After four straight fights in his hometown of Bournemouth, Billam-Smith has accepted the challenge of a rematch against south London’s Richard Riakporhe at Crystal Palace‘s home ground, knowing full well the majority of the crowd will be cheering for his rival.
That doesn’t bother him one bit, though. Facing an opponent who beat him in 2019 and has won his last five fights by knockout would be a daunting task for many, but Billam-Smith is relishing it, and insists he will spring a surprise this weekend.
A year ago, Billam-Smith challenged for a world title against another big puncher in Lawrence Okolie. Questions were asked over whether he could withstand Okolie’s onslaughts.
He answered those emphatically by taking his fellow Brit’s best shots and responding with his own to send Okolie to the canvas three times on his way to a points win that sealed his first world title.
+6
Chris Billam-Smith (left) will get the chance at revenge against Richard Riakporhe (right) when they clash at Crystal Palace’s stadium Selhurst Park on Saturday night
+6
Billam-Smith believes he will shock Riakprohe with his power, after knocking down Lawrence Okolie three times to win his world title last year
+6
Billam-Smith is going into the lion’s den in Riakporhe’s hometown but is adamant he will emerge victorious to retain his title
Twelve months on, Billam-Smith believes he will turn the tables on Riakporhe as well, and prove that he carries plenty of power himself.
‘It feels very similar to the Lawrence fight,’ Billam-Smith explained to Mail Sport.
‘Everyone was talking about Lawrence’s punch power and how he’s the puncher but he never hurt me in that fight and I knocked him down three times, and I think it will be the same on Saturday.
‘I think it will be a big, big shock for Richard when he feels the power, my power, and everything that comes with it. I think the power is going to really surprise him and he’s going to really dislike being in there with me and I’ll get rid of him inside the distance.’
The first fight between Billam-Smith and Riakporhe five years ago was a back and forth domestic scrap that the latter won via split decision.
It was a very close fight and one that Billam-Smith opted not to dwell on as he set his sights on moving onto the world stage.
But he admits that defeating the only man to ever beat him in a professional ring has given him added motivation heading into Saturday’s main event.
‘A loss is never going to define me in terms of “oh no, but he lost to Richard Riakporhe”,’ Billam-Smith said.
+6
Billam-Smith lost a close decision to Riakporhe in 2019 (pictured), but feels he has learned from that loss
+6
He now believes he has the edge in experience and dealing with pressure moments in fights
‘It was, if I get the opportunity then brilliant, but obviously since then I’ve gone on and won numerous titles and a world title at that as well. I’ve just used it to spur me on.
‘Thankfully, I’ve got the opportunity to settle the score, and that’s huge motivation.’
Reflecting on the fight, Billam-Smith is adamant that his first loss was still a positive experience, and believes the experience he has gained from being in high-stakes fights ever since will give him the advantage over Riakporhe this time around.
‘The fight itself was great experience for me. It gave me a huge amount of belief in myself, where I hadn’t had any 50/50 fights before that,’ Billam-Smith added.
‘I think he kind of won the fight because of his experience. It was a really close fight, it could have been a draw, it could have gone either way, but the fact he was able to get over the line was just that little bit of experience.
‘And this time I think it’s the same but I’m more experienced now and all that experience I’ve had since then has built me up ready to take on this.’
‘[This fight is] perfect for me because I’ve had two headline fights at home before that and that helped me get used to it and build into the stadium fights, but for him he hasn’t had that.
‘He hasn’t had massive crowds there for him so it may affect him in a negative way. We’ll see. It depends how you deal with the pressure but for me it was a gradual increase in pressure, whereas for him it’s a big, big step.
+6
Billam-Smith has come through some big tests in front of his home fans in Bournemouth, and is adamant he is ready to win when the crowd is against him
‘A first world title fight, the whole show is built around him, so a huge amount of pressure.’
Billam-Smith is a big Bournemouth fan, and knows silencing the Selhurst crowd will be vital to his chances of getting his hand raised on Saturday night.
He points out that the Cherries completed a double over Palace in the 2023-24 season, and is convinced he will keep that winning streak going.
‘Bournemouth did it this season, beat Palace both times this season, home and away. I’ll be doing the same.’
Billam-Smith is not lacking confidence, and why should he? After winning a world title and defending it successfully in December, he is desperate to continue his rise.
Will it be repeat or revenge on Saturday night? Billam-Smith has no doubts about the answer.
