With the big rematch looming on Saturday night at the Copper Box Arena, Lyndon Arthur and Anthony Yarde met the media for the final time ahead of the crunch clash this afternoon at the BT Sport studios in Stratford.
Frank Warren: It is a fantastic fight and it should be added that Lyndon is #1 with the WBO, so the winner of this fight will get the winner of Joe Smith v Callum Johnson in January. That is what is on the table, there is more at stake in this fight and, as we know, the first fight took place behind closed doors. It was a good fight but it didn’t spark as I expected it to. It was a close fight that I thought Lyndon won, but this one will be different for many reasons. There is more at stake and it is in front of a live audience. They know each other well enough now, they have shared a ring for 12 rounds, so who has learned the most from that first fight? Who will change tactics from the first fight? Who will adapt?
Anthony Yarde: I think it is a mixture looking back on the first fight. I am not going to take anything away from Lyndon because he did his job, stayed on the back foot, popped out the jab and didn’t engage…he got the decision, a split decision and there are mixed opinions in boxing. One judge gave it to me by four or five rounds and two gave it to him by one round so it is just perspective and how you see the fight. At the time I thought I won it, they thought it was close and, going back and watching it from a different angle, I thought it was a closer fight as well. I am not about to bullsh*t anyone or lie about anything. I am a realist and you cannot progress or get better if you are not honest with yourself.
Lyndon Arthur: It is completely cool for him to say I am a boring fighter because the boring fighter won. I don’t need to listen to anyone, if they think I am boring, everyone is entitled to an opinion. It is sport and everyone in this room has an opinion on me and him. Whether they like me or him is down to them. I don’t care. If I am boring, I will win boring. We will find out on Saturday whether a crowd benefits either of us. He thinks it does, but I don’t think it benefits him. I don’t care, it is a fight and the crowd can’t get in there. They can scream, they can shout and it will make a fun atmosphere.
I didn’t even know this fight was coming up this quick. I thought Arthur won the first fight, I think he’ll win again in another very close one.
I think Arthur looks like he doesn’t believe in himself. Yarde is the poster boy. I think Yarde will win on a controversial decision.
Not so sure about that-Yardes main accomplishment is the fight against a shot Kovalev.