Galal Yafai claims WBC interim flyweight crown as Sunny Edwards hangs up gloves

Galal Yafai overpowered Sunny Edwards in six rounds to claim the WBC interim flyweight title in his home city of Birmingham and send the former IBF champion into retirement.

Yafai, 31, extended his unbeaten professional record to nine fights with a seventh stoppage at the Resorts World Arena on Saturday night with 28-year-old Edwards appearing to tell his corner “I don’t wanna be here” amid an early onslaught.

The 2020 Olympic gold medallist, who lost to Edwards on a split decision when the pair fought as amateurs in 2015, told BBC Radio 5 Live: “I was scared going into camp, worried what Sunny could do to me. I sparred him, he was hard to spar, he’s beaten me before, he’s been the man in the division, so I had to train as hard as I could to compete with him.

“Whatever Sunny decides to do, he’s been the man for a long time now and I’ve looked up to him, so it’s nice to beat him. But it’s 1-1, maybe we can finish on that note.”

Yafai went on to the offensive from the off, pinning Edwards to the ropes in the first minute of the fight and unleashing both hands as he set out his stall, catching his opponent with a left cross, right hook combination as the younger man struggled to find his range.

Edwards took a series of second-round body shots and a solid left cross with Yafai riding what response the Londoner was able to muster, and having told his corner his legs had gone during the interval, he found himself under intense pressure in the third.

Yafai maintained his dominance over the fourth and fifth rounds with Edwards visibly wilting and landed a series of right hooks in the sixth before the referee stepped in to call a halt after a minute and 10 seconds.

Edwards, who tasted defeat for the second time in his 23-fight career, swiftly announced his decision to retire, saying: “I’ll be real, if I won the fight, I was going into the sunset. This is the last thing that I wanted to do, get that scalp of the Olympic [champion].”

He added: “If I’m being perfectly honest, my body’s falling apart, man. I’ve got bad ankles, I’ve got bad wrists, I’ve got bad shoulders, I’ve got a bad back – everything about me is bad at this moment.”