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No matter what you’re a fan of, it can be easy to get lost in that thing’s “bubble,” where mostly everyone thinks the same. Boxing is no different.
But while pretty much everyone in our bubble is writing off Avni Yildirim (21-2, 12 KO) as an opponent for Canelo Alvarez (54-1-2, 36 KO) tomorrow night on DAZN, Yildirim’s fans back in Turkey are fully in support of “Mr. Robot.”
Fans in Yildirim’s hometown of Istanbul took to the streets to show their support for the underdog challenger:
It’s a reminder of how emotional sporting support can be, particularly in places where they don’t churn out tons of top-level fighters all the time. Yildirim is probably the best active fighter from Turkey (Ali Eren Demirezen and Cem Kilic are closest), and he’s definitely getting an enormous, once-in-a-career sort of shot in this fight.
How to Watch Canelo vs Yildirim
Date: Saturday, Feb. 27 | Start Time: 7:00 pm ET
Location: Hard Rock Stadium - Miami Gardens, FL
Streaming: DAZN
Online Coverage: BadLeftHook.com
That said, yeah, let’s not mince words: the rest of us are writing Yildirim off as a serious threat to win this fight. He went 0-4 in our staff predictions, but then so did Miguel Berchelt last weekend.
Not that Yildirim cares much. And he’s the one getting in the ring, after all.