Callum's Mexican stand-off

SMITH SETBACK IN BID TO LAND A MONSTER FIGHT

- By CONNOR O'NEILL

CALLUM Smith's hopes of facing David Benavidez for his WBC light heavyweight title have suffered a huge setback.

Smith is in possession of the 'interim' WBO light-heavyweight belt after producing a sensational performance to overcome domestic rival Joshua Buatsi last time out.

And he revealed last month that talks were progressing over a showdown with Benavidez, who was upgraded to the full WBC champion in April, two months after beating David Morrell in his second appearance in the division.

However, in a shock twist, Turki Alalshikh has confirmed that Benavidez will face Anthony Yarde for his title in Saudi Arabia this November.

"'The Mexican Monster' David Benavidez will be making his Riyadh Season debut in the month of November, when he defends the WBC light heavyweight world title against dangerous challenger Anthony Yarde," he revealed on X.

Yarde will be making his third attempt to win a world title, having fallen short against Sergey Kovalev in 2019 and Artur Beterbiev in 2023.