kessler vs ward spoiler

[Phenomenal-Nutrition]

The most impressive SMW performance since Jones-Toney, for my money. Ward isn't getting enough credit on here, if Froch just beat Kessler the same way (he wouldnt in a million years) you'd all have a 10 page group wankfest over it talking about Froch being better than Calzaghe blahblah. We are talking about a man who gave Calzaghe a very good close fight here, a world champion otherwise unbeaten who was considered number 1 in the division completely dominated. Kessler was very very good, but Ward completely picked him apart

The precision, speed, accuracy, footwork, punch selection, angles, timing, workrate, defense all were impecible, the power wasnt special but it was certainly enough to keep Kessler off balance and hurt at times. This was a boxing master class from the young Ward who will only get better at 25

Bar a lucky punch Ward will school Abraham silly, the Froch fight will be easier, Dirrell isnt as complete. I think he'll dominate the tournament unless Dawson gatecrashes the party

[lurkyshaka]

Seriously underestimated Ward going into last nights fight. Now that may have been unprofessional of him, but i think a lot of people underestimated what Ward brought to the fight and the tournament in general. It was an easy mistake to make. Its strange how Ward has managed to fly under the radar so much, despite being an Olympic champion.

I think Kessler believed his own press clippings a bit too much and thought it'd be a case of Ward falling apart as soon as the leather began to fly. Had Kessler been going up against a more favoured fighter such as Abraham or Froch, i expect his mind would have been more on the job. As it was a lack of respect for Ward saw him on the wrong end of a clear loss.

Ward fought an excellent fight. Smart boxing mixed in with some dirty stuff. He looked the experienced champion, compared to Kessler who looked novice like. Ward was very effective with his punches, and nearly as effective with his head! Holyfield would have been proud of Andre last night. And he also was sneaky on the inside, going into clinch and then when Kessler would accept the clinch, Ward would throw some sneak punches. Maybe this is where Ward's amateur pedigree comes in. As he of course had a decorated and long amateur schooling, as opposed to Kessler who only had a relatively short amateur career.

On the back of this, Kessler will be lambasted and the predictable overated accusations will fly, whilst Ward will be pumped up something shocking. I've already been hearing off other forums how he should be considered the clear favourite to win the whole thing now!

As good as Ward was last night, it has to be borne in mind that Kessler didn't perform and didn't take advantage of the holes in Ward's game. He was never consistent with his jab, and the uppercut was there all night for Mikkel and yet i only recall him throwing 1 the whole fight. He also seemed clueless how to handle Ward on the inside, neither roughing him up, or effectively tying him up.

But no question Mikkel Kessler is a much better fighter than he showed last night. Anyone whose seen the man in action in his fights against Calzaghe, Mundine, Andrade etc will know this. He was just never at the races last night and certainly shouldn't be written off just yet.

Froch must be gutted this morning after watching a title unification fight slip away. I always fancied Froch could beat Kessler, but its a very tough fight that will now be fought for just Froch's strap. And its also highly likely to be fought in Denmark. No doubt thats a tough fight with the potential to be a barnstormer.

The whole tournament appears wide open.

[Shirow]

The first proper look i got at Ward was the Miranda fight and i posted that he had the best style to beat Kessler but i wasn't sure he was good enough. His constant unpredictable tactics & switching, mobility and fast hands totally befuddled Kessler who didn't seem to have a gameplan coming in. He never adjusts well so this was bad news.
I expected Kessler to put his long jab on Ward and keep it there. Kessler seemed technically worse than before (squaring up, not parrying jabs, failing to counter, lack of accuracy, few combinations, no double jab etc) but Ward should be given credit for that unless we see the same against Froch.

This is good for the tournament as it keeps US interest in it. As much as i was looking forwad to a trip to Copenhagen Froch should try to force a home defence as Kessler has no belt and will be coming off a loss.

It was disappointing to hear Mikkel whining at the end about the headbutts and the holding. He has more than twice as many fights as Ward so he should be able to look after himself whatever happens.
Not that he was badly beaten up but this helps Froch because their will be a big gulf in self belief between the two when they meet and that may make all the difference.

[Autobarn]

yeah but you're risking going overboard PN. make your pouint but leave out the "wanking", eh. ward was excellent, has great defense and handled the step up really well. he is awkwardly effective and has done well.

but he won't do that to everyone. he certainly won't school abraham silly. abraham has some great practise against the terrible spoiler dirrell, whom i hope he beats. if it comes down to abraham v ward (hopefully in the final), then abraham's fights with taylor, dirrell, will have been good preparation. abraham has great experience, is patient and has massive power.

ward's chin is questionable, as seen in that early fight when he was nearly knocked out.

only so much you can read into one fight, however impressive. when the style matchup doesn't favour ward, he won't be as impressive, my guess is. if he fights someone with similar speed/athleticism, like dirrell or even taylor, he probably won't shine.

let's see if he can knock out taylor, as abraham did. last time he fought a common opponent he didn't fare so well. when he held and poked his way through 12 rds v miranda (after abraham had knocked miranda into next week).

[Asterix]

I told everyone that Ward would be the next legend of the sport when he had that gold medal around his neck...........

.....well it took a while.

Are you posting drunk again?

Never been convinced by Ward

http://boxrec.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p ... 5#p1904595

[Bomber 1]

I said from day 1 when this tournament was announced that Ward would win it and his biggest threat would be Abraham!! Ward is the most complete fighter in the tournament and I knew he would beat Kessler hands down!! Calzaghe purley outworked Kessler were as Ward is far more elusive and skilfull than Calzaghe!! Ward will go onto to win this tournament now I feel!!

[Asterix]

It was disappointing to hear Mikkel whining at the end about the headbutts and the holding. He has more than twice as many fights as Ward so he should be able to look after himself whatever happens.

I hate headbutting in boxing, but I agree with you. If someone is trying to headbutt you and the referee doesn't pull them up on it, you just make them pay. Step back and uppercut them as they come in. Tyson couldn't handle the headbutts either.

[Asterix]

I said from day 1 when this tournament was announced that Ward would win it and his biggest threat would be Abraham!! Ward is the most complete fighter in the tournament and I knew he would beat Kessler hands down!! Calzaghe purley outworked Kessler were as Ward is far more elusive and skilfull than Calzaghe!! Ward will go onto to win this tournament now I feel!!

You did call it. Kudos.

[Autobarn]

I said from day 1 when this tournament was announced that Ward would win it and his biggest threat would be Abraham!! Ward is the most complete fighter in the tournament and I knew he would beat Kessler hands down!! Calzaghe purley outworked Kessler were as Ward is far more elusive and skilfull than Calzaghe!! Ward will go onto to win this tournament now I feel!!

calzaghe, 36 yo and with bad hands, almost stopped kessler in the 8th, and would have if the ref hadn't seperated them

[saad muhammad]

Does Ward have to shine against Dirrell or Taylor, or
just win, just because Abraham knocked Taylor it
doesn't mean Ward has to knock taylor or Dirrell out.
This is boxing it's about winning, if Ward outboxes
Abraham won't that count then, it's not about being the
most exciting it's about beating everyone how you can
if youre good enough,eg; Floyd mayweather jr !!

[whiskey]

22.11.09

Following the dramatic loss by Mikkel Kessler last night in Oakland, USA to the Olympic gold medallist Andre Ward, many boxing fans are now disappointed that the proposed round two match-up with WBC champion Carl Froch has lost it's preciousness.

Kessler (42-2) was the bookies favourite to hand Andre Ward (21-0) his first defeat, but the Dane known as the Viking Warrior was befuddled by Ward's speed and switch-hitting offence.

Following a clash of heads earlier in the fight, a large tear opened up on Mikkel's eyelid which worsened, prompting the referee to let the ringside doctor examine the eye. Following inspection the doctor declared that the fight had to be stopped immediately and after the score cards were read out, Ward was declared the new WBA super middleweight champion with scores of 93-97 and 92-98 (twice).

Froch, who is currently in Cuba for his brother's wedding as best man, was hoping to take the valuable scalp of Kessler for himself with the added bonus of Kessler's title during the second round of the Super six tournament.

Joe Calzaghe has often declared how "Kessler is the best super middleweight in the world now i've retired".

Thus Froch was hoping to defeat a fully fit Kessler (the Dane had a broken hand for Calzaghe) in his back yard.

Several questions have now been raised about Kessler - such as will his wounds heal sufficiently enough to fight a puncher like Froch.

Also will the number of travelling British fans diminish as a result of Kessler now being viewed as a 'loser' by the fickle fight fan.

It would seem like a lose-lose situation for the Nottingham fighter in every sense of the word. For starters his dream of unification is on hold and if he does flatten the Dane it would be interpreted as Kessler being a spent force.

Likewise if Kessler vows to set the record straight in front of his loyal home fans and also sees his ticket back into the top tier of his division by capturing the WBC title up for grabs too, it could spell a difficult night for the travelling Froch.

The Super Six tournament really does afford the losers a second bite of the cherry, with Kessler going from an almost embarrassing defeat to having a WBC world champion gift-wrapped and delivered to his door step in his very next fight.

[WildWaylon]

a wee side thought...

what does this do to calzages win over kessler?? , does this show that kessler was no more than a decent champion who was overated and 1 dimensional

if it is , then who is calzages best win against???? and did he ever beat anyone great??? cause mnay people thought kessler was a great fighter

Kessler was the man to beat when Calzaghe beat him on points. It seems Kessler has lost what he had a couple of years ago. This fight doesnt alter in any way Joes superb win. Ward may have lost to the Kessler who fought Joe, but then again Kessler seems unable to deal with really fast fighters, so maybe not. Lets not knock Calzaghe just because another fighter has beaten Kessler. Kessler is no longer fully fit, it seems.

[Phenomenal-Nutrition]

yeah but you're risking going overboard PN. make your pouint but leave out the "wanking", eh. ward was excellent, has great defense and handled the step up really well. he is awkwardly effective and has done well.

but he won't do that to everyone. he certainly won't school abraham silly. abraham has some great practise against the terrible spoiler dirrell, whom i hope he beats. if it comes down to abraham v ward (hopefully in the final), then abraham's fights with taylor, dirrell, will have been good preparation. abraham has great experience, is patient and has massive power.

ward's chin is questionable, as seen in that early fight when he was nearly knocked out.

only so much you can read into one fight, however impressive. when the style matchup doesn't favour ward, he won't be as impressive, my guess is. if he fights someone with similar speed/athleticism, like dirrell or even taylor, he probably won't shine.

let's see if he can knock out taylor, as abraham did. last time he fought a common opponent he didn't fare so well. when he held and poked his way through 12 rds v miranda (after abraham had knocked miranda into next week).

The thing is Abraham is slower than Kessler, fights at a slower pace and is shorter with less reach. The only thing he has on Kessler is power and I'd expect Kessler to beat him still. Abraham has only a punchers chance against Ward imo. And I don't think Ward necessarily did a worse job on Miranda, he couldnt KO him because he lacks power but he won every round without getting hurt, which is impressive in itself. No I doubt he'll KO Taylor, he'll lose less rounds though

As for styles I genuine believe this and the Dirrell fight are the toughest stylistic match ups. Abraham's lack of activity and even slower handspeed should make it an easier night. As for Wards chin he took a few against Kessler/Abraham without being hurt

[WildWaylon]

Its getting very interesting. I had Kessler and Abraham in a showdown, with Ward possibly upsetting that. Maybe Kessler isnt going to do as well as I thought he would. Maybe Froch does stand a chance against Kessler after all. Its still early days but its obvious Ward is definately going to feature big in this tourney. I still think Abraham will be winner tho, he has the experiance, ability, toughness and the big KO punch.

[whiskey]

I cant say i was that impressed with Ward, more disappointed that Kessler couldn't get going.

Ward don't seem to be a puncher - so i'm surprised Kessler's face was such a mess.

I never saw Kessler's head rocked by any of the shots, yet it was hanging apart.

I may have to revisit the fight tonight and see how much Andre 'The billy goat' Ward used his noggin.

[lowersmiths]

does anyone really care about the belts in the super six?

froch v kessler is still a great fight.

[Phenomenal-Nutrition]

Ward just took Ward apart and schooled him, taking full advantage of Kesslers weaknesses, Ward is the better more skilled boxer plain and simple and would do that to any version of the Dane

[Phenomenal-Nutrition]

I cant say i was that impressed with Ward, more disappointed that Kessler couldn't get going.

Ward don't seem to be a puncher - so i'm surprised Kessler's face was such a mess.

I never saw Kessler's head rocked by any of the shots, yet it was hanging apart.

I may have to revisit the fight tonight and see how much Andre 'The billy goat' Ward used his noggin.

Were headbuts the reason Kessler got hit flush 240times to?

[Rocky Balboa]

Ward was 10/1 to win the tournament at the start. Fcuk, I should have had a punt. No way he's anywhere near those odds now. Would not surprise me if he's surpassed Abraham as the current favourite!

[lurkyshaka]

Ward just took Ward apart and schooled him, taking full advantage of Kesslers weaknesses, Ward is the better more skilled boxer plain and simple and would do that to any version of the Dane

I wouldn't be quite so quick to jump on the bandwagon. He made mistakes last night, but Kessler was flat as a pancake and just couldn't take advantage. Other fighters in the tournament might though.

[Autobarn]

one thing about ward is he can be a terrible spoiler, and he has little power.

he did so much jab and grab vs miranda you'd think he was german-based.

well done re the kessler fight, but that does not tell us everything.

as last night showed us, super 6 is likely to offer some surprises. ward could also get surprised, as i don't think that amateur pecking style can conquer everything super 6 has to offer.

[Phenomenal-Nutrition]

Ward just took Ward apart and schooled him, taking full advantage of Kesslers weaknesses, Ward is the better more skilled boxer plain and simple and would do that to any version of the Dane

I wouldn't be quite so quick to jump on the bandwagon. He made mistakes last night, but Kessler was flat as a pancake and just couldn't take advantage. Other fighters in the tournament might though.

Mistakes that he can get easily away with due to speed in my view, I don't think Ward is the best thing sinced sliced bread but hes the best of the bad bunch in this tourny and by a distance

[Finch]

Kessler shouldn't be too disheartened, he'll pick up the WBC in his next fight quite easily.

[Autobarn]

yeah but you're risking going overboard PN. make your pouint but leave out the "wanking", eh. ward was excellent, has great defense and handled the step up really well. he is awkwardly effective and has done well.

but he won't do that to everyone. he certainly won't school abraham silly. abraham has some great practise against the terrible spoiler dirrell, whom i hope he beats. if it comes down to abraham v ward (hopefully in the final), then abraham's fights with taylor, dirrell, will have been good preparation. abraham has great experience, is patient and has massive power.

ward's chin is questionable, as seen in that early fight when he was nearly knocked out.

only so much you can read into one fight, however impressive. when the style matchup doesn't favour ward, he won't be as impressive, my guess is. if he fights someone with similar speed/athleticism, like dirrell or even taylor, he probably won't shine.

let's see if he can knock out taylor, as abraham did. last time he fought a common opponent he didn't fare so well. when he held and poked his way through 12 rds v miranda (after abraham had knocked miranda into next week).

The thing is Abraham is slower than Kessler, fights at a slower pace and is shorter with less reach. The only thing he has on Kessler is power and I'd expect Kessler to beat him still. Abraham has only a punchers chance against Ward imo. And I don't think Ward necessarily did a worse job on Miranda, he couldnt KO him because he lacks power but he won every round without getting hurt, which is impressive in itself. No I doubt he'll KO Taylor, he'll lose less rounds though

As for styles I genuine believe this and the Dirrell fight are the toughest stylistic match ups. Abraham's lack of activity and even slower handspeed should make it an easier night. As for Wards chin he took a few against Kessler/Abraham without being hurt

abraham is definitely slow paced but he has a real patience and ring intelligence that i feel will be important vs the andre wards and dirrells. perhaps he wonb't be able to gte set, and will get outpointed. i believe the contrary. that he will start slowly, gradually find range and score late KO - perhaps when behind on points. i really rate abraham in spite of (or perhaps because of) his eccentricities.

ward is very, very tricky. but abraham's defense can be very frustrating, and if he can use his strength and power it will tell. ward was excellent v kessler, but a bit of a shrinking violet v miranda. i believ ehe is somewhere in betwen these 2 extremes, but that different fihgts show off different sides of him.

if ward can get the yanks interested in the super middles, that should be good, as he'll generate plenty of money. i'm not quite sure if he's a mater boxer or master spoiler, or if his amazing speed, or lack of strength/power will define him.

[Phenomenal-Nutrition]

yeah but you're risking going overboard PN. make your pouint but leave out the "wanking", eh. ward was excellent, has great defense and handled the step up really well. he is awkwardly effective and has done well.

but he won't do that to everyone. he certainly won't school abraham silly. abraham has some great practise against the terrible spoiler dirrell, whom i hope he beats. if it comes down to abraham v ward (hopefully in the final), then abraham's fights with taylor, dirrell, will have been good preparation. abraham has great experience, is patient and has massive power.

ward's chin is questionable, as seen in that early fight when he was nearly knocked out.

only so much you can read into one fight, however impressive. when the style matchup doesn't favour ward, he won't be as impressive, my guess is. if he fights someone with similar speed/athleticism, like dirrell or even taylor, he probably won't shine.

let's see if he can knock out taylor, as abraham did. last time he fought a common opponent he didn't fare so well. when he held and poked his way through 12 rds v miranda (after abraham had knocked miranda into next week).

The thing is Abraham is slower than Kessler, fights at a slower pace and is shorter with less reach. The only thing he has on Kessler is power and I'd expect Kessler to beat him still. Abraham has only a punchers chance against Ward imo. And I don't think Ward necessarily did a worse job on Miranda, he couldnt KO him because he lacks power but he won every round without getting hurt, which is impressive in itself. No I doubt he'll KO Taylor, he'll lose less rounds though

As for styles I genuine believe this and the Dirrell fight are the toughest stylistic match ups. Abraham's lack of activity and even slower handspeed should make it an easier night. As for Wards chin he took a few against Kessler/Abraham without being hurt

abraham is definitely slow paced but he has a real patience and ring intelligence that i feel will be important vs the andre wards and dirrells. perhaps he wonb't be able to gte set, and will get outpointed. i believe the contrary. that he will start slowly, gradually find range and score late KO - perhaps when behind on points. i really rate abraham in spite of (or perhaps because of) his eccentricities.

ward is very, very tricky. but abraham's defense can be very frustrating, and if he can use his strength and power it will tell. ward was excellent v kessler, but a bit of a shrinking violet v miranda. i believ ehe is somewhere in betwen these 2 extremes, but that different fihgts show off different sides of him.

if ward can get the yanks interested in the super middles, that should be good, as he'll generate plenty of money. i'm not quite sure if he's a mater boxer or master spoiler, or if his amazing speed, or lack of strength/power will define him.

I think we can agree Ward will be outboxing Abraham for the first half of the fight and we'll have to see if he can gut it out late, personally I think he will but we should certainly see. I don't think Abrahams defense all its cracked up to be, sure he has a tight guard but a tight guard without head movement is hardly anything impregnible

How do you see Kessler-Abraham? I reckon Kessler should pull out a UD there