On the night of January 11, in Brooklyn, USA, the fight for the WBC junior heavyweight belt took place between 33-year-old Puerto Rican belt holder Subriel Matias (23-3, 22 KOs) and 28-year-old Briton Dalton Smith (19-0, 14 KOs). Mathias is expected to be physically dominant, angry and tough on his opponent at all times.

But this time he fell for his own tricks.

Matthias was almost caught for doping. But that didn’t help him win

The fight between Subriel Matias and Dalton Smith did not turn into an event that disrupted the news agenda. A good confrontation between a classy, ​​confident champion and a strong opponent. But then it was the champion who put him in a situation that attracted attention.

Matthias was caught doping. During the check, prohibited substances were found in his body. There was about a month until the start of the conflict, so the possibility of cancellation was discussed.

There was no need to do this. It turned out that Subriel did not have much of the substance in his body. Conditional “acceptable standard” for the state commission. It may seem strange, but it is true: There is an acceptable doping limit. Smith’s team agreed to fight due to these conditions and the fact that camp was almost complete.

Although Dalton’s promoter Eddie Hearn was surprised. He asked: If there is doping in the body, why is the boxer not disqualified?

This issue is particularly sensitive given Matthias’ personality. It was in a duel that Russian Maxim Dadashev received fatal injuries. Subriel’s career shows that he excels with his strength; only one losing opponent was able to hang with him all rounds. Mathias is not a hard puncher, but the speed and number of his punches destroy his opponents. Fans logically asked if this was a coincidence or the first time a Puerto Rican had been caught doping.

This is what was traditionally expected from the champion in the ring: pressure, lots of punches and attempts to score on the opponent. From the first seconds he began to do just that.

Matthias spent the first 3 minutes in traditional pursuit mode. He usually does this while trying to find his range by overwhelming his opponent with barely any punches. It is important for Subriel not only to reach a suitable distance to attack, but also to stay there long enough to hit with a combination.

Smith didn’t look very good the entire time. He moved, tried to box against such an opponent. But somehow everything didn’t go so well. The boxer from England could not maintain his balance and adapt to his opponent.

At one point it looked like the champion had paid the price. He was not affected by his opponent’s blows, the pressure increased even more. Fortunately, Dalton Smith did not do what Damyan Knyba did in the fight against Agit Kabael: he did not stop attacking.

Quite the opposite. The Briton regrouped and tried to put pressure on the champion. Put it in a different location and it worked. Mathias doesn’t work well against his opponent, but he was forced to retreat here. The Briton’s blows began to have a greater visual impact. Smith wasn’t afraid to enter trades and hit back hard.

This gave almost instant results. Already in the 5th round Dalton hit his opponent. The Puerto Rican champion took the lead but it didn’t take long for the Briton to finish the race.

Matthias stood up. However, the referee evaluated his situation and decided to end the match immediately.

What happens now?

This was Mathias’ third defeat among the pros. But the first one is ahead of schedule. On the one hand, his style had to lead to this at some point. Subriel missed a lot and his head should have failed. On the other hand, this incident took place right after the Puerto Rican was caught on doping charges. Accordingly, this issue attracted more attention. Is it possible that this also affects the result? It wasn’t often to see Matthias physically break down and withdraw.

This is a turning point for Dalton Smith. He deserved this result a long time ago, but this time it confirmed everything.

Now there is an interesting situation in the junior heavyweight division. On January 31, Teofimo Lopez and Shakur Stevenson will fight for the WBO belt. Additionally, Keyshawn Davis will make his major league debut. Maybe it will go further, maybe it won’t; We must watch.

Gary Antoine Russell also holds the WBA belt and Alberto Puello holds the WBC belt. Judging by the reactions on social networks, the meeting with the second is exactly what fans prefer to see.

Matias fought Puello in 2025 and won by majority decision. So this meeting seems logical and for this reason. And because of the style of boxers. And because of the logic of combining the belts. And Alberto can easily fly to England to make good money from the show.

At that moment, the winner of the Stevenson-Lopez duo will be determined. It is also a matter of curiosity whether Shakur will remain in the division as he is considering returning to lightweight. And it is not far from even more high-profile associations there.

With this victory, Dalton Smith paved the way for both great fights and excellent wages. And the interesting thing is that there will be absolutely no major underdogs in most matchups in this league.