‘No choice but to go and hunt’: Yarde mentally prepared for opportunity against Benavidez

Anthony Yarde looks to get over the hump to finally become a world champion in upcoming fight with David Benavidez.

With Anthony Yarde officially set to challenge David Benavidez for his WBC title this November, Yarde speaks to Sky Sports about getting a third shot at a major world title after twice falling short in the past. Yarde feels like he’s better prepared for this kind of opportunity given his mentality and the tenaciousness he’s previously displayed, so check out some excerpts of what he had to say about the fight below.

Yarde on taking on a dangerous fighter in Benavidez

“Of course. I just feel like it’s embedded in me, it’s my character and I will always be a person where i take on the biggest challenge for myself because I don’t want to be that person where you look back and say ‘what if’ That’s a fear of mine. Some people it’s their fear to go and challenge big things, for me it’s a fear of mine looking back and saying ‘ah, what if.’”

On losing both times he’s contended for a world title and why this should be any different

“Just by being myself, just continuing to be a better version of myself each time as I’ve shown. Then I feel like timing, timing is sometimes a blessing and I feel like this time just feels good.”

On whether he believes Benavidez is as good as his reputation

“I think his recent performances, who he’s fought, how he’s fought them, people he’s beat, how he’s beat them — again, there’s a reason people are saying he’s one of the best in the world. He’s tried to get big fights, he’s tried to get the Canelo fight...based on his past performances he’s what people have been saying about him, and that’s what excites me.”

On the experience he gained from fighting Beterbiev

“I gave him his hardest fight, and this is a guy who had over 200 amateur fights. I had 12. So again, I’m not in the business of caring about what anybody says if I’m an underdog or ‘he shouldn’t be taking this fight’ or whatever. I don’t care about it. My thing is I’m always going to go in there and it’s ‘lions in the camp.’ Lions in the camp means when a lion wakes up everyday he’s got no choice but to go and hunt, or she’s got not choice but to go and hunt.

“I feel like that’s how opportunities are created and with that kind of mentality — that’s why Turki Alalshikh told me himself, he wanted me for this fight. They had other people but he wanted me for this fight because I’m entertaining.”