The sweet science of boxing returns to Birmingham live on DAZN this Saturday, bringing with it a fight so British it could be served with a side of fish and chips. Let’s dive into this flyweight division, shall we?
In one corner, we have Galal Yafai, Olympic champion and professional boxing neophyte, strutting around his hometown like a rooster with a shiny new medal. In the other, Sunny Edwards, former world champion and amateur boogeyman to our golden boy.
The contenders
- Galal “I have an Olympic gold, did I mention it?” Yafai (8-0, 6 KOs)
- Sunny “I beat him once, I’ll do it again” Edwards (21-1, 4 KOs)
A rivalry as old as time (Well, almost)
Our boxing couple has a history dating back to their amateur days. Edwards, it seems, gave young Yafai his first taste of defeat. Yafai, always the gracious loser, recalls: “When I started boxing, he was one of the first to beat me as an amateur, the ABA at the time – it’s only since then. It’s not something what I’m so upset about, but I say, “he beat me on a split decision.” That’s clearly water under the bridge, right?
Start times:
UK Time (GMT)
- Start time: 4:15 PM
- Prelims: 4:15 PM
- Main Card: 7:00 PM
- Main Event: 10:50 PM
Eastern Time (ET)
- Start time: 11:15 AM
- Prelims: 11:15 AM
- Main Card: 2:00 PM
- Main event: 5:50 PM
Confidence: The Breakfast of Champions
Yafai, full of the confidence that only an 8-0 professional record can bring, boldly proclaims: “Realistically, I have a better chance of knocking him out than he has me, but anyone can be knocked out, and with those little gloves. , all fists, so I have to be careful and do things the right way.” Ah yes, the classic “I could hit you, but I won’t because I’m paying attention” strategy. A timeless classic in the world of boxing bravado.
The Prize: A Shiny Belt and Bragging Rights
At stake is the interim WBC World Title, a prestigious piece of leather that is almost as good as the real thing. The winner gets a shot at the current world title, which is like being promoted from assistant regional manager to assistant regional manager.
The Undercard
As if this main event wasn’t enough to satisfy Birmingham boxing fans, the undercard is packed tighter than a tin of Quality Street at Christmas. We have the former champions, newcomers, and everything in between.
- Sunny Edwards vs Galal Yafai
- Conah Walker vs. Lewis Ritson; Welterweight
- Kieron Conway vs Ryan Kelly; for the vacant Commonwealth middleweight title
- Cameron Vuong vs. Gavin Gwynne, Lightweight
- Hamza Uddin vs. Benn Norman; Flyweight
- Troy Jones vs. Michael Stephenson, for Jones’ English lightweight title
- Aaron Bowen vs. James Todd; Medium weight
- Ibraheem Sulaimaan vs. Marvin Solano; Super feather
- Taylor Bevan vs Greg O’Neil; Super average
- Callum Smith vs. TBD; Light heavy weight
