All of the talk is centered around
David Benavidez and his KO power.
Anthony Yarde, however, is wondering where’s his respect?
Both rated Top 5 in The Ring’s 175-pound rankings, they officially throw down on
Nov. 22 at "Ring IV: Night of Champions," at ANB Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on
DAZN.
Benavidez (30-0, 24 KOs) hasn’t been in the division for long, but
Yarde knows he packs a punch. Sort of.
Although most of Benavidez's opponents didn’t make it to the final bell during his time as a super middleweight,
Oleksandr Gvozdyk and
David Morrell went the distance in losing fairly wide decisions.
Yarde (27-3, 24 KOs) knows a few things are slanted in Benavidez’s favor. But, when it comes to power, not only does he believe that box is checked on his side, he’s also convinced that he can stop him.
“One hundred percent,” Yarde told
The Ring when asked if he can knock out the WBC champion.
Yarde’s record isn’t perfect, but he is in form. In his last four contests, he emerged with his hand raised,
including against Lyndon Arthur on April 26, to close the book on their rivalry.You wouldn’t call Yarde a betting man, but he does pay attention to what oddsmakers have to say. So, unsurprisingly, his ears perked up when he got wind that he wasn’t the favorite.
Could he be apoplectic about it? Of course he can, but deep down he couldn’t care less about conjecture. His main focus is on putting his body through training camp. Once it’s completed and the first bell rings to single their main event on Ring IV, Yarde is confident that his work will show and prove when he’s out there.
“I’m gonna be the underdog, but they know that I’m one of those people. Everyone’s gonna be excited to see what happens.”