What a moment for Dalton Smith, defending his WBC super lightweight title in front of his home crowd in Sheffield.

That’s the stuff dreams are made of. He is, however, facing former champion Alberto Puello, who is looking to turn Smith's big night into a nightmare.

Smith shot to prominence in January, stopping Subriel Matias inside five rounds in New York. In his previous fight, Matias gained a majority decision to take the belt from Puello. So this closes out the round robin.

It’s a huge test for Smith. The Dominican doesn’t fight like Matias, who comes right at you. He’s a southpaw with a good chin and plenty of smarts.

Matias beat Puello by holding the centre of the ring and sitting on him, backing him up against the ropes. And then there was only a fag paper between them.

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Smith does not fight that way. Indeed, both Smith and Puello like to hit on the counter, so this could be the opposite of what we saw in New York.

Matias was perfect for Smith. The one thing Smith does not like is initiating. He did not have that concern with Matias.

In an absolute barnburner, Matias brought it to him. And to his credit, Smith made it an unbelievable fight, trading some seriously heavy blows.

He survived some tricky moments in the third and fourth before breaking through with a couple of big right hands in the fifth. The first stunned Matias, the second finished him.

Puello is not that guy. If he uses that sticky jab and keeps his distance, this could be a long night for Smith.

As the away fighter, Puello knows that he has to win by a margin on the cards. He is not a big puncher so he will be looking to go the distance.

Puello has fast feet and hands, and has the greater experience having held two versions of the world title. Smith must arguably show us something different to prevail. He might even find himself behind and then have to go and get Puello.

That is not his thing, which is the danger for him in this fight. Puello is aware of Smith’s strengths. He understands that he wins by being on his toes.

It will be fascinating to see how Smith copes with a more technical fighter who isn’t easy to pick off. If Smith lands with a good shot he can beat anybody. But at this level the target is not always easy to find.

Follow Barry on X at @‌ClonesCyclone @mcguigan’s_Gym