Fans of boxing legend Muhammad Ali might think they are seeing double on Thursday (25 June) when Tony Yoka takes on Joe Joyce in the semi-finals of the super-heavyweight competition at Crystal Hall.
While Joyce bears a physical resemblance to the former world heavyweight champion, it is Yoka who fights more like the man known in boxing circles as 'the greatest', circling the ring on his toes and picking off his opponent with left jabs, like a young Cassius Clay.
"Ali for me, is the greatest," Yoka said. "I also like Roy Jones and Lennox Lewis – they were the three boxers who most inspired me."
Yoka will present Joyce, the no.2 seed, with a more elusive target than either of the Briton's previous opponents, as could Mahammadrusal Majidov of Azerbaijan, the top seed, should the pair eventually meet in Friday's final.
Joyce reached the semi-finals with little more than five minutes work, stopping his opponents in the first round of each contest, and Yoka is no stranger to the British giant's powerful qualities.
The two men sparred together in Germany before the 2013 world championships, but this will be the first time they have met in competition.
Yoka said of Joyce: "He's tall, he's got power, he's not very technical or fast but he works, works, works. He doesn't stand and wait so I must be physically ready to box him.
"He's a little bit like Gardiner (the Irish boxer he beat in the quarter-finals), but a little bit more technical and a harder puncher."
Asked to name his own strengths, Yoka replied: "Speed, technique and I've got a good eye in the ring. I see when an opponent is looking to punch me and I quickly move away."
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