Yafai Batters Edwards Into Retirement

The fight between former IBF World Flyweight champion Sunny Edwards and undefeated contender Galal Yafai was one of experience versus youth. Edwards, a former world champion who was looking to get himself back into position to fight for a world championship in his second fight since losing the IBF crown in a unification bout against WBO World Flyweight champion Jesse Rodriguez. With an interim designation on the line between Edwards and Yafai in the WBC’s Flyweight ratings, the winner of the fight would essentially be in position to challenge current WBC world champion Kenshiro Teraji.

What had all the appearance of a high-stakes encounter took place before an enthusiastic crowd at the Resorts World Arena in Birmingham, England on November 30th. In previewing this bout, this observer pointed out that the strategy of Edwards, a fighter with only four knockouts in twenty-one previous fights going into this encounter, and one who was used to going a world championship distance of twelve rounds, would look to try and extend Yafai into the deep waters of the fight, otherwise known as the later rounds. The question was whether he would be able to use what was a significant edge in terms of experience to control the tempo of the fight against a fighter in Yafai, who was only competing in his ninth professional fight, but had six knockouts in his eight career wins leading to this bout.

The combat that occurred in this fight can best be described as one fighter pinning himself to his opponent's chest like a magnet, as well as a masterclass in the implementation and execution of an attack to an opponent’s body. From the opening bell, Yafai put Edwards on the defensive and nearly dropped him with a hook to the head in the opening seconds of the fight. 

In some ways, Yafai’s approach reminded this observer of the approach often implemented by the legendary Hall of Famer Julio Cesar Chavez, Sr. from the standpoint that more often than not, Chavez would pin himself to an opponent's chest where it made it nearly impossible for his opponent to not only move, but more specifically, to get space where that fighter could not only get air, but also attempt to gain control of the pace of the combat. Chavez also had one strategy in implementing this approach, to back his opposition up against the ropes and attack the opponent’s body, then as the opponent gradually slowed down and would drop his hands due to the accumulation of body punches, which not only takes a fighter’s legs away and their ability to move, but also limits the ability to raise their arms, Chavez would land hard thudding punches to the head. 

Yafai essentially brought what yours truly refers to as the “Chavez Attack" back in this fight as he stayed pinned to Edwards and simply did not give him room to breathe. This along with a relentless attack to the body and head, had me questioning after four rounds as to whether Edwards’ corner might stop the fight to prevent their fighter from further punishment. Simply put, much as Chavez did many years ago against opponent after opponent as he carved out his Hall of Fame career, Yafai suffocated Edwards where he simply could not move and could not keep Yafai off of him. Although it is rare for yours truly to be questioning whether a fight that did not feature knockdowns would be stopped after four rounds of a scheduled twelve rounds, it did not take long for the contest to be decided and one fighter was taking a one way beating. 

As the punishment only increased, it would finally and mercifully be brought to a halt by Referee Lee Every, who finally stepped in and put a stop to the fight as Edwards was in a position he was frequently throughout the bout, pinned against the ropes, at 1:10 of round six. Ultimately, there is not much one could say beyond saying that this bout was one-sided and the referee showed mercy when perhaps Edwards’ corner should have stopped the fight sooner.

For Galal Yafai, this signals the most significant victory of his career thus far and it will be interesting to see whether now as the WBC’s mandatory challenger in the Flyweight division will mean that he will challenge Kenshiro Teraji in his next fight. Despite only having nine professional fights, his dominant performance in this fight, which was a risk by his handlers by putting him in a world title elimination bout with limited experience, he has earned the opportunity.

The second loss in Sunny Edwards’ career for the moment appears as though it will be his last as he announced his retirement in the ring after the fight in a post-fight interview with digital subscription sports streaming network DAZN. While Edwards is certainly not the first fighter to declare that he would be hanging up his gloves in the immediate aftermath of a fight after coming out on the losing end, which is often considered an emotional reaction, it is important to remember that this is the second knockout loss he has suffered in his career, but also in a relatively short period after being stopped in nine rounds by Jesse Rodriguez in December of last year in a scenario that was not unlike the one where he found himself in this fight. Furthermore, it is important to keep in mind that Edwards has competed in one of Boxing’s lower weight divisions for his whole career as a 112lb. Flyweight. Although there have been exceptions where fighters in Boxing’s lowest divisions do have long careers, it is not uncommon to see fighters in those weight classes retire at a younger age as compared to fighters who compete at heavier weights. It remains to be seen whether the twenty-eight year old Edwards will have a change of heart down the line, but one should also consider the punishment a fighter suffers not just in a fight itself, but also while in training, which includes sparring as well as often struggles in making weight, which often proves to be more significant in lower weight classes. 

There is after all only so much a body can take and regardless of what weight a fighter competes, it is always better to get out while one still has all their facilities and still have the ability to do other things and enjoy their lives. Although ultimately a fighter is the only one who can make the decision as to when it is time to retire and that is not exclusive to Boxing, but in all combat sports, all too often we see what happens to many fighters later in life where the toll of a long career and the punishment sustained during it leads to significant medical problems. If Sunny Edwards proves to be one of the fighters to end his career on his own terms where he can still enjoy his life, the fruits of his labor, and not suffer the long-term effects that often come with a long career, he may have lost his last fight, but he still left the ring a winner.

“And That's The Boxing Truth." 

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Edwards-Yafai Headline Thanksgiving Weekend In Boxing

Boxing’s 112lb. Flyweight division takes center stage this Thanksgiving weekend as an intriguing battle will occur at the Resorts World Arena in Birmingham, England as former IBF Flyweight world champion Sunny Edwards will face undefeated top contender Galal Yafai. An encounter that will determine Interim/Regular champion status in the World Boxing Council (WBC) Flyweight ratings, which can be seen worldwide on digital subscription streaming network DAZN.

While Boxing’s lower weight divisions do not always receive consistent exposure here in the United States, it is often the lower weight classes that offer battles often fought at a high pace and no shortage of action. This fight figures to follow in that tradition. In this case, this particular bout has an interesting contrast in a former world champion looking to get back into position to fight for a world championship going against a young, unbeaten contender, who some might feel has yet to be tested. 

 Edwards is looking to continue momentum after scoring a technical decision win in his last fight in June of this year over Adrian Curiel in a bout that was halted in the ninth round. Now going into his second bout since losing his IBF crown in December of last year in a unification bout with WBO world champion Jesse Rodriguez, a fight where Edwards stopped in nine rounds, the former champion faces what could be a significant threat in the heavy handed Galal Yafai.

Yafai, who is unbeaten in eight professional fights, has scored knockouts in six of those bouts registering a career knockout percentage of 75%. The former 2016 Olympian is coming off of a third round stoppage of Sergio Oliva in September of this year. Although Yafai has shown the ability to score quick knockouts thus far as a professional, he has only been made to go a ten round distance twice in his career and this could be crucial in a scenario where he will not only be facing a former world champion for the first time in his career, but will also be facing an opponent in Edwards, who has significant experience, particularly at the world championship level.

Edwards only has four knockouts in his twenty-one wins, but what he brings with him into this fight is not only more total experience as a professional than Yafai, not only more experience at or near the top of the sport, but more specifically, he is experienced in going the distance. The strategy for the former world champion would therefore appear obvious. To try and avoid Yafai’s power and try to extend him into the deep waters of the fight, the later rounds.

Yafai has shown he can go ten rounds twice in his career. The question will be whether Edwards will be able to control the tempo of the combat from very early in the fight where the pace could put Yafai to the test. It could be a task that may well be easier said than done if Yafai can find a way to limit Edwards’ movement and land his power punches more than periodically. Yafai has shown power in both hands and one of the strategies to combat a tactical boxer that uses significant lateral movement is to not only try to cut the ring off to limit that fighter’s ability to move, but to also try and implement a consistent attack to the body, which could slow the opponent down as the fight progresses.

What will be the goal for the winner of this fight is also obvious. The winner will become the official mandatory challenger for current WBC world champion Kenshiro Teraji. While nothing is set in stone as of this writing, one could assume that a fight between the winner of this fight and Taraji could be aimed for sometime in early 2025. 

“And That's The Boxing Truth." 

Edwards vs.Yafai takes place on Saturday, November 30th at Resorts World Arena in Birmingham, England. The fight as well as its full undercard can be seen worldwide on digital subscription sports streaming network DAZN beginning at 2PM ET/11AM PT. (*U.S. Times Only.*) 

For more information about DAZN including schedules, list of compatible streaming devices, platforms, Smart TVs, availability around the world, local start times in your area, and to subscribe please visit: www.DAZN.com. 

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Is Unification Next For Teraji And Gonzalez?

One of the bigger fights that was in the proverbial pipeline for 2023 was to have been a showdown in the 108lb. Light-Flyweight division between unified WBC/WBA world champion Kenshiro Teraji and WBO world champion Jonathan Gonzalez. A unification bout that was set to take place in April of this year. As most Boxing fans however know, Gonzalez was forced to withdraw due to an illness. Rather than waiting on the sidelines for the fight to be put back together, Teraji has shown that the best preparation for a unification bout more often than not, is to remain active.

Despite the cancellation of the fight with Gonzalez, the WBC/WBA champion kept the scheduled date in April and successfully retained his crown with a ninth round stoppage of a very "Game" Anthony Olascuaga. With the showdown with Gonzalez no closer to being made a reality, Teraji returned to the ring on September 18th at the Ariake Arena in Tokyo, Japan to defend his unified world championship against former two-division world champion Hekkie Budler, who entered the fight as the WBC's number one contender and the number four contender in the WBA's Light-Flyweight ratings. 

As tends to be the norm in bouts fought in Boxing's lowest weight divisions, the pace of the fight was a fast one fought at a high rate. When this occurs, it usually creates a scenario where both fighters are able to execute their offense well. It also creates a conundrum in terms of scoring as rounds tend to be close. This was a fight that followed that pattern as both fighters had success in landing short, compact combinations on each other. 

As the fight progressed into the middle rounds, Teraji's harder punches and consistent body attack began to become the dominant factor in the contest. Although Budler remained competitive and still attempted to give as much as he took in punishment, the end of the bout culminated with Teraji landing a barrage of unanswered punches that resulted in the fight being stopped late in the ninth round. 

While this accounted to a "Stay Busy" outing for Kenshiro Teraji, he did fulfill his mandatory defense obligations as far as the WBC is concerned and will continue to benefit from being active if a fight against Jonathan Gonzalez does not come to fruition in the near future. Of course, the question coming out of this fight, much as was the case following Teraji's victory over Anthony Olascuaga in April, is will a fight with Gonzalez be next?

Obviously, this observer cannot answer that question, but it should be pointed out that the fight was signed and scheduled to take place before Gonzalez had to withdraw because of an illness. This would seem to suggest that there would not be the usual hurdles that occur in the sport such as promotional issues and the involvement of rival networks to name a few. Whether a unification bout between the two will happen will obviously depend on Gonzalez' health as well as whether or not the three sanctioning organizations involved will have mandated title defenses of their respective world championships due to the time that has passed between when the fight was supposed to take place and where things stand currently as world champions are obligated to fulfill mandatory defenses on an annual basis. 

Whatever the case may be, Boxing's lowest weight divisions will likely continue to benefit from increased exposure thanks to the advent of digital streaming that has allowed weight classes that normally do not get showcased regularly here in the United States to be shown more frequently. With the level of competition consistently high, it should be a benefit to many fighters throughout the lower weight divisions to try and take advantage of the increased exposure. While that is a "Big Picture" perspective, if a fight between Teraji and Gonzalez cannot be made, there should be no shortage of interesting and competitive fights that could be made.

"And That's The Boxing Truth."

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Teraji Maintains His Position Atop The Jr. Flyweight Division

One of the Boxing events that was to be a focal point in the sport was to be the highly anticipated unification bout for the WBC/WBA Jr. Flyweight world champion Kenshiro Teraji and WBO world champion Jonathan Gonzalez, which would have unified three of five recognized world championships in the 108lb. Jr. Flyweight division. As some may recall however, Gonzalez was forced to withdraw from the bout, which was to take place at the Ariake Arena in Tokyo, Japan, in late March due to becoming ill with pneumonia.

Although in decades past it was not uncommon for fights of significance such as world championship unification bouts to see a postponements in the event that a fighter suffers an injury or illness, if nothing else to persevere the financial interests that are involved in a fight, there are times where a fighter who is not injured or ill will try to keep the scheduled date where the original bout was to occur. This is precisely the situation that Kenshiro Teraji found himself in.

While sometimes there are other circumstances that emerge that makes an attempt by both a fighter and promoter to keep a scheduled bout on, what sometimes can get overlooked is the inherent risk that a fighter takes by choosing to fight on rather than trying to wait for a postponed bout to be rescheduled. There is after all a risk not only to a fighter's record in the potential that they could lose, but if they do lose, the risk to their standing in a given division as well as the previous financial incentives that were in place prior to a scheduled bout 's postponement is also potentially impacted.

In this case, Teraji had a little more than two weeks from the postponement of his bout with Gonzalez to find an opponent to step in on short notice so he could defend his unified portion of the World Jr. Flyweight championship. The replacement would be found in the form of Anthony Olascuaga. Olascuaga was given what amounted to an opportunity of a lifetime, albeit one that came on short notice. The opportunity to fight for a world championship, let alone a unified world championship is one that many fighters strive for their entire careers to earn. For Olascuaga, the opportunity came after he had gone unbeaten in five professional fights.

While that statistic might be open to criticism as obviously Olascuaga had not fought anyone near the level of Teraji, it is important to keep in mind that this fight was put together with the primary intention of ensuring that Teraji was able to keep the April 8th date, and was done so on short notice where there is a possibility that Olascuaga may have been the only opponent available and willing to take the fight under the circumstances.

One might question given those circumstances however, the wisdom of both the World Boxing Association (WBA) and the World Boxing Council (WBC) in sanctioning this fight as a world title bout given the challenger's limited resume and opposition. Although this is something that is not really done in the modern era of the sport of Boxing, perhaps it would have been wise given both the circumstances of the postponement of the unification bout with Gonzalez as well as both Olascuaga taking the fight on short notice and his limited experience, if this were made into a non-title fight as world champions fought routinely in decades past in between title defenses in an effort to stay as active as possible. If nothing else, a decision like that would have at least limited the criticism of some given the circumstances.

Despite the odds being significantly in his favor, there was nevertheless an element of danger for the champion Teraji from the standpoint of both having to prepare for a change of opponent with less than two weeks to do so as well as an element of the unknown in that Olascuaga was unbeaten, but also untested up to this point. To Teraji's credit, he was able to adapt accordingly. Despite the long odds against him, Olascuaga immediately brought the fight to the champion and was clearly intent on showing that he was not merely interested in sharing the ring with one of the best fighters in the sport. He not only traveled to Japan to fight, but he did so with the intention of winning the unified Jr. Flyweight championship of the world.

As is usually the norm in fights fought in Boxing's lower weight divisions, this fight was fought at an extremely high pace with both fighters throwing punches with knockout intent. The challenger's strength appeared to be his ability to catch Teraji with short combinations as the champion was throwing his punches. A tactic that is also referred to as catching an opponent in between punches in exchanges. The highlight of Olascuaga's offense was whenever he would catch Teraji with right hands to the head.

Frankly, both fighters landed hard, thudding punches throughout most of the fight, but gradually as the bout progressed the experience and skillset of Teraji began to show itself. While Olascuaga was able to land power shots periodically, it was Teraji who took over the tempo of the fight and became the one throwing first and initiating the combat. The champion connected with a short right hand that landed on the neck of Olascuaga forcing his gloves to touch the canvas, resulting in a knockdown being called in round three. To the challenger's credit, he was able to shake it off and the fight continued.

With each passing round, both champion and challenger continued fighting at an exhaustive pace. Teraji's greater volume, accuracy and overall skillset however, eventually broke Olascuaga down.

A brutal combination of punches to the head of the challenger in the ninth round would send Olascuaga through the ropes and force a referee's stoppage of the fight. In all honesty, this turned out to be a much more competitive fight than anyone could have realistically expected under the circumstances in which it came about. Anthony Olascuaga certainly was very "Game" and proved his mettle in defeat. His performance in this fight should lead to another opportunity down the line at another world title, but given that his first opportunity came in fight number six of his career, even in defeat he gained valuable experience that will only benefit him in the long-term.

Ultimately, despite for the moment missing out on an opportunity to further unify the World Jr. Flyweight championship, Kenshiro Teraji got what he wanted. He got to stay active, got to successfully defend his WBC and WBA crowns in the process, and got an impressive victory. The obvious question however, will be whether or not once Jonathan Gonzalez is well enough to resume competition, if an attempt will be made to reschedule the unification bout. As tempting as it might be to say it should be rescheduled as soon as possible, Teraji has certainly earned the chance to get some rest after what was a grueling and tougher than expected title defense.

"And That's The Boxing Truth."

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BREAKING: Gonzalez Withdraws From Unification Bout With Teraji Due To Illness

It has been announced that the April 8th Jr. Flyweight world championship unification bout between WBC world champion Kenshiro Teraji and WBO world champion Johnathan Gonzalez has been called off. The bout, which was scheduled for April 8th at the Ariake Arena in Tokyo, Japan and was to include the vacant WBA world championship in the 108lb. Jr. Flyweight division was called off when Gonzalez had to withdraw from the bout after coming down with pneumonia.

As of this writing, an attempt is being made by promoters and Teraji 's handlers to secure a substitute opponent in what one would assume would be an attempt to not only maintain the April 8th date, but also a defense of his WBC world championship. The Teraji-Gonzalez unification bout was scheduled to be streamed here in the United States on digital subscription sports streaming network ESPN+. Obviously, with the status of the event now uncertain, there is also no word as of this writing as to whether the network will still stream the event if it goes forward, assuming a substitute opponent for Teraji can be secured. 

We will keep readers updated on any developments as they become available. Stay tuned.

"Abd That's The Boxing Truth."

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