{"id":692281,"date":"2026-07-15T03:12:11","date_gmt":"2026-07-15T03:12:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/692281\/"},"modified":"2026-07-15T03:12:11","modified_gmt":"2026-07-15T03:12:11","slug":"callum-smith-expects-dmitry-bivol-to-honor-wbo-mandatory","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/692281\/","title":{"rendered":"Callum Smith Expects Dmitry Bivol To Honor WBO Mandatory"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>  <a href=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/preferences\/source?q=boxingnews24.com\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" style=\"display:flex; align-items:center; justify-content:center;&#010;            width:140px; height:40px; overflow:hidden;\"><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"660\" height=\"208\" alt=\"Add EBoxing News 24as a preferred source on Google\" class=\"perfmatters-lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/google.png\"\/><\/p>\n<p>  <\/a><\/p>\n<p>  <a href=\"https:\/\/news.google.com\/publications\/CAAqLAgKIiZDQklTRmdnTWFoSUtFR0p2ZUdsdVoyNWxkM015TkM1amIyMG9BQVAB?ceid=US\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" style=\"display:flex; align-items:center; justify-content:center;&#010;            width:140px; height:40px; overflow:hidden;\"><br \/>\n    <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"468\" height=\"128\" alt=\"Follow Boxing News 24 on Google News\" style=\"height:100%; width:auto; display:block;\" class=\"perfmatters-lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/follow-google-news.png\"\/><br \/>\n  <\/a> <\/p>\n<p>\u201cI always assumed he\u2019d vacate because I heard the trilogy was happening with Beterbiev,\u201d Smith said to talkSPORT Boxing. \u201cBut from what I\u2019m hearing, he wants to fight me next. So fingers crossed we can get it all sorted over the line, and we can get a fight on.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The WBO recently ordered Bivol to face interim champion Smith, with the winner expected to move forward as the division\u2019s leading champion after months of inactivity caused by injuries and mandatory obligations.<\/p>\n<p>Smith acknowledged the lengthy wait has been frustrating after spending much of the past 18 months on the sidelines.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s probably going to be the longest I\u2019ve had out the ring,\u201d Callum said. \u201cHe had an operation on his back, then he had to take care of his IBF mandatory before the WBO one was called. It\u2019s kind of a backlog. That\u2019s the problem when one fighter becomes undisputed. The mandatories line up, and you\u2019ve got to wait your turn.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Despite entering the fight as the underdog, Smith said he remains convinced he can dethrone Bivol if he performs at his best.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAs a fighter, I always believe in myself,\u201d Smith said. \u201cI believe at my best I can beat anyone in the world, and I still stand by that.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Smith dismissed the notion that Bivol\u2019s victories over Artur Beterbiev, who stopped Smith in 2024, mean he has little chance of winning.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cStyles make fights in boxing,\u201d Smith said. \u201cJust because A beats B and B beats C doesn\u2019t mean A beats C. I\u2019ve got to go in there, use my skills, use my attributes and make sure the best version of me turns up.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Former world title challenger Paul Smith also expects the fight to happen, arguing that Bivol has consistently faced every mandatory challenger placed in front of him.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHistory would suggest that he will take that fight in a heartbeat,\u201d Paul Smith said. \u201cIf you\u2019ve got your interim champion there, that\u2019s what he has to do to keep hold of those titles. So I believe that fight will happen next.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Youtube video\" width=\"480\" height=\"360\" data-pin-nopin=\"true\" nopin=\"nopin\" class=\"perfmatters-lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/1784085131_951_hqdefault.jpg\"\/><\/p>\n<p>Robert Segal is a boxing journalist at Boxing News 24 with more than a decade of experience covering fight news, previews, and analysis. Known for his straightforward reporting and ringside perspective, he delivers authoritative coverage of champions, contenders, and emerging talent worldwide.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"\u201cI always assumed he\u2019d vacate because I heard the trilogy was happening with Beterbiev,\u201d Smith said to talkSPORT&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":187167,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[41],"tags":[2560,101,56,54,55],"class_list":["post-692281","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-boxing","tag-boxing","tag-sports","tag-uk","tag-united-kingdom","tag-unitedkingdom"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/692281","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=692281"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/692281\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/187167"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=692281"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=692281"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=692281"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}