STAR BOXING PREVIEW Sat: Sunny Edwards vs Galal Yafai

Former IBF world flyweight champion Sunny ‘Showtime’ Edwards (21-1 4KO) will travel to Birmingham to settle a long-standing family feud this weekend as he takes on former Olympic gold medallist Galal Yafai (8-0 6KO), writes JORDAN NEILD.

British boxing has been built on domestic rivalries and both Edwards and Yafai will be keen to write their name into the history books.

The show has been named ‘Bloodline’ by promoter Eddie Hearn and that leans onto the fact this family feud that was started by the older siblings with Charlie Edwards and Kal Yafai spending years threatening to fight but never signing on the dotted line. That always felt like a fight that got away for British boxing fans but Sunny and Galal can finally put an end to the Edwards and Yafai war.

Flyweight has never been an attractive or lucrative division but fighters like these two are finally putting the weight on the map in the UK. Blessed with lightning speed, sharp punches and immense durability, they have proven the lighter divisions can bring entertainment without necessarily producing show-stopping knockouts.

Despite the historic bad blood between the two families, there is a deep-lying respect between the two former Team GB teammates. They spent years together training under the GB banner, shared 100’s of sparring rounds together and although it was Yafai who went to the Olympics, Edwards actually won there only meeting in the unpaid code. There is no denying this is a deep-rooted rivalry but there is a clear professional respect shared and this looks set to be a battle of high skill and boxing IQ rather than an all-our war some fans were hoping for.

Sunny Edwards comes into this fight as a former world champion but he is not a fading fighter. The 28-year-old lost his belt when he was stopped by Jesse Rodriguez last year but he was exceptional before that and arguably never lost a round in his first twenty professional fights. Rodriguez is an elite fighter and for large parts of that fight Edwards held his own and he can use that as motivation to become a two-time world champion.

Sunny Edwards is not the type of character to be happy with a loss but experience is everything in boxing and he is a better fighter today largely because of that defeat to Rodriguez. He bounced back earlier this year with a stoppage victory over Adrian Curiel and the former champion arrived in Birmingham this week with his usual confidence and swagger.

Galal Yafai has been touted for big thing since a youngster fighting on the amateur scene in Birmingham. He has watched his older brothers navigate the game before him and seemingly learnt from all the experiences they have had. An outstanding amateur, he won Gold at the 2022 Olympics before turning professional and he has been incredibly impressive in his first eight fights.

The fact he is fighting an opponent like Sunny Edwards in just his 8th fight tells you everything you need to know about Yafai and shows how highly rated he is by promoter Eddie Hearn. The idea has always been to fast track the 31-year-old but he has exceeded expectations even at this early stage.

The truth is Galal Yafai is yet to have a real test but he has looked so good that it’s hard to continue to match him with fighters clearly out of their depth. He is a cool, calculated character and as he has mentioned during fight week, this is a fight that he has always fancied.

Six knockouts in eight wins suggests that the power lies with the Birmingham native in this fight and although they have been against overmatched opposition, it’s clear to see he carries natural power at this weight class. Fighting in front of his home crowd is another advantage for Yafai and a win here will cement him as the next star in the flyweight division.

This is an incredible matchup between two highly skilled operators and it is easy to make a case for both men winning. The pedigree may lie with Galal Yafai but it’s the experience of Sunny Edwards that could be the defining factor in this fight. He is on away soil but Sunny Edwards can get the nod from the judges’ and take a step closer to a second world title. (1/1).

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