Charlie Edwards wants to unify at flyweight

Badlefthook.com

Charlie Edwards is set to make the first defense of his WBC flyweight title on Saturday, facing Spain’s Angelo Moreno in a DAZN main event from London’s Copper Box Arena.

Edwards (14-1, 6 KO) won the belt in December, beating Cristofer Rosales by decision on the Whyte-Chisora II undercard, in what was his second world title shot, following a TKO loss to John Riel Casimero back in 2016, a fight he can now admit he wasn’t ready for when it happened.

The 26-year-old Edwards will be the genuine favorite against Moreno (19-2-2, 6 KO), a 35-year-old veteran who has come up short against his better opponents, and largely fought in six-round bouts in his career.

Edwards says if he wins, he would like to unify, but there are also looming potential dates with Andrew Selby (11-0, 6 KO), who fights an eliminator on Saturday night in Mexico, and super flyweight titleholder Khalid Yafai (25-0, 15 KO).

“At the moment I’m in the flyweight division and I’m hoping to unify the division. There’s Kal Yafai at super fly, but short-term the aim is to unify the flyweight titles. Andrew Selby has got an eliminator that could set us up for the end of the year. I’m in this game for the big fights and that would be a big fight. I lost to him as a kid, I was only 18, so it’s a fight I really want and that I feel I can win.”

If Edwards and the 30-year-old Selby win on Saturday, that would be a nice fight for both a few months down the road, barring any injury setbacks or anything. Selby beat Cristofer Rosales back in 2017, before Rosales upset Daigo Higa to take the WBC title.

As for unification, the other titleholders in the division right now are Kosei Tanaka (WBO), Moruti Mthalane (IBF), and Artem Dalakian (WBA). Any of them would be a real challenge for Edwards, all legitimate quality fighters.