Galal Yafai ruthlessly stopped Sunny Edwards who announced retirement after flyweight fight in Birmingham
Galal Yafai delivered a dominant performance, resulting in a one-sided stoppage defeat for Sunny Edwards, who subsequently declared his retirement following the flyweight bout in Birmingham.
Yafai came close to earning a chance at a world title after the referee intervened to stop further damage to Edwards, who had previously expressed to his team, "I don't want to continue," during a tough start to the fight.
Yafai took control right from the beginning, pushing Edwards against the ropes within the first minute of the bout. He started throwing punches with both hands, demonstrating his intentions. He landed a left cross followed by a right hook while Edwards, who was younger, had difficulty gauging his distance.
Edwards endured several solid body punches and a strong left cross from Yafai, while doing his best to respond. When he informed his corner that he felt his legs had given out during the break, he faced a lot of pressure in the third round.
Yafai continued to control the fourth and fifth rounds, while Edwards appeared to be struggling. In the sixth round, Yafai delivered a number of powerful right hooks before the referee intervened and stopped the fight after one minute and ten seconds.
Edwards, experiencing his second loss in 23 matches, quickly declared his intention to retire, stating: "Honestly, if I had won, I would have walked away from the sport. I didn't want anything more than to claim victory over that Olympic champion."
He said, "To be completely truthful, my body is really breaking down. My ankles hurt, my wrists are in bad shape, my shoulders are bothering me, and my back is no good either—everything feels off right now."
Yafai, who previously faced Edwards in a close amateur match back in 2015, expressed on BBC Radio 5 Live: "I felt anxious going into training, concerned about what Sunny might be capable of against me."
"I fought against him in sparring, and it was a tough match. He’s defeated me in the past and has been a top contender in the division. Because of that, I pushed myself to train as rigorously as possible to hold my own against him."