Boxing: Mitchell Smith hopes European win can take him closer to world title

English super-featherweight champion Mitchell Smith hopes winning the WBO European title later this month will take him closer to fulfilling his dream of becoming a world champion inside two years.

The undefeated Harrow fighter takes on Hungarian champion Zoltan Kovacs on the undercard of Tyson Fury’s British and European title bout with Dereck Chisora on November 29.

And Smith, who turns 22 five days before the bout, is confident he can become a world champion before he turns 24.  

“Zoltan Kovacs is the Hungarian champion and he’s won his last 11 fights in a row, so he’s on a winning streak and I don’t think he’s coming over to make the numbers up,” Smith told Sky Sports.

“I’ve been going through this camp knowing this fight is a big opportunity for me and everything has been going great. He’s coming over to win the title which will get either of us in the top 15 in the world with the WBO.

“This fight can get me that top 15 world ranking which can lead me into a WBO Inter-Continental title bout and then four or five fights down the line I could be fighting for a WBO world title which is something that I really want.

“I want to be a world champion and this fight will definitely bring me closer to my dream. We could be talking about only 12-18 months from now but I want to be a world champion before my 24th birthday.

“I feel like it’s in touching distance now. Everything that was a dream for me is starting to become a reality and it’s time for me to grab it with both hands.”

Smith, who has a perfect record from nine fights, was expected to pursue the British title but insists his career ambitions are far greater than that.  

“Every fighter in this country wants to win a British title but that is not the be all and end all for me,” he said.

“I think in my English title fight against Peter Cope I didn’t really go through the gears. I outboxed him and won every round on all three of the judges’ scorecards.

“We went back to the gym after that fight and reviewed our options. We could have defended the English title, but I thought I could have a fight like that against a fellow Englishman for the British title in the future.

“So we looked at this vacant title and thought it was a perfect. He’s had 15 fights, I’ve had 9 so he has a little bit more experience than me, but it’s a good opportunity for me to step up to world level.”