Boxing in 2020: Top 3 bouts to jumpstart the new year

2. Jesse Hart vs. Joe Smith Jr., light heavyweights

The hottest bout on a stacked Saturday, Jan. 11 boxing weekend is the light heavyweight showdown between Jesse Hart (26-2, 21 KOs) and Joe Smith Jr. (24-3, 20 KOs) on ESPN at 10 p.m. ET.

This is sure to be an exciting contest because Hart and Smith are more punchers than boxers.  Hart has a knockout rating of 75 percent, and Smith’s is slightly lower at 74 percent. Those high numbers make it likely what this fight doesn’t go the full 10 rounds.

Hart nearly became the WBO super middleweight champion on two occasions in 2017 and 2018 but lost narrow decisions to Gilberto Ramirez. He moved up to light heavyweight in 2019 and defeated Sullivan Barrera by unanimous decision.

Smith is a natural light heavyweight and made a name for himself by posting back to back knockout wins against Andrzej Fonfara and Bernard Hopkins. However, he couldn’t keep his momentum going and lost a wide decision to Barrera after the Hopkins win.

Smith lost to Dmitry Bivol in his last outing and desperately needs a win if he wants to avoid slipping into journeyman territory. He has a tremendous right hand and is likely to land it against Hart, but he’s going to take a lot of punishment in the process. Hart will likely be the favorite, but their styles should combine to produce a slugfest.

Hart is the better boxer, but he’s aggressive, and so is Smith. This could be an early Fight of the Year contender if it goes long enough. It could also end instantly if either man connects on a clean power punch.