ONE way to reduce the magnitude, and indeed the danger, of what is to come is to re-imagine the threat as something you have seen before; a threat no different from the previous one you have conquered. Even if it leads to a lie or delusion, this will allow you to think, behave and function as before, never leaving the latest threat satisfied knowing that you have changed. for them.
For Anthony Yarde, this approach came more naturally than for most people. After all, he has long been a supporter of the idea of continuous training camps – that is, training non-stop throughout the year – and also often speaks of his journey as continuous, arduous and full of peaks and abysses. In short, despite the threat, he kept going. He never stops. Instead of thinking about who will be next and how he must adapt to overcome them, he focuses only on what he can control: himself.
This approach is sustained even when a threat like Artur Beterbiev is on the horizon. It’s maintained because that’s all Yarde knows and it’s maintained because if there’s one man you don’t want to exaggerate in your eyes, it’s the fearsome Russian Yarde would trade for. punch this Saturday (January 28).
“I’m not just training for this fight, I’m training for my future,” Yarde said boxing news last week. “Whenever someone tries to label a particular person, I always tell them, ‘Look, I don’t care about that individual. It’s about the belt. It’s about legacy; history. It doesn’t matter who holds the key to all of that.’”
Admittedly, it’s easy to see this approach as delusional if you don’t know Yarde’s history or, for that matter, can hear the respect in his voice when he mentions it. The name is Artur Beterbiev. But when you get to know his methods, which have been consistent since turning pro in 2015, and you hear this respect – respect, not fear – that approach starts to make sense. means.
“It feels very different,” Yarde said when asked if this latest “camp” is the same as previous ones. “In every respect really. Of course, it was a big fight, but I feel like fighting someone like Beterbiev is good for me. Because of his reputation and achievements, it will bring out my full potential in terms of how I train and my acumen during the night.
“You always see that with other boxers. They often produce the best performance in their deadliest fight. I have always been the same. I wake up for the big fights. Even if I go to Russia (to play against Sergey Kovalev in 2019), and there is so much going against me, I can still compete. That shows me that it’s inside of me. That is confirmation. Now seems like the right time to take it a step further.”
The misconception with Yarde, based on both his looks and the light-hearted strategy adopted early in his career, has long been that he is a forerunner and a man. more style than substance. His trip to Russia to challenge Sergey Kovalev in 2019 refuted this view, yet there was still the feeling that Yarde was either (a) only doing it for the money or (b) arrogant enough to believing he could win a battle most felt, at that stage of his career, he couldn’t.
However, this time is different. This time Yarde, aged 31, is ready to challenge an old, intimidating Russian, especially at home.
“This feels right,” says Yarde. “I usually go with my guts in life and this fight feels right. The Kovalev fight has ‘ums’ and ‘ahhs’ about it. I’m never quite sure. Looking back now, it feels a bit early for me, especially since it meant I had to go to Russia. I had never appeared abroad at that time. I fought in the US (in 2016) but it was very early in my career. I’ve never been at the top in a foreign country before. Throwing yourself into the abyss like that is a lot. But this fight (with Beterbiev) was right. How it started and how we got to this point, all is well.
Anthony Yarde trains with his trainer, Tunde Ajayi (Richard Heathcote/Getty Images)
Part of the reason this light-heavyweight title fight against Beterbiev feels “right” is because of Yarde’s improvements since the 2019 loss to Kovalev. Since then, after all, he’s won five games by knockout and lost only once: a lackluster performance and point loss against Lyndon Arthur (in 2020) for which he immediately took revenge. (by stopping the fourth set). Better than all of that, though, Yarde has spent the past three and a half years in the gym, studying, working, and doing all she can to make sure that next time she’s asked to step up, he was well prepared for it.
“Without a doubt, I’m a better boxer now,” he said. “I am the warrior type, the more experience I get, the better I become. Now I have experience in that situation. Also, the more time I have to practice, the more I will improve in certain areas.”
In the grim twist of fate, another thing that has strengthened Yarde’s resilient spirit is the Covid-19 pandemic. That, rather tragically, hit the Hackney man the hardest, taking away from him his father and three grandparents.
“As you go through life, you get stronger or weaker,” says Yarde. “If you survive the bad, life will find a way to give you strength. I try not to complicate things. If you look at nature, most things that are broken will, if you let it heal properly, grow back stronger. Teeth fall out when you are young and they grow back as adults. You break a bone and if it heals properly, it will grow back stronger. The same is true of life experiences. Difficulties both allow me to become stronger and deal with it better in the future.”
Given all that’s happened, Yarde can be forgiven for thinking that his upcoming bout with Beterbiev, who has 18 knockouts in 18 straight wins, was his reward for enduring. a lot in the past few years. It definitely has that feel to it.
“I try not to get too excited, but that’s how the stars align,” he said. “I don’t take it for granted. I’m still practicing hard. I cannot rely on this feeling. But it’s good to have it and I feel like that’s what gives me confidence. They say a happy fighter is a dangerous fighter and a confident fighter is a dangerous fighter and I am both.
“For me, my career and life journey has passed, it was a great moment. I started boxing at the age of 19 after being tempted by all the things around where I grew up. I then decided to start boxing and my faith and hard work led me to this. Everything I’ve been through in 2020… thinking about that journey makes me emotional.”
Usually, when one imagines the thought process of a man about to face Artur Beterbiev in the boxing ring, words like “excited,” “happy,” and “confident” are not included. there. Instead, one imagines a boxer doing all he can to delay the inevitable, either watching too much footage of the impending threat or completely ignoring its existence. , before finally figuring out how to get out of the fight in one piece.
“I try not to see all the content on social media and just try to focus,” says Yarde. “Sometimes someone can say something to you and then you think about it. It can change your thought process. I don’t need that. I know what this is. I know the reality of it. All I need to do is stick with what I’m doing, keep myself in a good mood, and if I’m in a bad mood, use it. I just need to focus. That’s the best I can simplify it.
“I don’t follow him too much because I don’t really want to change anything I’ve done so far in my career. But Tunde (Ajayi, coach) and James Cook (coach) both watched him and looked at what he did well and not so well. I’ve also watched him box up in person and seen the same things.
“But you never really know until you’re in there with someone. I have always understood that. People spend too much time thinking about other fighters and then they get in the ring with them and everything they thought before changes. From the outside, they think they can do this or that. But, once they were in the ring, they couldn’t do all that. The same would apply to him preparing to fight me. He would look at me and think he could do this and that with me. But, once he stood in front of me, he would realize he couldn’t do those things.
“For me, it’s just about being fit – physically and mentally – and using my boxing IQ, my physical attributes and staying focused. I feel like when I go in there and Anthony Yarde comes out, you always get the best version of me.”
Anthony Yarde is ready for battle
That may be true, but Anthony Yarde has never faced someone with a reputation for being Artur Beterbiev, a powerful destroyer who, despite being 37 years old, is at the peak of his fighting life and has never been. Scarier than now. His reputation is terrifying, in fact, it’s easy to become nervous for an opponent, scared about the first time Beterbiev’s power is recognized and you see their expression – not to mention game plan – changes on collision.
“Nerves can be good, but they can also leave you exhausted,” says Yarde. “I am a very laid-back character. That’s just my way. I try not to let anything confuse me. But he’s big and strong and he can hit. He has a certain reputation. However, I’m glad he’s coming with the reputation he has, because it means I’ll be sharp and I’ll be prepared.
When asked to identify the last time he was nervous during a fight, Yarde, 23-2 (22), didn’t take long to come up with an answer. Surprisingly there is no mention of Russia or Kovalev. Instead, he said, “It was a really weird time. I have this abscessed toothache and don’t have time to have the tooth extracted. I won the knockout in the first round against Richard Baranyi (in 2017) but I was in a lot of pain in training camp and the idea of fighting seemed like a risky business. So yeah, that was the only time I really felt stressed. It was the most nervous thing I’ve ever been in the ring for.”
Of course, that could change after Saturday night. Then again, maybe it won’t. Possibly, as he has slowly and unwittingly been preparing for this moment for the past eight years, facing Artur Beterbiev in the ring inside Wembley Arena will be a comfortable experience for Yarde; as natural as going to the gym every day and honing your skills.
“There’s so much going on in a boxing match, it’s pointless to try to guess old or young whatever” he say. “This match could end in a knockout in the first half. Everyone knows me. If I hurt someone, the war is over. It doesn’t matter who you are. It doesn’t matter what your reputation is.”
