Boxing
Aaron McKenna Shines, Anthony Yarde Survives On Eubank Jr Benn Undercard
Irish middleweight prospect Aaron McKenna announced his arrival as a serious division contender, while Anthony Yarde got the edge in his trilogy series with Lyndon Arthur.
Trilogy Goes to Anthony Yarde Over Lyndon Arthur
Anthony Yarde raises his hands in victory. Photo: Mark Robinson, Matchroom Boxing
In the co-main event, the trilogy fight between light heavyweights Anthony Yarde of Ilford, Essex (27-3, 24 KOs) and Lyndon Arthur of Manchester (24-3, 16 KOs) tilted the series to Yarde, making a strong comeback in the final rounds to win by unanimous decision. The scorecards were 116-112, 116-112, and 115-133. Arthur, who believed he’d done enough to win, turned away disappointedly.
In 2020, Arthur won by split decision. Yarde got his revenge in 2021 with a fourth-round knockout from a right hook to the head.
Lyndon Arthur won the early rounds, but faded after a push by Anthony Yarde. Photo: Mark Robinson, Matchroom Boxing
Arthur directed the fight in the opening rounds, pummeling Yarde smartly with combination punching. Yarde was in the fight, but slowly seeing it slip away as Arthur rolled up the rounds.
To his credit, Yarde began to step it up against Arthur, making progress and pulling away in the final three rounds. Yarde came close to stopping Arthur at the end of the 11th round, pinning him against the ropes and drilling him with body shots. He kept up the pace in the final round, and it made the difference between a split decision and even a draw.
Credit goes to Yarde who couldn’t have gotten the win without being in exceptional condition. He had the stamina behind the will to pull out the win over Arthur.
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Aaron McKenna Takes It To Liam Smith in Style
Aaron McKenna lands a body shot in the final round, knocking down Liam Smith. Photo: Mark Robinson, Matchroom Boxing
Middleweight Aaron McKenna of Ireland (20-0, 10 KOs) declared he would be the younger, sharper, fresher fighter against former world champion Liam Smith of Liverpool (33-5-1, 20 KOs).
McKenna was good to his word, taking it to Smith and dominating a lopsided fight for a unanimous decision. McKenna declared his arrival as a middleweight contender with scorecards of 119-108, 118-108, and 117-109.
As he promised, Aaron McKenna was the fresher man against veteran Liam Smith. Photo: Mark Robinson, Matchroom Boxing
McKenna had too much firepower for Smith, who couldn’t get his motor running and never caught up against the onslaught of body shots and power punches from McKenna in an impressive performance.
In the final round, McKenna dropped Smith to the canvas with a wicked body punch. As Smith crawled on the canvas to his knees, it looked like the fight might end there. But Smith willed himself up. McKenna had nearly a full round to work with, but Smith mustered his courage and decided he would go out on his shield if necessary. He showed the heart of a champion by ending the fight on his feet.
Although he suffered the knockdown, Liam Smith refused to yield, and got to his feet to finish the fight. Photo: Mark Robinson, Matchroom Boxing
According to CompuBox, McKenna was an effective combination puncher with 25% of his thrown punches coming in combinations of four and five punches. McKenna
McKenna doubled up Smith in landed punches, 292 of 794 thrown (36.8%) while landing 44% of his power punches, more than triple the power punching output of Smith (228 to 64 edge). McKenna’s 292 landed punches were most by a Smith opponent. Smith managed just 88 of 520 punches thrown (16.9%).
Aaron McKenna delivered impressive offensive stats. Photo: Compubox
Smith had retired after his 2023 loss to Chris Eubank Jr., but later changed his mind, believing he still had plenty to offer. He came in confident during fight week. McKenna insisted he would get the better of the veteran and he made good.
The middleweight division has been seeking a star. McKenna, who spent the first ten fights of his pro career fighting on smaller Southern California cards with Golden Boy Promotions, has emerged as a possibility. It’s too early to anoint McKenna, but he’s got tremendous upside based on Saturday’s coming out fight.
Is Aaron McKenna the start the middleweight division needs? Photo: Mark Robinson, Matchroom Boxing
Smith needs to consider retiring again, this time for good. He’s enjoyed a solid career taking on major opposition, including Canelo Alvarez eight years ago. He remains a British fan favorite from a noble fighting family.
