Lets talk about Anthony Yarde

Back in the ring this weekend against Dec Spelmen. Lets forget about the 'fight' in a Spanish pub that was somehow dressed up to be a smart move, get a win to be in contention to fight for the WBO title should it become vacant. Technically correct, but come on..

I've said before, Yarde looks the part, physically imposing, fast, powerful. He's got a lot going for him. But the fundamentals are missing, the experience, the ring IQ developed over time on a learning curve with an upward trajectory. Yarde had a handful of amateur fights, no idea what he achieved during his vested stint, but I assume it was nothing to write home about. His pro career of 19 fights consisted of a Southern Area title and a string of International gimme titles before jumping blindfold into elite class when challenging Kovalev. Yarde came out of the Kovalev loss with plenty of credit. He was game, he never gave up (not entirely convinced of that). He'd definitely come again and was a nailed on future World champion. Is he though?

Yarde is back to doing what Yarde does. Looking a million dollars in the gym fucking about with Tunde and Ade screaming lions in the camp every five fucking seconds. Lions, in a camp, have young lions come into camp and the young lions try to kill them. Anthony Yarde is the only lion in that camp and unless you count Arg from Towie, who's a hippo, no other lion is allowed in the camp. You'll see videos of Yarde all over youtube. Crazy!! sparring session!! With Anthony Yarde. They're all Yarde and Tunde or Ade. It's playfighting. I know he did some stuff with Rosario a few years back, but other than that I don't know if him sparring another active fighter? Yarde will drop Angelo Dundee's name when talking about sparring, or lack there of. Dundee, trainer of too many to mention didn't let them spar. He probably wandered around a ring slapping them with hook and jab pads.
Where this World title comes from that was some how set in stone by virtue of failing to beat a still elite, but ripe for the taking Kovalev is a mystery to me. Yarde was completely out of his depth. Technically ill equipped to compete with Kovalev, he had youth, speed and strength to fall back on but that also failed him. He had a good eighth round. Hurt Kovalev and might have got the job done on another day but he shot his bolt. He never looked like winning prior to round eight, and never looked like winning after it.

In many ways I admire the 'our way' mentality that team Yarde have. It fits them, they're going to run with it. But at some point in time you have to stop kidding yourself and say this ain't working. Yarde or someone close to him has to say enough. Anthony Yarde is a good enough athlete to beat most people. But he doesn't want to beat most people, he's fixing on beating the best people and the best people do things a certain way. There are exceptions for sure, but the best people tend to stick pretty closely to the beaten path which includes competitive sparring.

I don't see Yarde beating Buatsi. Another big strong technically correct fighter who does things the right way. Let alone beating Bivol or Beterbiev. His best hope is a soft touch for the WBO title. It's happened before. Yarde might start praying it happens again.

I was a big Yarde fan and thought he was the british Roy Jones but really he was fed weak fighters and did not develop enough to take on Kov. It was a winnable fight and he failed miserably getting outboxed by the older over the hill champion.

Yarde has the body of a sprinter/athlete and whilst it may look good it is not good for boxing. He fights in bursts and tires out. Hope he learns and develops from his mistakes but I think he will not.

I backed him to have the beating of Kovalev. Thought it was a case of good timing, to get Kov while undoubtedly far from his peak, with personal real life shit going on, the young, hungry heavy hitter was poised for a big name scalp and title run.

As we know Kovalev came again and mainly dominated with his experience and got through that rocky moment. Yarde did okay, but really, for an elite who is supposed to be going on to dominate or compete with the top boys in the division, Kovalev was there for the taking as we then saw again Canelo.

Thankfully I don't watch all the YouTube/Instagram nonsense boxers put out there. I find all that stuff really cringe worthy, and I don't like most fighters personalities at the best of times, so I am not put off by all of that for now. When I have heard Yarde speak normally in interviews and such he comes across as quite a decent and intelligent lad.

Joe Smith Jr is ranked number 1 by the WBO.....dependent on what Canelo and Kov decide to do it could open the door for Smith to beat one of the other ranked guys for the vacant title and Yarde to keep winning, earning another crack? Smith would probably be a more winnable fight for Yarde, though he packs a punch himself and could just as easily smash Yarde up.

Still, Yarde's career is still one to look out for, plus the fact Buatsi is breathing down his neck, is likely a better all round boxer.

Buatsi will give him a boxing lesson

See, now I didn’t rate Yarde at all, so I thought he did ok against Kovalev. He’s not top standard though.

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Originally Posted by Master

I was a big Yarde fan and thought he was the british Roy Jones but really he was fed weak fighters and did not develop enough to take on Kov. It was a winnable fight and he failed miserably getting outboxed by the older over the hill champion.

Yarde has the body of a sprinter/athlete and whilst it may look good it is not good for boxing. He fights in bursts and tires out. Hope he learns and develops from his mistakes but I think he will not.

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British Roy Jones?!

Yarde will go into acting in a year or 2 tops. He has the physique and muscularity and positivity to be an actor. I dont think he's willing to do more than his "90% boxing exercises" as he puts it. Where the fuck is the sparring? Gotta be the first time I ever heard that. WTF. and how he lost to Kovalev, that was his chance to make the next step up the ladder to better competition. He has a great chin. .... FFS he needs more rounds of sparring, plus he never went over 7 b4 the Kov fight. His mouth was open like a fish from the 5th round on. He took a hell of a beating from Kov. Reminds me of Maidana beating Broner.

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Originally Posted by NoSavingByTheBell

Yarde will go into acting in a year or 2 tops. He has the physique and muscularity and positivity to be an actor. I dont think he's willing to do more than his "90% boxing exercises" as he puts it. Where the fuck is the sparring? Gotta be the first time I ever heard that. WTF. and how he lost to Kovalev, that was his chance to make the next step up the ladder to better competition. He has a great chin. .... FFS he needs more rounds of sparring, plus he never went over 7 b4 the Kov fight. His mouth was open like a fish from the 5th round on. He took a hell of a beating from Kov. Reminds me of Maidana beating Broner.

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Agree with most of that. (Fuck, did I just write that! 😂) I think it’s the usual story of Brits and his Promoter bigging him up before he achieved anything.
He had never fought anyone anywhere near World level prior to Kovalev , and although Kovalev is at the end of it, he still had too much ring knowledge for Yarde.
That’s why I thought he made a decent fist of it for how I rated him.
However, if someone is rating him as a World beater, they would’ve been disappointed.

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Originally Posted by imp

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Originally Posted by Master

I was a big Yarde fan and thought he was the british Roy Jones but really he was fed weak fighters and did not develop enough to take on Kov. It was a winnable fight and he failed miserably getting outboxed by the older over the hill champion.

Yarde has the body of a sprinter/athlete and whilst it may look good it is not good for boxing. He fights in bursts and tires out. Hope he learns and develops from his mistakes but I think he will not.

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British Roy Jones?!

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OK maybe not that good. Maybe a British Floyd Mayweather.

Haven't watched the fight. Saw some highlights. Yarde proved once again, if it was in any way needed that he's too athletically gifted for blokes who are English title level.

The Arthur fight is a step in the right direction. The Buatsi fight for the British title is the one we wanted with the winner going on to be something.

I can't stand the way he's been matched. I don't even think it's Warren fault, it's delusional "we don't spar" Tunde, "look at me doing pads." Yarde looks hardly any different now to what he did years ago. They talk about the Kovalev fight like it was a win, when in reality he did great to last as long as he did.

Now i'm not saying he's pony. He has genuine power and looks the part but up in class he's getting battered and they know it. They'll never do the Buatsi fight.