Ryan Rozicki Raises Judge Concerns After Making Weight For Chris Billam-Smith Fight June 6
Billam-Smith came in at 200 pounds (90.7 kg), and Rozicki matched him at 200 pounds (90.7 kg) in the 10-round main event. The fight headlines Zuffa Boxing's first ever event in the UK and marks Billam-Smith's first under his new multi-fight deal with the promotion.
The former WBO cruiserweight champion will fight in front of his home fans, but Rozicki has made it clear that he believes nature will favor the local fighter.
“Of course, something is wrong. I'm going to be with Chris. I'm going to face the referee, the judges, the officials and those doctors. They're going to be looking for any reason to stop the fight so he can get the win. I already know that,” Rozicki told FightHype.
Asked how he plans to avoid leaving the outcome in the officials' hands, Rozicki gave a brief answer.
“With my hands.”
The Canadian enters the fight with a record of 21-1-1 and 20 knockouts, giving him one of the highest stoppage rates in the division. Billam-Smith, 21-2 with 13 knockouts, is looking to get back into world title contention following his reign as WBO champion.
Rozicki also reflected on one aspect of his record, admitting he still believes he should have lost his first fight against Emiliano Peralta.
“That should have been a loss on my record. I still say it today. The first one was his, it was a mistake I made,” said Rozicki. “I was slowly taking him in.”
He explained that his attention had shifted to bigger opportunities before that fight.
“I was looking straight at the WBC world title. I was thinking, 'I'm going to knock this guy out in the first round.' That's what I did. I'm looking towards him.”
The main event also cleared the scale without a problem. Jack Massey weighed in at 200 pounds (90.7 kg), and Chev Clarke came in at 199.5 pounds (90.5 kg) in their cruiserweight contest.
Elsewhere on the card, Lee Cutler and Aaron Sutton both weighed in at 163 pounds (73.9 kg), Stevie McKenna came in at 160 pounds (72.6 kg) against Casey Streeter at 159 pounds (72.1 kg), and Sam Hickey and Todd Tompkins each weighed in at 73 pounds.
In the heavyweight fight, Harvey Dykes weighed in at 270 pounds (122.5 kg) and Ivan Dychko came in at 243 pounds (110.2 kg).
All fighters made weight successfully, leaving Friday night's Bournemouth card to go ahead as planned. For Rozicki, the goal is clear. He does not expect anything kind and intends to leave the room for debate.
