Galal Yafai survived a brief mid-fight scare and a cut over his eye to preserve his unbeaten record.

The 2020 Olympic Gold medalist for Great Britain turned away a determined Agustin Gauto and forced a stoppage win. Gauto was in trouble in round eight and unable to defend himself when referee Raul Caiz Jr. intervened.

The official time was 2:40 into the eighth round of their DAZN-aired flyweight bout Saturday from Fontainebleau Las Vegas.

The stoppage was Yafai’s deepest in any fight to not go the distance. Still, he was only mildly pleased with his performance.

“It wasn’t great, probably a C,” Yafai told DAZN’s Chris Mannix when asked to grade his performance. “I compare myself to the top boys and he caught me with a few shots. I got comfortable a bit too much at times. He can punch.”

England’s Yafai—the youngest of his fighting family—sprinted out to an early lead in his third career U.S. bout. The 31-year-old southpaw had Argentina’s Gauto hurt in the opening round and fought with a stoppage on his mind.

The rounds piled up for Yafai (7-0, 5 knockouts) while there was concern on the other side of the ring. Time was called prior to the start of round five as the ringside doctor examined Gauto. The sequence was followed by mild concern from the referee that Gauto was taking too much punishment.

That was all that the visiting Argentine needed to hear.

Gauto turned things around in a big way in round five. Yafai was briefly buckled by a right hand that landed over his leaky guard. Gauto repeated the sequence later in the round as Yafai was pinned in a corner.

More adversity was dealt to the unbeaten rising contender in round six. A clash of heads left Yafai with a cut over his left eye. It was in a bad place and bled throughout the balance of the fight.

“I probably tried to go a bit defensive after (the cut),” confessed Yafai. “The bad person in me tried to kill him (figuratively). My coach is telling me all the time to watch myself defensively. It is what it is.”

Yafai made it count when it mattered most. Gauto’s mid-fight momentum evaporated when he found himself under siege in round eight. The 26-year-old slugger was in retreat mode as Yafai went on the attack. A series of power shots left Gauto (21-2, 15 KOs) at his opponent’s mercy before he was rescued by the referee.

The win marked the latest step up in class in the already aggressively paced career of Yafai. He is possibly the most talented among his fighting family. Older brother Kal Yafai held the WBA ‘Regular’ 115-pound title. Gamal Yafai was a former title challenger.

The youngest Yafai could be positioned to that stage soon, especially with a thinning of the herd at the top. Jesse ‘Bam’ Rodriguez (19-0, 12 KOs), No. 1 at 112, vacated his IBF and WBO titles to return to junior bantamweight. Yafai is ranked by all four sanctioning bodies and will likely fight for a major belt within the next year.

The fight that has been most often discussed, however, is a showdown with countryman and former IBF titlist Sunny Edwards.

“It definitely can be soon,” Yafai acknowledged. “Eddie [Hearn, Yafai’s promoter] is trying to get me Sunny Edwards. I don’t want to shout too many people’s names.”

Edwards (20-1, 4 KOs), No. 2 at 112, was rumored to possibly drop down in weight to face former 108-pound titlist Adrian Curiel. The unofficial matchup is targeted for the June 29 Juan Francisc Estrada-Bam Rodriguez undercard in Phoenix, Arizona.

The right offer could change things for everyone involved.

“If that’s a fight that people want and Eddie wants—and they can offer me a good chunk of money—then we can have a look at it,” Yafai quipped.

Yafai-Gauto aired on the undercard of the Richardson Hitchins-Gustavo Lemos IBF 140-pound title eliminator.

Jake Donovan is a senior writer for The Ring and vice president of the Boxing Writers Association of America.

Follow @JakeNDaBox

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