Buddy McGirt has been key to Callum Smith’s improvement, according to his brother, Paul Smith.
Smith fights this weekend against light heavyweight unified champion Artur Beterbiev.
The Briton is a huge underdog for the clash in Canada, but a win would give him a great platform to challenge Dmitry Bivol to become the undisputed champion at 175lbs.
Smith has been world champion at super middleweight but lost his belt in 2020 to Canelo Alvarez and, speaking to Betway, his brother Paul believes that the experience has helped him become a better fight.
He said: “Much like most things in life, you get better with experience and that is the same for Callum in his boxing.”
However, he thinks moving up the weight classes and working with McGirt is integral to his chances.
He continued: “I do also think that with the fact he’s naturally so tall, moving up to this weight will help his body. While the weight is a help, it has to be said, and as I’ve been so vocal in saying of late, a lot of credit should go to his coach Buddy McGirt. In any sport, having a coach is so important.
“We all know about the fact that despite their domination in their sports, people like Roger Federer, who is no doubt a better tennis player than his coach, still had a coach until he retired. The best coaches – as I believe Buddy is – have experience from so many different boxers and other coaches that it is so imperative to listen to what they tell you.
“No matter how good you are, or whether you believe you’ve mastered your craft, the second you think you don’t need a coach, is the second you’ll start falling apart. Nobody is ever too good for advice from anyone.
“I’ll tell you something, when Callum first joined Buddy, he went over to a gym in LA to meet him and go through a few different sessions from boxing to fitness and everything in between. I phoned Callum after a couple of days and he said to me, “I feel like a beginner”. And when he said it, I know he didn’t mean that he felt vulnerable. I knew that he felt excited that he knew he was going to learn and improve. He made sure he listened and he made sure he took on board all the advice that Buddy was giving him; and I can see the effect it’s had.
“I spoke to him after a few weeks in and his mentally was totally different. He had more belief and sounded more confident. He was invigorated and that was so good to see and hear. “