Julian Smith is now the author of two major conflicts in 2024.
Shohjahon Ergashev was the latest victim, as the former title challenger was victorious in a split decision loss. One judge scored it 95-94 for Ergashev, overturning Smith's 95-94 scorecard in their ten-round DAZN junior welterweight fight Saturday at Little Caesars Arena in Detroit, Michigan.
A knockout in the fifth round gave Smith a chance to win (9-2, 5 knockouts). It shouldn't have come down to that. Ergashev avoided a second-round knockdown call and looked down most of the night.
The action was slow for most of the game, which worked to Smith's advantage. Ergashev (24-2, 21 KOs) failed to establish his jab and signature body attack. It caused an uneven charge for the Detroit-based Uzbek southpaw, who was booed by his home crowd for much of the night.
The first real threat of an upset appeared at the end of the second round. Smith — a legally deaf boxer from the Chicago suburb of Country Club Hills — hurt Ergashev with two separate right hands. The latter sent him to the canvas but was inexplicably waved away like a slip.
Smith made the count just before the midway point of the fight. A counter left hook knocked Ergashev down late in the fifth round. In this case, it was decided that it should be dropped and sounded the alarm of impending doom.
Ergashev picked up the pace, to some extent, in the second half of the fight. He lands his left hand with great balance, and occasionally throws a left to the body. Smith took the shots well and enjoyed continued success with right hands and left hooks.
Fighting evenly, Smith made sure to push the pace in the final two rounds. He wasn't always effective offensively but his aggressiveness was enough to dampen Ergashev's output.
It was heard on two of the three cards, as Smith emerged as an unlikely prospect. He stopped previously undefeated Orestes Velasquez in the ninth round of their televised match on Feb. 2 DAZN in Orlando, Florida.
Ergashev has now lost twice in his last three matches. The once-feared contender was stopped after five rounds against Subriel Matias in a failed IBF 140-pound bout last November 25 in Las Vegas. He also won by knockout earlier this year but the 32-year-old is back to the drawing board.
Smith-Ergashev takes place on the Claressa Shields-Vanessa Lepage-Joanisse DAZN undercard.
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