Anthony Yarde Remains Focused and Hungry!
To the great surprise of many people Anthony Yarde pushed the two-time light heavyweight world champion Sergey “The Krusher” Kovalev to the utter brink of disaster. Not only did he give Kovalev all he could handle, Yarde did it in the Krusher’s own Russian backyard.
Although, Kovalev deserves massive credit for weathering the storm, digging deep, and came back to score the 11th-round stoppage.
REFLECTING ON A FOREIGN LIONS DEN
Directly following the bout, in the post-fight interview, Yarde expressed both his disappointment and his desire to bounce back. Prior to the prizefight, the biggest knock on the UK native was his scant amount of boxing experience. He’d only engaged in twelve amateur scraps and eighteen pro bouts before sliding in the ring with the Krusher.
“You can tell he’s got a lot of experience. He’s had a lot of world title fights, but again, I am one of them people. […] I’m very ambitious, but I’m not ashamed, I’m not embarrassed.
“I’m trying to motivate people to go for what you want. Even still, […] I’m very upset. I wasn’t victorious today but again I’ve done myself justice. I believe anyway […] I’ll be back.” ~Anthony Yarde
To make matters even more daunting, none of his professional bouts were against any notable competition. There were no known up and comers, contenders, or former world champions. Yarde had essentially coasted along feasting on opposition that he was clearly superior to. Naturally, and rightfully so, the majority of the boxing world thought his resume was weak as a kitten fresh off a chemotherapy session. And that is exactly the reason Yarde’s performance was that much more impressive.
TRUE TO THE MAN IN THE MIRROR
Nevertheless, even Yarde himself had to admit that his deficit in on the job training was the difference in the outcome of the fight. The muscular pugilist openly credited the Krusher for having a superior game plan and pacing himself much more efficiently. Yet, even though the young lion admitted that Kovalev was the better man that night, he was equally adamant that he would return stronger. After expressing his disappointment with not winning, the UK boxer reaffirmed the fact that he was not holding his head low or getting overly down on himself.
“I’m not going to keep going on about my experience, but experience played a big part. I felt like he paced himself a lot better. I knew I hurt him to the body and again, I knew I should have went for it. My corner said go for it.
“I felt the same way, so literally, I went for it! […] My whole team are very inexperienced when it comes to this level, but we’re going for it. So, no one can knock us, no one can say you doing this, you doing that, we’re taking the risks, we’re doing it.
“We’re trying to motivate people that ain’t brave enough to do things.”
This was all good to hear. After suffering his first defeat in somewhat heart-breaking fashion, it was reassuring to see that Yarde had positively accepted responsibility. It will definitely be interesting to see what level of opposition Yarde chooses to return to the ring against.
Regardless of when, or who, Yarde steps in the squared circle with 3kingsboxing will be sure to cover all the late breaking developments.
“[To Anthony Yarde] Great fight. You’re a great fighter, really man. Really hard you know? You have a great future. Believe me because you’re good, really good!”
Sergey Kovalev
By: Bakari Simpson
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