Super middleweight contender Callum Simpson is relishing being part of one of boxing’s most competitive weight divisions.
The unbeaten fighter from Barnsley, England, will face Italy’s Ivan Zucco, 21-0 (18 KOs), at Oakwell Stadium, the home of Barnsley’s soccer club, on June 7.
While Simpson is not taking the 29-year-old Zucco lightly, he has long-term plans and aspirations that extend beyond his co-challenger for the vacant European title.
Simpson, 17-0 (12 KOs), has boxed twice this year already, defeating Elvis Ahorgah and Steed Woodall.
He has spoken of moving up to light heavyweight in the future, but until then – and likely for the next 18 months – he will campaign at 168lbs, where he has so many attractive possibilities.
“Unless I get some crazy offer, like heavyweight,” Simpson told BoxingScene. “But, yeah, my plans are to win a world title at 168 – multiple world titles at 168 – and then move up when I’m ready. But I'm happy to do 175 anytime – happily. No issues at all. I think everyone knows I’m very big at the weight, and I think light heavy probably could be easier, to be fair. I feel like when I spar light heavies, they’re a little bit slower; the engine’s not quite as good as super middles; I don’t really feel that much difference in power. So, yeah, maybe light heavy would possibly be easy, but like I said, I make super middleweight too easy to not do that weight for the next 12, 18 months.”
While Saul “Canelo” Alvarez rules at 168lbs, having re-collected the IBF title against William Scull earlier in May, there are plenty of good fighters and lucrative opportunities at the weight – including Christian Mbilli, Osleys Iglesias, Jaime Munguia, Edgar Berlanga, Diego Pacheco (who will fight Trevor McCumby on July 19), Caleb Plant and a raft of others.
Domestically, however, the division is not so strong – and that is one of the reasons why the Boxxer-promoted Simpson is looking further afield.
“There’s some good talent there, but British, European – if you look at, in Britain, there's no depth at all,” he said. “I would have loved to have won the British outright already in good fights. But for me, anyone that I fight now would be a step backwards in Britain, and in Europe there’s Ivan Zucco, Mbilli and there’s not really that top class there, whereas I think mainly they are Americans. You got Caleb Plant, obviously; you got Canelo, Pacheco, Berlanga. There’s a few other Americans, but I think for me, the fight that I would like, from the top 10 – the world-level fighters that I like – probably Pacheco would be the next fight for me. That’s the fight that I want.
“I remember seeing Eddie Hearn in Riyadh [Saudi Arabia], and I told him, ‘If you do a 5 vs 5, I want Pacheco.’ I’ve seen an interview with Ben Shalom and Eddie Hearn, [and] they mentioned it there, and I think Eddie Hearn was saying, ‘Where’s Callum ranked? Where’s he ranked?’ And, unfortunately, Ben didn’t know the numbers, but I’m actually ranked higher than Pacheco with the IBF; I believe I’m ranked higher than him, and I’m only ranked one below him with the WBA, and then I think I’m still ranked top 10 in all four world governing bodies. So, yeah, I’m a lot closer to Pacheco than he thinks.”
The 28-year-old Simpson is ranked seventh with the IBF and WBA, 10th with the WBC and 12th with the WBO.
For anyone at that weight, the end goal is Canelo – and that alone would make it worthwhile sticking around 168lbs.
“You never know, I make the weight well,” Simpson said of the move to 175. “But if after this next fight, anything could happen, I might think, ‘Bloody hell, I struggled. I’m going to struggle doing this.’ But that’s not happened yet. I don’t see it happening anytime soon. So, yeah, let me clean up at 168, let me get my hands on Canelo ending next year and then we’ll push on to 175.”
Tris Dixon covered his first amateur boxing fight in 1996. The former editor of Boxing News, he has written for a number of international publications and newspapers, including GQ and Men’s Health, and is a board member for the Ringside Charitable Trust and the Ring of Brotherhood. He has been a broadcaster for TNT Sports and hosts the popular “Boxing Life Stories” podcast. Dixon is a British Boxing Hall of Famer, an International Boxing Hall of Fame elector, is on The Ring ratings panel and is the author of five boxing books, including “Damage: The Untold Story of Brain Trauma in Boxing” (shortlisted for the William Hill Sportsbook of the Year), “Warrior: A Champion’s Search for His Identity” (shortlisted for the Sunday Times International Sportsbook of the Year) and “The Road to Nowhere: A Journey Through Boxing’s Wastelands.” You can reach him @trisdixon on X and Instagram.