Anthony Yarde calls out British light-heavyweight rival Joshua Buatsi - 'I will fight him tomorrow'
Anthony Yarde wants to fight Joshua Buatsi in British boxing bout he says would be second only to Anthony Joshua vs Tyson Fury; Yarde tells Sky Sports: "If he wins the fight against Dan Azeez, that's the biggest British fight possible"
Wednesday 27 September 2023 12:47, UK
Anthony Yarde has called out light-heavyweight rival Joshua Buatsi, telling the Toe2Toe podcast that he would "fight him tomorrow" but suggesting a meeting could happen early next year.
Yarde was speaking following his comeback victory over Jorge Silva at Wembley on September 23, but says his sights are set on his long-standing rival Buatsi in a fight Yarde said would be a British boxing clash second only to Antony Joshua vs Tyson Fury.
Buatsi first takes on Dan Azeez at the O2 Arena in London on October 21, live on Sky Sports.
And Yarde said: "There's no guarantee he's getting through Dan Azeez - Dan Azeez is a serious fighter, a serious competitor.
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"If he wins the fight, that's the biggest British fight possible - other than Anthony Joshua vs Tyson Fury, it's the next biggest British clash.
"I want to fight again in December, he's fighting October - I don't think he'll be ready.
"Early next year, me and Josh Buatsi have to fight."
Yarde has only boxed for two rounds since January, but when asked if he would consider fighting Buatsi in December, the Hackney-born fighter replied: "I will fight him tomorrow".
"No one's putting it on me", said the 32-year-old.
"Everyone that watches boxing knows my personality, my mindset - I've proven that I don't shy away from any fight.
"We have teams, and my team have told me they want me out on this date [December]. Next year, we're going to look for the big fights - Josh Buatsi, possible title shots.
"But the Buatsi fight has to happen because it's a fight that's been called for for too long."
A rivalry that has been brewing
Yarde and Buatsi's rivalry has been in the making for some time, since before the former's unsuccessful attempt to take Canadian Artur Beterbiev's three world titles in January.
"He was talking a lot - he was with another promoter at the time - they were mentioning my name, and then I saw him and we spoke", explained Yarde.
"I was like 'we'll make this fight happen, but your timing is excellent because you know that I've signed to fight Beterbiev for three world titles - after, we're going to get it cracking 100 per cent'.
"Fast forward some time... he moves promoter, I've had the fight with Beterbiev, I was always going to get a comeback fight anyway, an then my promoter made offers.
"I saw the offers, I don't know too much about his personal decisions, but I'm hearing maybe he got a better deal - I can't fault him for that.
"It made it more unlikely at that point.
"But it seems like when I see him and we talk, we genuinely want to fight each other.
"But again, this is a business, and there's people behind the scenes trying to make things work in the best way possible.
"It would be such a big event for boxing and for London as well."
