Chris Billam-Smith claims WBO cruiserweight with majority decision win over Lawrence Okolie
- Planet Sport writer
- 28 May 2023
Chris Billiam-Smith and Lawrence Okolie went toe-to-toe in a tense WBO cruiserweight title bout, which the Englishman won by majority decision.
Chris Billam-Smith was crowned the new WBO cruiserweight champion as he defeated Lawrence Okolie by majority decision in Bournemouth.
Billam-Smith won it 112-112, 116-107, 115-108, to take the belt in front of his home crowd at the Vitality Stadium.
To get there, Billam-Smith had to pace himself as he weathered an early storm from Okolie, being forced to the ropes several times.
But in the fourth round, Billam-Smith caught Okolie with a huge left-hander, sending the champion to the floor for the first time in his career.
That was a big momentum changer, and Okolie was stumbling again in the sixth as he faced warnings for excessive holding.
Okolie tried to get back into it with a more aggressive approach in the eighth but he could not get back on top and was on his knees in the ninth and the 11th as Billam-Smith piled on the pressure.
As the bell went at the end of the 12th, Billam-Smith raised his arms in celebration, certain of the result, and the judges soon confirmed him as the new champion.
