Kal Yafai

On 7 July 2012 Yafai made his professional debut, aged 23, at bantamweight, at the Sheffield Arena in Sheffield on the undercard of Kell Brook vs. Carson Jones. His opponent was veteran 43 year old Delroy Spencer (14-139-3, 1 KO). The fight was stopped after Spencer refused to come out for round 3. In his second fight, Yafai defeated Hungarian boxer Richard Voros via first-round TKO. Two weeks later, Yafai was against Mexican Victor Koh at the Odyssey Arena, Belfast. This was on the undercard off Frampton-Molitor. The fight went the full 6 rounds, as referee Paul McCullagh scored it 60–54 in favour of Yafai. On 20 October, Yafai knocked down Scott Gladwin (5-1) three times in round 1 and once in round 2 as the referee waved the fight off, giving Yafai the victory via TKO. A month later on the undercard of Froch vs. Mack at the Nottingham Arena in Nottingham, Yafai knocked out Italian boxer Pio Antonio Nettuno in round 1 in a super bantamweight bout, after a body shot. Nettuno could not make the count.

In December 2012, Yafai fought Spanish boxer Jorge Perez (11-5, 6 KOs) at the Olympia in Kensington, London. Yafai won the fight via 3rd-round TKO. In January 2013, Yafai defeated Mexican boxer Gonzalo Garcia, after Garcia did not come out of his corner for round 5. In March, Yafai fought in an 8-round super bantamweight bout against Michael Ramabeletsa (8-9, 4 KOs) at the Echo Arena in Liverpool. It went the full 8 rounds as referee Alvin Finch scored it 79–73 in favour of Yafai. After a 7-month lay off, on the undercard of Brook vs. Senchenko at the Sheffield Arena in October 2013, Yafai defeateds Spanish boxer Santiago Bustos via points (59-55) after 6 rounds. Two months later in December, although being docked a point for a low blow, Yafai defeated British boxer Ashley Lane (4-3-2, 1 KO) via fourth-round TKO.

On 21 May 2014 Yafai fought at the First Direct Arena in Leeds for the vacant Commonwealth super flyweight title against Nigerian contender and former titleholder Yaqub Kareem (13-3-1, 8 KOs).[12] With 30 seconds remaining in round 3, Yafai knocked down Kareem with a body shot to claim the vacant title. For the first time in his career, in September 2014, Yafai fought at the Wembley Arena in London live on Sky Sports. His opponent was 34 year old Nicaragua Herald Molina (17-8-3, 7 KOs) for the vacant IBF Inter-Continental super flyweight title.[13] Yafai knocked Molina down once in round 1, before finishing the fight off in round 2 via KO.

Yafai defended the title two months later at 3Arena in Dublin, Ireland against 38 year old Everth Briceno (35-9-2, 26 KOs).[14] Briceno was knocked down in round five and twice in round eight. Briceno also lost one point in round six for low blows. The fight went the full 12 rounds as Yafai retained the title via unanimous decision (119-106, 118–105,120-104). This was Yafai's 13th straight win since turning professional in 2012.

In March 2015, Yafai went the 8 round distance with 20 year old Cristofer Rosales in a non-title bout at the Sheffield Arena. Two months later, he knocked out 35 year old veteran Isaac Quaye (27-10-1, 18 KOs) in just one round following a left hook. In September 2015, Yafai fought 20 year old Nicaraguan boxer Aron Juarez (6-2-1) at the First Direct Arena. Yafai knocked Juarez down twice in round one following two left hooks to the body.

It was announced that Yafai would have a chance to claim the vacant BBBofC British super flyweight title on 17 October 2015 against Jason Cunningham (17-2, 6 KOs) at the Barclaycard Arena in Birmingham, live on Sky Sports 1. Despite a height disadvantage, Yafai outclassed Cunningham from the opening bell winning a clear unanimous decision (119-108, 120–107, 120–107). The highlights of the fight came in round 5 when Yafai connected with a double left hook, staggering Cunningham and then knocked him down in round 6. After the fight Yafai targeted the WBA super-flyweight champion Kohei Kono as a potential next opponent.[15]

Yafai's next opponent was former world title challenger from Nicaragua Dixon Flores (12-3-2, 4 KOs) on 5 March 2016 at the Genting Arena for the vacant WBA Inter-Continental super flyweight title, with the winner due a shot at WBA champion Kohei Kono in the summer. This was Yafai's fifth opponent from Nicaragua in less than two years.[16] The fight lasted less than two minutes as Yafai floored Flores twice in the first round to secure a world title shot and the vacant title.[17]

On 25 June, Yafai fought 19 year old Hungarian Jozsef Ajtai (15-3, 10 KOs) in a scheduled 8 round bantamweight bout at the O2 Arena in London on the undercard of heavyweight title fight between Anthony Joshua and Dominic Breazeale. Yafai floored Ajtai twice in round 1, with the fight stopping just under 2 minutes. Yafai winning via TKO.

Yafai was added to the Eggington vs. Gavin card on 22 October 2016 at the Barclaycard Arena in a scheduled 8 round fight after his brother Gamal was forced to pull out of his title defence. Yafai secured his world title fight after a left body shot floored Johnson Tellez in round 3.[18]

Yafai secured a fight with WBA super flyweight champion Luis Concepción (35-4, 24 KOs) after knocking out previous opponent Tellez. Eddie Hearn confirmed it would take place on the undercard of Anthony Joshua vs. Éric Molina on 10 December at the Manchester Arena. With a win, Yafai looked to become the first boxer from Birmingham to win a world title in over 100 years.[19] At the official weigh in, Yafai weighed in at 8st 2lbs and Concepción weighed 8st 5lbs, which was above the limit. He was given an hour to drop the extra weight or risk not having the title at stake. Two hours after the initial weigh in, Concepción only managed to lose 0.3lbs, thus losing his WBA title on the scales. The title was only at stake for Yafai.[20][21] Yafai put in a dominant performance and outscored Concepción in nearly every round to win the WBA super-flyweight title. The judges scored the bout 120–108, 117-110 and 119-108 all in favour of Yafai after 12 rounds. Yafai also became the first boxer from Birmingham to win a world title in over 100 years.[22]

On 25 January 2017, it was announced that Yafai, as wished, would make his first world title defence in his home city of Birmingham on 13 May, live on Sky Sports.[23][24] On 15 March 2017, promoter Eddie Hearn announced that Yafai would be fighting 31 year old former Japanese flyweight champion Suguru Muranaka (25-2-1, 8 KOs) at the Barclaycard Arena in Birmingham. After the fight was confirmed, Yafai said that he wanted the tough fights as it would help him when it comes to unification fights. In his 13-years as a professional, it was the first time Muranaka fought outside of Tokyo, where all his previous 28 bouts took place at the Korakuen Hall.[25] Yafai retained his world title, in what was seen as a 'touger than expected' fight. The fight went the 12 round distance, with scores reading 118–108, 119-107 and 119–107, all in favour of Yafai. Muranaka was dropped in round 2, the same round that Yafai claimed to have hurt his hand in the post fight. Referee Steve Gray warned Yafai early in the fight for low blows, before docking a point in round 8. The bout was fast-paced throughout, which caused Yafai to look tired in the later rounds, due to him landing constant power shots in the earlier rounds and Muranaka connecting with his own body shots to wear him down. After the fight, promoter Eddie Hearn said that he would have one more defence before taking part in a unification fight.[26][27]

On 8 June 2017 the WBA's championship committee ordered Yafai to start negotiations with mandatory challenger Sho Ishida (24-0, 13 KOs), who was ranked at number 1 by the organisation. Both parties had 30 days to come to an agreement.[28] On 12 July, Hearn confirmed that terms had been agreed for the fight.[29] On 6 September it was confirmed that the fight would take place on the undercard of Anthony Joshua defending his world titles against Kubrat Pulev on 28 October 2017 at the Millennium Stadium on Sky Sports Box Office. Much like Yafai's previous opponent Muranaka, it would also mark the first time Ishida would be fighting outside of Japan.[30][31] Towards the end of September, WBA ranked former WBC champion Roman González as their number 2. Teiken Promotions, who promote González was said to be looking to arrange a fight against Yafai.[32] Upon hearing this, Yafai was excited at the possibility of fighting González as had made it know public that he was interested. Yafai said, "Happy days, I’ve wanted González for a long time", although he said wouldn't look past his mandatory fight first. Speaking on Ishida, Yafai said, "I’m a huge favorite to win and a lot of people think Ishida has no chance, but I’m always on the ball. I look at every opponent like they’re Mike Tyson. If everything goes well, I can talk to (promoter) Eddie (Hearn) and we can look to make the González fight."[33] González stated he would next look to fight in February 2018.[34]

On fight night, Yafai went the 12 round distance for the third consecutive time, winning a unanimous decision, successfully retaining his WBA title and increasing his chances of fighting in the United States in 2018. All three judges' scored the fight comfortably 118–110, 116-112 and 116–112 in favour of Yafai. Yafai showed off his speed and landed good combinations. Due to Ishida's size advantage, he also landed some clean shots on Yafai. Ishida did not letting his hands go until the final two rounds. By this point, it was looking like a clear win for Yafai and Ishida was lacking the punching power to get himself back in the fight and score a knockdown. Ishida worked hard in round 11, however Yafai connected with the harder punches.[35] In the post-fight, Yafai said, "I wasn't too impressed [with my performance]. A bit sluggish, but I got the win against an awkward opponent." He also stated that he would like to fight again in the Spring of 2018.[36][37]

On 20 May 2018 it was announced by Top Rank's Carl Moretti that Yafai would make his US debut on 26 May against 26 year old Mexican boxer David Carmona (21-5-5, 9 KOs) on the same card as IBF belt-holder Jerwin Ancajas, who would be making a mandatory defence against Jonas Sultan. With both bouts streaming live on ESPN's new subscription app, the plan going forward was for both Yafai and Ancajas to come out of their respective bouts victorious and meet later in the year for a unification fight. Carmona was best known for going the distance but failing to capture the WBO title against Naoya Inoue in May 2016, becoming one of only two boxers to date to take Inoue the distance.[38] Save Mart Center in Fresno, California was announced as the venue.[39][40] Carmona was unable to challenge for the WBA title after coming in 118½ pounds at the weigh in. Yafai weighed 114½ pounds.[41] Yafai had an official purse of $40,000 which did not include the extra amount he would receive for TV rights in the UK. Carmona had to pay a 20% fine from his $10,000 purse and from that fine, $1,000 was added to Yafai's purse and the remaining $1,000 was paid to the California Commission.[42]

Yafai dropped Carmona four times in the fight en route to winning the fight after round 7 when Carmona decided to stay on his stool The first round was fast-paced with Yafai scoring an early knockdown with a left hook to the head. Carmona beat the count and later in the round managed to hurt Yafai. Yafai also hit the canvas in round 1, however it was ruled a slip. Yafai regained his composure and returned to his quick jabs in round 2. Carmona started connecting to the body. Yafai landed quick jabs in round 3 snapping Carmona's head back each time. In round 4, Yafai landed a borderline shot which floored Carmona once again. Carmona was knocked down twice in round 5. One knockdown, which again appeared to be borderline, was counted. Referee Raul Caiz Sr. ruled it a knockdown but also took a point away from Yafai for hitting Carmona when he was already down. The point was deducted after many warnings. By rounds 6 and 7, Carmona looked fatigued and Yafai dominated both rounds.[43][44][45] Promoter Hearn stated a fight with former world champion Roman González could be next. He told Sky Sports, "He is ready for the challenge of unification but we also really like the Chocolatito fight and have already opened talks with his team." Hearn, who has promoted Yafai since he debuted highly praised him on his performance.[46]

Matchroom Boxing announced a third annual Monte-Carlo Boxing Bonanza show to take place at the Casino de Monte Carlo Salle Medecin on 24 November 2018. Yafai along with former cruiserweight world champion Denis Lebedev were chosen to co-headline the event. Yafai's fourth title defense was set to take place on the event against Mexican boxer, former world title challenger Israel González (23-2, 10 KOs). Gonzalez failed in an attempt to capture the IBF title against Jerwin Ancajas. After appearing on the same card in May 2018, there was discussion that Yafai and Ancajas would unify, however that did not materialise.[47][48] On his first attempt, Yafai weighed slightly over the 8st 3lb limit. He was given two hours to lose the small amount, however weighed again immediately without his pants, making weight the second time.[49] Yafai retained his WBA title via a controversial 12 round unanimous decision. The three judges scored the fight 117–111, 116-112 and 116–112 in favour of Yafai. Many media outlets believed Gonzalez has done just enough to snatch the world title. Yafai started the fight slow, targeting Gonzalez's body while Gonzalez was off the mark quicker with his high tempo, throwing at a higher output. Yafai struggled to find the right distance and began missing his target. Gonzalez was cut due to a clash of heads in round 5, however was still throwing. From round 9, although Gonzalez was still throwing, it was Yafai who was timing his shots, landing accurately on the body and what looked like the harder shots. After each shot landed from Yafai, Gonzalez replied with a flurry of combinations. Gonzalez eventually slowed down his output in the final two rounds as Yafai's body shots started taking its toll.[50] Yafai stated it was not his best performance and believed the scorecards were wide, but believed he did enough to retain his belt. Gonzalez walked out of the ring after the scorecards were read.[51]

On 29 June 2019, Yafai faced Norbelto Jimenez, then ranked #1 by the WBA at super flyweight, in his fifth consecutive title defence.[52] Yafai managed to outbox Jimenez for most of the fight. The fight also involved both fighters landing low blows on their opponent, as well as a highly questionable knockdown in favor of Yafai in the closing round. It didn't matter much in the end, as Yafai was convincingly leading on all three scorecards, 119–107, 118-108 and 117–109, winning the bout via unanimous decision.[53]

In his next fight, on 29 February 2020, Yafai faced former pound-for-pound great Roman 'Chocolatito' Gonzalez, who was ranked #2 by the WBA.[54] Both fighters stood in the pocket and were trading punches from the opening bell. Gonzalez was punishing Yafai to the body, as Yafai tried to retaliate, but with limited success. In the second half of the fight, Yafai's activity started to decrease. Gonzalez, sensing that Yafai's power was waning, became more aggressive, which resulted in a knockdown for Gonzalez in the eighth round. In the ninth round, Gonzalez caught Yafai with a big right hand and dropped him on the canvas again. The referee started the count, but quickly decided to wave the fight off, and award Gonzalez the TKO victory.[55]