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Another fight that he'd be interested in down the road? A potential domestic clash with former IBF welterweight Kell Brook.
“If that fight comes to us and it is the right deal for us, I’m sure Joe [Gallagher] and myself would take the fight in a heartbeat," Smith said. "Kell is a top fighter, he’s one of the big names in the division and I want to be involved in the big fights. It’s a big fight domestically and one that everyone would look forward to. At 154, I can get to Kell and cause him problems. He’s a good fighter and I rate him [high], but it’s a fight I would be very confident going into. It’s a fight that I want. I’ve been at 154 for a long time, so I just feel that if the fight got made, I would be very confident. We’ve sparred in the past a few times, so we know each other and stylistically it’s a fight I’d like. With both of us being signed to Matchroom, it should be easy to make it happen”.
All that being said, Smith (26-2-1, 14 KOs) knows that he can't overlook a dangerous fighter in Eggington (24-5, 15 KOs) , who's a boxer that likes to come forward, while constantly applying pressure. And it's not that the former WBO super welterweight champion is overlooking Eggington — because he's not. It's more that Smith is confident that he's going to return to championship form.
“I feel that with momentum and being active, I am confident that I can become a two-time world champion," Smith said. "With the sparring I’m doing and the training, I feel I can beat anyone around me, and I am 100 percent focused. [Eggington's] a nice kid, I respect him and his coach, but, yeah, what you see is what you get with him. He’ll come and give it his all, but stylistically if you asked me for a fighter I want to face, I would have said Sam Eggington. I won’t need to go looking for Sam and I feel that will bring the best out of me. So, I’m looking forward to it, definitely.”
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It's an exciting time for Smith, who recently switched promotion companies from Hall of Fame boxing promoter Frank Warren and Queensberry Promotions to Eddie Hearn’s Matchroom Boxing in a move that was a long time coming. Getting to headline a card at home just adds to his overall excitement.
“I’ve seen what Eddie’s been doing with my three brothers [Paul, Callum and Stephen] and I felt the time was right to join Matchroom, with their deal Eddie is doing with DAZN and the American fighters in my division," Smith said. "So, I felt it was the right time to make the move. I’m top of the bill on a very good card in my home city. I’ve been waiting for big fights and big shows and Eddie has delivered. I’m looking forward to being back in Liverpool, it’s been a long time. I know [Eggington] has a lot to prove, but I’m in my home city and I have a lot more to prove as well to Eddie, Sky Sports and DAZN. I must make all these people excited that they have signed me and put on a performance that proves they were right to sign me. It’s been a long time coming in me signing to Matchroom and I feel it’s the wrong time for Sam.”