Anthony Yarde is ready to “shock the world” in his bid to become world light-heavyweight champion against David Benavidez on Saturday night, according to trainer Tunde Ajayi. The British boxer, who holds a record of 27-3 with 24 knockouts, will headline a star-studded card in Riyadh, with Devin Haney, Brian Norman Jr, Abdullah Mason and Jesse “Bam” Rodriguez featuring on the undercard in Saudi Arabia.
This will be Yarde’s third world-title shot, following his brave attempt to dethrone Sergey Kovalev for the WBO belt in 2019 and an unexpected challenge two years ago against Artur Beterbiev, which was stopped by his own corner. Trainer Ajayi, who made the decision to halt that fight, told the PA news agency: “For the Beterbiev fight when I stopped it, initially Ant was upset because he thought he could have fought and he was ready to dig in. But I said, ‘Please trust me. You will be what you’re going to be, but you will be what you’re going to be [while] healthy’.”
Ajayi reflected on the journey since that stoppage, which drew both praise and criticism. He noted that Yarde was now topping a bill alongside fighters he had known for years, including Haney and Rodriguez. “Now he’s in the biggest fight! I have known Bill Haney for the longest time, and I took Ant, Ohara Davies and Julian Benjamin and we lived in Bill and Dev’s house years ago,” he said. “And all of this came from me halting a fight because I was more concerned about Ant’s future than the present. So, I think it is set up wonderfully.”
Yarde faced calls to move on from Ajayi after a shock 2020 loss to Lyndon Arthur, a year after his 11th-round stoppage defeat to Kovalev on short notice. He stuck with his trainer and later gained revenge against Arthur. After Ajayi’s key intervention during the Beterbiev contest, the duo believe the stars have aligned against WBC champion Benavidez, who stepped up in weight last year and has struggled in recent wins.
“It is the third time and really we’ve been here before,” Ajayi reflected. “With Benavidez, we’re going into it with so much experience and it’s a calm feeling, but internally it’s the most excitement I’ve ever felt. I feel like the boxing world and public, although you can’t listen to them, you hear it and they are talking about the next fight [for Benavidez] – and I’m like hold on! I think it is set up perfectly for Anthony to perform, and I’m so excited. It will be a spectacle.”
