Britain’s number 1 ranked light heavyweight (on box rec as of 22/3/19) is the sharp and explosive undefeated Anthony Yarde. The 27 year old Hackney born fighter boasts a healthy record of 18-0, with 17 knockouts, proving his power in the ring. In this profile I will look at Anthony Yarde’s career to date, looking through his previous fights and then looking at where he should be going next.
His Career SO far
Anthony Yarde had a very short amateur career, amassing only just 12 fights before he made the decision to turn professional back in 2015. He made his debut in May 2015 at Wembley Arena, in which he won via a second round KO. He kept him self very busy in his first two years as a pro, fighting 3 more times in 2015 and then 5 more times in 2016. Since then he has remain undefeated on his professional journey, claiming the Southern Area title and the WBO inter-continental and European titles. Despite the fact Yarde has an impressive record, he is still yet to receive a big test in his career, as the majority of people he has boxed have been of a low standard.
WHAT NEXT?
Yarde’s next steps are simple in my opinion, step up the opponents. If Yarde starts to fight top level British and European light heavyweights and wins, he will start to win over more fans and create a larger following. The WBO recently ordered world champion Sergey Kovalev to defend his title against Yarde as a mandatory challenger. Despite me saying I want Yarde to step up his opponents, I don’t think he should take the fight against Kovalev. Contradiction I know, but to go from fighting taxi drivers to a experienced world champion in Kovalev who’s only losses have come against Andre Ward and Eleider Alvarez, I think the step up would be too great and Yarde would simply be outclassed.
Another thing which could help Yarde’s career is considering his management, as his current manager Tunde Ajayi in my opinion is hindering his progress. Continuously putting him in against low level opposition, and also coming out with ridicolus claims that they are the ‘A Side’ in the Kovalev negotiations because they boxed at the Royal Albert Hall are silly. If he got a new manager this could pottentially help him progress.
British Boxing 