Trainer Joel Diaz is extremely confident that Avni Yildirim 21-2 (12) can spring the upset on WBC and WBA super middleweight champion Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez 54-1-2 (36) when the pair meet at the Hard Rock Stadium in Miami, Florida on February 27.
“One of the first things we’re going to do with Canelo is to get him out of his comfort zone,” Diaz said to DAZN. “If he’s in his comfort zone, he’s in control. You cannot let him be in his comfort zone.
“You got to frustrate him mentally. Physically he’s a strong fighter, smart. That’s the reason why we cannot let him fight in his comfort zone and we must always frustrate him from the beginning.
“Once he starts becoming frustrated, he loses his rhythm. Those are some of the keeps that we’ve got to work on, and we’ve been working on them.
“Other than that, the physical part, the plan of attack, I’m not going to expose anything. We’ve got a great plan of attack. As I said from the beginning, I want people to believe what they saw in his last previous fight.
“I like that because they’re going to be based on that. They’re going to have a big surprise. Once Avni gets in the ring, Avni is going to be well known after the fight. Well known among the fans around the world.
Diaz praised Yildirim’s work ethic in the gym and his desire to continue to learn.
“He says, ‘coach, I’m your soldier. You tell me what to do, and I receive your orders. I go for it’,” Diaz said.
“This guy is not only a gym rat, but he’s also a smart fighter and he’s about learning. He never complains. It doesn’t matter how hard the work I put in him, he never complains. He does it.
“That’s the reason why I like Avni. He’s the type of fighter that every trainer would like to have. He doesn’t complain, and he just does what you tell him. I think he’s a true soldier.
“If I tell him to do it, he’ll do it and won’t ask why or when. He’ll just do it. Even though he’s an underdog, he’s fighting for his country and his fans.
“He doesn’t care what anyone says in regards to him being an underdog. He’s going to shock people and the fans.”
The 29-year-old Turk lost his last fight to Anthony Dirrell by 10-round technical decision two years ago when the fight was stopped and sent to the scorecards after an injury to the American’s eye from an accidental clash of heads in the seventh round worsened.
Diaz forecast big improvements on that performance.
“The changes I’ve made with Avni. He’s a completely different fighter than when he fought Dirrell,” he said. “If he were to fight Anthony Dirrell, he would knock him out in two rounds.
“Avni is a physically stronger fighter, but he had no defence when he came to me. That’s why they call him ‘The Robot’. Right now, there’s no robot in this guy, I can tell you. But the thing is this.
“I made a complete transformation because I dedicated time to him. The COVID situation helped me to help him because there was nothing to do, there were no fights.
“So just to keep him busy and keep myself busy, we would go to the gym and work on technique, work on defence, work on offense, making him a better fighter.”
