Sunny Edwards Defends Title in Tough Fight Against Muhammad Waseem
On March 19, at The Duty Free Tennis Stadium in Dubai, unbeaten IBF flyweight champion Sunny “Showtime” Edwards (18-0, 4KOs) took on #14 (WBO), #3 (IBF) and #1 (WBA) flyweight contender Muhammad “Falcon” Waseem (12-2, 8KOs). This was Edwards’ second title defense.
The 26-year-old Edwards rose to championship status by easily defeating former IBF champion Moruti Mthalane by unanimous decision in April of 2021. In December of 2021, he defeated Jayson Mama by unanimous decision, also dropping him in round 10. In the immediate aftermath, Showtime would call for a unification bout with WBC 112-pound champion Julio Cesar Martinez. However, that bout didn’t materialize as Martinez elected to go up in weight and face Roman Gonzalez instead.
As for Waseem, this was his second attempt at a world title. In his first attempt, he would lose a close unanimous decision to Edwards victim Moruti Mthalane in July of 2018. In that fight, however, he would score a knockdown on the champion in the first round.
SOLID PERFORMANCE
Looking to put on a show, Showtime Edwards came out fast in the opening stanza. A southpaw with the ability to fight in the orthodox stance, Edwards immediately switched between stances. His foot speed kept Waseem off balance as he countered with speedy, flashy shots at the challenger.
In round two, Edwards displayed a more broad scope of his skills. He fought fire with fire as he sat down on his punches on the inside. Still struggling to cut off the ring, Waseem would be left chasing down the elusive Edwards, getting countered in the process.
The action would start to get rough and ugly in the middle rounds. Waseem would start to make things ugly, realizing he couldn’t have success from a technical and fundamental standpoint. Cut over both eyes, he would start hounding Edwards, who made things easier by staying on the ropes. While this made for some good action, the head-scratching decision to stand and fight rather than box and move by Edwards put him in danger zones.
Waseem, who at this point was clearly losing the fight, had two points deducted, one in round six and another in round seven.
Edwards regained complete control in the final four rounds. He got back to fighting smart and kept the fight in the middle of the ring. Overall, this was a solid performance by Edwards, who made the second successful defense of the IBF flyweight title via a unanimous decision. The scores were 115-111 (x2) and 116-110.
After the fight, Edwards yet again expressed interest in a unification bout with WBC champion Julio Cesar Martinez, jokingly pleading with Eddie Hearn to make the fight.
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By: Jerrell Fletcher
