Liam Smith wants world title shots and blockbuster high-profile name fight nights, whichever comes his way first as he prepares to return to the ring against Hassan Mwakinyo in Liverpool on Saturday night.
The 34-year-old is riding the momentum of impressive wins over Anthony Fowler and, most recently, Jessie Vargas in New York having been dealt a setback in defeat to Magomed Kurbanov in Russia back in May 2012.
“I don’t want to sit here and keep having tick-over fights and keep getting little paychecks here and there,” said Smith in Thursday’s pre-fight press conference. “I want to have a huge fight people will talk about or I want to challenge for a world title again.
“I’m two, three and four in three of the governing bodies so I want to beat Hassan well on Saturday and prove I’m ready for another shot at a world title.
“If you can’t deliver another world title fight because the belts are tied up, then I want a big fight people are talking about.
“Obviously Chris Eubank is easy to make because of the Sky situation, that’s one I’ll take. Even if it’s not him, make another huge fight and I’ll take it.
The former WBO light-middleweight champion lost his title after losing to Canelo Álvarez in September 2016, and was unable to win it back against Jaime Munguía two years later.
But Smith insists he still has a lot left to offer in the ring after signing with Boxxer this year in view of a return to the biggest stage.
“That comes with the family I’m from. People think ‘am I overlooking Hassan or coming to the end?’ Believe me, I’m from too good a family for both of them things,” he explained.
“If I’m taking my eye off the ball with Hassan I’ll be told, if I’m coming towards the end of my career I’ll be told – I’m not getting told anything like that yet so I’ve still got a lot to give.”
Smith has long been linked to a fight against Chris Eubank Jr, who is currently gearing up to face Conor Benn in October.
While acknowledging the threat posed by Mwakinyo, Boxxer CEO Ben Shalom believes big nights lie ahead for Smith.
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“We’re under no illusions, we wanted the Eubank fight next but everybody knows Liam Smith is a very very tough fight and if there’s an easier fight on the table people are going to take it,” said Shalom.
“It was important for us to get him back on the platform, important for us to do a homecoming. I think it will be a massive night on Saturday night.
“Then it’s the business end, then we’re into world titles and big fights. Liam is ready for big fights and has been for a long time.”
Fellow Liverpudlian Natasha Jonas also features on Saturday’s card in front of a home crowd when she looks to unify the WBO and WBC super-welterweight world titles against Patricia Berghult.
Jonas ended her long wait for a world title in February by beating Chris Namús by second-round TKO in Manchester, but finds herself wanting even more.
“Like any great athlete or sports person, once you’ve reached a goal you kind of have to set the bar a little bit higher and set it higher and have another goal to strive to, that’s exactly what I’ve done,” said Jonas.
“When Ben (Shalom) said to me on the Monday night after telling me on the Thursday we couldn’t get the other fight, ‘do you want this fight?’, I jumped at the opportunity because the green and gold belt is something I think most boxers aspire to have.”
Sweden’s Berghult enters 15-0 in her career having beaten Olivia Belkacem to win her WBC belt last time out following a unanimous decision win over Hannah Rankin in 2019.
It awaits as the kind of challenge others might have swerved when defending a title for the first time.
“I just love when it’s not all going to go my way, I think that brings out the best in me,” added Jonas. “When I’ve got that little bit of fear factor like with Terri (Harper), with Katie (Taylor), it pulls out the best performance in me.
“Nothing has changed in that. I am cautious of what she brings and that fear factor makes me switch on.”