SHANE McGuigan-trained George Groves has targeted a fight with Callum Smith after building towards a fourth world title shot with a fifth-round stoppage of Andrea Di Luisa.
The super-middleweight, fighting for the first time under Carl Frampton coach McGuigan, rediscovered the sharpness, speed and reflexes that had eluded him during his past three fights when he disappointed in defeating Christopher Rebrasse and Denis Douglin before dropping a split decision to Badou Jack for the WBC title.
His performance on Saturday night suggested he remains capable of returning to the level he consistently showed before and during his two fights with Carl Froch.
He considered retirement at just 27 following the disappointment of losing to Jack, but now he again has several promising options.
“(Promoter) Eddie (Hearn) has tried to slip Callum Smith through in a final eliminator (for the WBC title) and I don’t even know the guy he’s fighting,” said Groves.
“I’ll fight Callum Smith for the number one spot, that’s a fight that interests me. That’s one of many options but if they want to present it, I’ll have it. I like Callum Smith [as a fighter] but he wouldn’t be a problem at all.”
Groves admitted retirement had crossed his mind after the defeat to Jack.
“You’ve lost a world title and you’ve been away from home for seven weeks,” he said.
“You’re down, in Vegas, and I can’t tell you how many times I was asked how excited I was to be part of the Mayweather circus. It was a long, hard slog. I just thought ‘I’ve blown this now’.
“I worked for a long time to get that shot after selling out Wembley Stadium and I’m on the undercard of a boring Mayweather fight in the States.
“But you come back and realise you’ve got so much left to offer boxing. I knew I had to make changes with my training team. So far, working with Shane has been fantastic and retirement is now a long way from my mind.”
