Sunny Edwards was "surprised" how good Galal Yafai was when they fought as amateurs but says he never doubted they would meet as pros, live on DAZN this weekend.
The ex-IBF flyweight world title holder takes on the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games champion at bp pulse LIVE in Birmingham, with the interim WBC crown on the line.
The duo first met on the amateur circuit, where the more experienced Edwards defeated a green Yafai by decision, before the pair came through the Team GB ranks.
Speaking on DAZN's FACE OFF before their bout, the former admitted he underestimated his rival when they first met, but that he always thought they would clash again.
"I was surprised at how good [he was]," he said. "I’ll be right, from what I can remember from that fight, I was surprised. Obviously I’d been knocking about. I was only a kid.
"I was in there thinking I was going to ping [him], to be honest, and then it was a good competitive fight. He was strong. Six months later, we were on Team GB together.
"The rest was history from there. We’ve always got on, I don’t think the respect was ever any higher. But I don’t think there was ever any doubt that this moment would come."
Edwards is the more experienced professional of the two, and rebounded in June from a first career defeat against Jesse Rodriguez to beat Adrian Curiel for a 21-1 record
Yafai, who only turned professional following the delayed Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games, has fought just eight times as a professional, but remains unbeaten in the ring to date.
How to watch Sunny Edwards vs. Galal Yafai on DAZN
Sunny Edwards vs. Galal Yafai and the whole fight card will be stream live on DAZN in over 200 countries across the globe. You can watch with a DAZN subscription.
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