Tag: beating

9 years. That’s how long Galal Yafai had to wait to exact his revenge on Sunny Edwards. The two promising prospects back then clashed in amateurs, where the latter walked away with a win and soon announced himself on the pro boxing stage. But Yafai bid his time and marched through the vagaries of amateur boxing and again met with his fierce rival this past Saturday. This time, it was he who left the arena with a win.

While Edwards rose through the professional ranks and clinched the IBF gold, Yafai bagged the Olympics gold in Tokyo for Great Britain. However, when the latter stood tall, after flatlining Edwards in the sixth round of their encounter yesterday, the feeling surpassed any emotion he had surpassed in the past. Not only did he avenge his loss, but he also bagged the interim WBC flyweight strap. It will set him up with Kenshiro Teraji.

In a conversation with DAZN, Yafai, who improved to 9-0, expressed his candid emotions. He said, “It was my night tonight. Winning gold in the Olympics is the best achievement I would ever do. But beating Sunny tonight was a better feeling than standing on that podium. And that’s just how good Sunny is. But actually, like I said, I trained my a*s like Sonny. I was worried in camp. I did everything I could.”

Yafai is now one step closer to joining the exclusive club of Olympic gold medalists, who ended up becoming the world champions. Edwards, on the other hand, is already drawing curtains on his splendid career. But why is he doing that?

Sunny Edwards curtails his boxing career

Edwards, who after the loss slumped to 21-2, has had a rough patch since dropping the fight to Jesse Rodriguez last year when he ventured out to unify the titles. But the Sutton native suffered a fractured orbital bone earlier in the fight. While he made a brave comeback this year, his body seemed to have been falling apart since. He addressed the same in a conversation with BBC Radio 5 Live.

He declared, “My body is falling apart; I’ve got bad ankles, wrists, shoulders, back. Everything is bad about me. It has been a hard career with the wear and tear on my body.” The former IBF champion had hinted at this fight against Yafai being his last, but no one was sure. He also insisted that the fight’s outcome wouldn’t have affected his decision. So, it seems he will now bask in early retirement days despite being only 28. Meanwhile, Yafai is only beginning to give wings to his dreams.

What do you make of these comments by Galal Yafai about the Sunny Edwards fight? Let us know in the comments below.