GALAL Yafai scored the most important win of his profession, stopping former world champion Sunny Edwards in spherical six of their Birmingham headliner.
“Folks underrated me. I boxed Kazakhs, Cubans, the best fighters on the planet,” said Yafai after his massive win for the WBC Interim flyweight title. “Sunny’s a technical boxer, he’s on the prime, a former world champion. Tonight was a greater feeling, beating Sunny [than winning Olympic gold].”
Yafai began strongly, storming out of the blocks, launching a robust proper hand that had Edwards in bother and glad to get out of the opening spherical. Informed by Robert McCracken to not throw too vast, Yafai made Sunny stand and commerce with him within the second.
After coach Chris Williams requested his cost how he was feeling, Edwards responded, “I don’t wish to be right here,” and proceeded to shell up alongside the ropes. Williams continued attempting to encourage him with some strong language.
Sunny stepped off the ropes in spherical three and landed a few good hooks. The arrogance appeared to rise briefly as he swaggered again to his nook, receiving one other mouthful from Williams. How lengthy might he maintain this tempo?
Extra to the purpose, how for much longer might he keep away from Yafai’s relentless aggression? The shut of the fourth was one other torrid interval for Edwards, who regarded fatigued. Yafai was following the Bam blueprint of smothering Sunny, closing off his escape routes.
Whereas Edwards was having fun with moments of pleasure (notably with the uppercut), Yafai wasn’t even blowing. He tried to toss something in return as referee Lee Each summoned the physician to take a look at a possible Yafai ear damage. One spherical later, it was throughout.
Mr Each prompted Edwards to throw again and present him one thing. Sunny retreated additional into his bodily and metaphorical shell because the pictures rained in. Each hovered with intent, leaping in at 1-10 of the sixth spherical.
Galal Yafai is now 9-0 (7 KOs), whereas Sunny Edwards suffered a second profession loss, falling to 21-2 (4 KOs). He later introduced his retirement earlier than addressing the feedback after spherical two, stating that he had been focusing extra on enterprise and household pursuits and not felt the hearth within the stomach required to rule as soon as once more.
