Whittaker, who won a light heavyweight silver medal at the Tokyo Olympics, turned professional in 2022 and is undefeated in seven fights with five of those victories coming by way of knockout. 

However, Whittaker is someone who is met with criticism from fans because of the way he conducts himself inside the ring during fights with the 26-year-old often prone to showboating. 

Speaking on William Hill's Up Front with Simon Jordan podcast, Smith who now operates at 175lbs, criticised Whittaker's conduct inside the ring and labelled it disrespectful to opponents who are there to help develop his boxing career. 

“Ben Whittaker’s antics aren’t my cup of tea. He’s trying to be like Naseem Hamed but Naz was doing it at Madison Square Garden in world title fights, not against journeymen," Smith said. 

"I do think he is a great talent, he’s a very good fighter and I think he’ll go to the top. He just needs to do the basics a bit better and get rid of his opponents. If he can do that at the highest level with all of his showboating as well then fair play.

“At the moment he’s only doing it against journeymen who have finished their day's work and then gone to be an opponent for him. They’re there to help him out, not to beat him – I think it is disrespectful.

"Prince Naseem did it at the highest level, but then again he was a one-off. I think he should just go about his business at the moment, but talent-wise he is a very good fighter and will go to the highest level."

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