Sergey Kovalev vs. Andre Ward

[crusader]

Have you seen the fight caldo? Hops wasn't dropped while he was on the ropes:

[Freedom2013]

PPV card is about to start.

Stevens fight coming up.

[thomasjkelley]

I think that people may be in for a big surprise. I have not much liked SOGgy for the last three or four years but if he actually gets into the ring tonight here in Vegas it will be very hard for me or anyone to criticize him, win, lose or draw. SOGgy will have moved up to face the most highly respected and undefeated LHW on the planet.

That, in and of itself, will be a surprise for a huge % of boxing enthusiasts.

Nobody, including SOGgy fans, will be surprised if Krusher hurts him early. What if SOGgy hurts Krusher early? It is quite possible. He doesn't need to put Krusher down. He only needs to make him aware that he CAN hurt the Russian and the complexion of this fight changes dramatically.

Too much has been made of SOGgy's alleged suspect chin. What about Krusher's beard? Can he withstand pinpoint shots that he does not see coming? I am not convinced that he can until he does.

Too much has been made of SOGgy's alleged featherfistedness. He is safety first but he is much like FMJ in his ability to get the opponent's attention and make him second guess / hesitate.

More importantly, if Krusher reacts to being stung by SOGgy the way he did v Chilemba and a couple others, it could be his undoing. Wouldn't that shock the world?!

No. Ward is 2-1 favourite, nobody will be overly surprised at anything that happens tonight because nobody knows what to expect. Ward doesn't have a reputation for a suspect chin or for being a light hitter. I have never heard that criticism personally. As for walking into the ring being a surprise to boxing fans, I assume that this is just a little zing you are throwing at Ward.

[Freedom]

The undercard is interesting. Looking forward to Isaac Chilemba fight. He is a a skilled fighter, well worth the boxing exhibition for the fans of the sweet science.
.

[marvelous marv]

I think Kovalev has endurance issues. He slowed down in the later rounds versus Hopkins and Chilemba. This fight being in Vegas at an altitude of 2000 feet above sea level will exacerbate the fact. I can see Ward winning every round after 7 if he doesn't get hit with a big shot before then.

[boxing_rocks]

I think Kovalev has endurance issues. He slowed down in the later rounds versus Hopkins and Chilemba. This fight being in Vegas at an altitude of 2000 feet above sea level will exacerbate the fact. I can see Ward winning every round after 7 if he doesn't get hit with a big shot before then.

Bullsh*t. Kovalev almost took Hopkins out in the 12th. He had flu during his Chilemba camp.

[marvelous marv]

No Hopkins chose to stand in front of him during the last minute of the fight and was never seriously hurt. In fact he was smiling after the fight ended. I was sitting ringside when this happened.

[Impractical Poster]

I really haven't seen much of an issue with Kovalev's gas tank. If Kov gets beat tonight, it won't be because of gas.

[Tanzio]

I think that people may be in for a big surprise. I have not much liked SOGgy for the last three or four years but if he actually gets into the ring tonight here in Vegas it will be very hard for me or anyone to criticize him, win, lose or draw. SOGgy will have moved up to face the most highly respected and undefeated LHW on the planet.

That, in and of itself, will be a surprise for a huge % of boxing enthusiasts.

Nobody, including SOGgy fans, will be surprised if Krusher hurts him early. What if SOGgy hurts Krusher early? It is quite possible. He doesn't need to put Krusher down. He only needs to make him aware that he CAN hurt the Russian and the complexion of this fight changes dramatically.

Too much has been made of SOGgy's alleged suspect chin. What about Krusher's beard? Can he withstand pinpoint shots that he does not see coming? I am not convinced that he can until he does.

Too much has been made of SOGgy's alleged featherfistedness. He is safety first but he is much like FMJ in his ability to get the opponent's attention and make him second guess / hesitate.

More importantly, if Krusher reacts to being stung by SOGgy the way he did v Chilemba and a couple others, it could be his undoing. Wouldn't that shock the world?!

No. Ward is 2-1 favourite, nobody will be overly surprised at anything that happens tonight because nobody knows what to expect. Ward doesn't have a reputation for a suspect chin or for being a light hitter. I have never heard that criticism personally. As for walking into the ring being a surprise to boxing fans, I assume that this is just a little zing you are throwing at Ward.

I did say long ago that I would believe SOGgy would actually fight Kovalev when I saw him in the ring, due to his series of injuries and legal / contractual issues. I am not alone by a longshot.

If you haven't heard people criticize SOGgy's power and / or his chin, you haven't been paying attention. There is a significant contingent that believes Krusher will walk through anything SOGgy throws and destroy him.

Very, very few believe that SOGgy can stop Krusher. Almost everyone brlieves that Krusher can stop SOGgy.

[ClivePatrickLyons]

Early on Ward was trying to punch too hard and Kovalev tried to box too much after about round 6 Ward smartly changed his tatic's whilest The Krusher wanted to outbox Andre that's when things started to go pear shaped stick that jab out to set up the right he fought like a one armed bandit for much of the fight the game plan was floored. don't box with a boxer fight him

[boxing_rocks]

Kovalev both outboxed and outwrestled Ward. His problem was that he couldn't box and wrestle at the same time, so Ward managed to land a few body shots inside winning around 4 rounds.

[Tanzio]

Kovalev both outboxed and outwrestled Ward. His problem was that he couldn't box and wrestle at the same time, so Ward managed to land a few body shots inside winning around 4 rounds.

Ward won a close decision, deservedly. Get over it.

[boxing_rocks]

Kovalev both outboxed and outwrestled Ward. His problem was that he couldn't box and wrestle at the same time, so Ward managed to land a few body shots inside winning around 4 rounds.

Ward won a close decision, deservedly. Get over it.

Absolutely wrong. Ward won sh*t. He got a decision and 3 belts gifted to him. All polls I can find prove that.

[Kalan]

Though they have different arsenals inside the ring, Ward and Kovalev both have to be the guys moving forward and, though I HATE this term, walk their opponents down. This is what I find to be the most intriguing factor in this fight because I can't see either guy retreating in my minds eye as I imagine how this fight will transpire.

I feel that skills will prevail and as much as I hate to say it, Ward has the bigger toolbox. He's got more backup options and tricks to turn to in order to find a way to win. Kovalev is a HOF'er to be IMO opinion but he fights one way and one way only and up until this fight, no one's tested him enough to consider fighting any other way. Ward will exploit this and I feel that Kovalev will frustrated and confused throughout this fight and the difference in skills will prove to be lopsidedly obvious in Wards favor.

Ward should win with a unanimous decision but will have to withstand some tough spots in this one.

Kovalev doesn't fight one way... He can box and use the jab... He can attack and get you out... Pascal did a good job of boxing when he beat a prime Chad Dawson... Hopkins did a good job of boxing in unifying 2 World Championships at the age of 49 against Shumenov in his fight prior to Kovalev... Kovalev had little trouble controlling both these guys and controlling the middle of the ring... It's going to be more of an even fight and it's up for grabs... Both guys can win.

You are missing the point trying to be made here. My point is that Kovalev doesn't retreat and we have only seen him fight as the aggressor and the one pushing forward. Have you ever seen Kovalev fighting with his back against the ropes for extended period of time? No one has. You can have a jab all you want but you can't throw it with any success moving backwards. This is going to be the key to the fight because Ward will be the aggresor .

As you saw... Kovalev can retreat with ease... and controlled with his better jab -- although Ward has a great jab also.. If you have a great jab and can control the center of the ring you don't need to have your back to the ropes.. Have you ever seen GGG with his back to the ropes??? He can give ground in a flash -- but it's 6 steps forward and only 4 steps back.. I do feel that Kovalev controlled the first 6 rounds with the jab -- then he started free lancing a little bit getting too cute.. He got away from the jab... He won handily but he might have scored a shutout if he stayed with jab 100% like he did with Hopkins... He needed a shutout to get the win because the judges were more than determined to give it to Ward.

[caldo2025]

Kovalev doesn't fight one way... He can box and use the jab... He can attack and get you out... Pascal did a good job of boxing when he beat a prime Chad Dawson... Hopkins did a good job of boxing in unifying 2 World Championships at the age of 49 against Shumenov in his fight prior to Kovalev... Kovalev had little trouble controlling both these guys and controlling the middle of the ring... It's going to be more of an even fight and it's up for grabs... Both guys can win.

You are missing the point trying to be made here. My point is that Kovalev doesn't retreat and we have only seen him fight as the aggressor and the one pushing forward. Have you ever seen Kovalev fighting with his back against the ropes for extended period of time? No one has. You can have a jab all you want but you can't throw it with any success moving backwards. This is going to be the key to the fight because Ward will be the aggresor .

As you saw... Kovalev can retreat with ease... and controlled with his better jab -- although Ward has a great jab also.. If you have a great jab and can control the center of the ring you don't need to have your back to the ropes.. Have you ever seen GGG with his back to the ropes??? He can give ground in a flash -- but it's 6 steps forward and only 4 steps back.. I do feel that Kovalev controlled the first 6 rounds with the jab -- then he started free lancing a little bit getting too cute.. He got away from the jab... He won handily but he might have scored a shutout if he stayed with jab 100% like he did with Hopkins... He needed a shutout to get the win because the judges were more than determined to give it to Ward.

Kovalev pushed forward for 90 percent of the fight so i'm not sure what you are taking about. He lost the fight because he thought that he had points in the bank that he did have. Let's also give Ward credit for the body shots as those could also be a reason why Kovalev stopped throwing the right hand.

Or it could be that Ward just figured Kovalev out and a rematch would look a lot like the last half of that fight. In true Floydlike fashion, Ward won this fight without landing a significant punch. Just slapping jabs. I'm a little sick of discussing boxing after this one. Kovalev won the fight IMO and he deserved to get his hands raised. I had him winning by 2 points and i was very generous to Ward in my scoring.