Chris Billam-Smith vs Chev Clarke: George Groves breaks down cruiserweight clash

On Saturday, November 7, Chris Billam-Smith vs Chev Clarke headlines the Zuffa Boxing 12 event at the Copper Box Arena in London. Fight fans in the UK can catch the action on Sky Sports, while Paramount+ will be streaming in the US. Ahead of this cruiserweight clash, former super middleweight world champion George Groves has broken the fight down to Sky Sports.

Chris Billam-Smith vs Chev Clarke headlines Zuffa Boxing 12 in London

Chris Billam-Smith vs Chev Clarke will headline Zuffa Boxing 12, and it feels like a make-or-break fight for both, with the loser facing a long road back.

Billam-Smith (22-2, 14 KOs) suffered a tough defeat in 2024, losing his WBO world title to Gilberto Ramirez. “The Gentleman” has returned to winning ways since, beating Brandon Glanton and Ryan Rozicki. The win over Rozicki was his first since joining Zuffa Boxing.

Clarke (12-2, 9 KOs) was unbeaten until he suffered back-to-back defeats against Leonardo Mosquea and Viddal Riley. The Brit returned to winning ways, stopping Anthony Hollaway. Chev then decided to join the ever-expanding Zuffa stable, where he was involved in a wild firefight against Jack Massey, surviving two knockdowns, before stopping Massey in round seven.

George Groves breaks down Chris Billam-Smith vs Chev Clarke

Looking ahead to the cruiserweight main event, Groves broke down the qualities of both before picking the favourite for the bout:

“Cheavon beat him as an amateur and he is a better boxer than Chris Billam-Smith. But I can’t see him beating Chris Billam-Smith. Chris had a bit of time out of the ring after the Gilberto Ramirez fight. But I think through this period he’s maybe just refreshed himself a little bit. I feel he’s coming to this fight a little bit fresher than Chev Clarke.

“It’s a great fight. Chris is a bit of a nightmare to fight. He just keeps coming, you can be clearly outboxing him but he’s just going to keep coming and maybe that’s not what Chev needs right now.

“Chev is fast, Chev’s a really good boxer, he’s got good handspeed, he’s got good ring IQ and we know Chev can get up off the floor, he can dig deep when he has to. It’s a really good interesting fight. I make Chris Billam-Smith the favourite but you still can’t write off Cheavon Clarke.”

The Big Fight Weekend verdict

Chris Billam-Smith vs Chev Clarke feels like a winner-stays-on fight, and it’s hard to disagree with Groves’ assessment. Billam-Smith will keep coming the whole fight, but Chev can punch, and it’s vital he picks his punches and makes Billam-Smith second-guess his usual tactics. “The Gentleman” has a granite chin, while Clarke has a huge heart, shown against Massey.

This fight should give us plenty of fireworks; I just feel like the pressure tactics of Billam-Smith will give him the edge, but Chev will likely have his moments, and he needs to make the most of those chances. However, I see CBS winning by decision.

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Zuffa Boxing