Do that 19.
Defending light heavyweight champion Artur Beterbiev prevented Anthony Yarde from competing in the round of 16 on Saturday at OVO Arena Wembley in London, 19 Russian-Canadianorder knockout in many battles.
The official stop time is 2:01.
Beterbiev didn’t have an easy night. Yarde, in his second attempt to win the big belt, used his nimble feet to become an elusive target and positioned himself to make hard, eye-catching shots throughout the game.
BETERBIEV REMOVE
19 matches, 19 knockout matches @ABeterbiev. #BeterbievYarde pic.twitter.com/ZAPwXKH13Y
– ESPN’s Sideline (@ESPNRingside) January 28, 2023
A stalking Beterbiev connected to many of his heavy hits, especially when he was able to trap Yarde to the rope or in a corner. That may have exhausted the British and contributed to the stoppage of the game.
However, Beterbiev was not able to fully control what a competitive fight was until the very last moment.
Yarde is winning after seven rounds. One referee gave Beterbiev the score 67-66, but the other two gave Yarde the lead, 68-65 (five innings) and 67-66. Boxing Junkie gave Beterbiev a 67-66 lead.
Of course, scoring has never been so important in a game against Beterbiev. And it wasn’t on tonight.
Midway through the 8th round, Beterbiev severely injured Yarde (23-3, 22 KOs) with a right straight hit, forcing him to stumble backwards onto the rope. He then landed with a forehand just above Yarde’s ear, sending him crawling on all fours onto the canvas.
Yarde was able to get up but he was clearly still injured and equally important he didn’t seem to want to continue. He glanced at his sentinels after getting up, presumably to say, “HELP!”
The match resumed momentarily but Yarde coach Tunde Ajayi informed referee Steve Gray that he wanted to save their man from further punishment and the official complied.
Just like that, Betterbiev kept his knockout streak and kept his three titles.
The humble winner was then asked to rate his performance but gave a blithe reply: “I hope to become a good boxer one day,” he said. laughing.
Beterbiev is now one step closer to meeting his talented compatriot Dmitry Bivol – who has conquered Canelo Alvarez – for all four major titles and is recognized as the best lightweight boxer in the world.
Beterbiev doesn’t want to talk too much about the future after the win over Yarde, but it’s clear what he wants.
“I want Bivol,” he said. “Right now it is all. In this fight we have four titles. It was a really good fight.”
It was the final fight at 175 pounds.
