The upcoming September 21st event was poised to see Liam Smith make his return to the ring after last fighting in September of 2023, but an apparent illness of sorts has put him out of his bout against Josh Kelly. In lieu of these events, Ishmael Davis has now stepped in to replace Smith, and he will now be fighting Kelly in a non-title middleweight bout as part of a Riyadh Season-sponsored card featuring numerous well-known British fighters at the Wembley Arena.
The news of Liam Smith’s (33-4-1, 20 KO’s) absence was revealed as a “health setback” in a press release by Riyadh Season organizer and General Entertainment Authority (GEA) chairman Turki Alalshikh who has been a prevalent influence in creating the upcoming September 21st Joshua-Dubois card.
Ishmael Davis (13-0, 6 KO’s will replace Smith and face Josh Kelly (15-1-1, 8 KO’s) in a non-title middleweight (160 lbs) bout. Like Kelly, Davis is a super welterweight (154 lbs) contender with prior experience fighting at 160 lbs, and in Davis’ case, higher divisions.
Davis’ experience at middleweight further heavily outweighs Kelly’s own, with the undefeated Brit having competed in at least five fights at 160 lbs compared to Kelly―who fought at middleweight just once during his professional debut in 2017.
The rest of the fights on the September 21st card are set to continue as scheduled.
