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According to ESPN correspondent Mike Coppinger, Artur Beterbiev vs. Joe Smith Jr. has been agreed in principle for June 18th in New York. The fight will be a unification with the WBC, IBF and WBO Light-Heavyweight titles on the line.
Artur Beterbiev is coming off a ninth-round KO victory against Marcus Browne that took place in December. The Russian remains undefeated, and has a perfect record of 17 wins and 17 knockouts.
Due to his devastating punching power and esteemed amateur background, Artur Beterbiev is considered one of the best light-heavyweights in the world. Pound-for-pound king Canelo Alvarez was considering the Russian as his next opponent prior to signing a deal with DAZN.
Similarly, Joe Smith Jr. fought in December against Steve Geffrard and claimed a knockout in the ninth round. Despite having a few losses on his record, the American is on a four-fight winning streak and has previously beaten the likes of Bernard Hopkins and Eleider Alvarez.
At 37, Beterbiev is five years older than Smith Jr. but the hard-hitting Russian has shown no signs that his performance is deteriorating. Regardless, both possess knockout power and it should be a thrilling contest.
Artur Beterbiev vs. Joe Smith Jr. - who will the winner fight next?
The winner of this bout will have three out of the four light-heavyweight world titles. Hence, they will be in prime position to face the winner of Canelo Alvarez vs. Dmitry Bivol in a unification contest. Alvarez and Bivol fight for the WBO title on May 7th at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
However, according to British light-heavyweight Anthony Yarde, he is the mandatory challenger for the WBO Light-Heavyweight Championship and could also face the winner:
"I was next in line for that fight. I was told that I was next in line for that belt, unification got made, so I'm next in line for that belt. Again, the only one that can come in and swindle that is Canelo."
Watch the full video with Yarde below:
Alvarez has already agreed to fight Gennadiy Golovkin in September. Hence, it is plausible that 'The Beast' could face the winner of Beterbiev-Smith Jr. in the summer.
