Andre Ward vs. Sergey Kovalev II on June 17

[Tanzio]

Should be a cleaner win for Ward imo
Ward will be able to adjust better from the first fight, while Kovalev will probably come with the same gameplan.
If Ward can frustrate Kovalev for 5 rounds, Sergey will get desperate and Ward might even get a chance for a tko

So you are a comedian?

The punch that knocked Ward down wasn't even landed at full extension because if it had Ward would have been KO'd. Kovalev caught Ward almost with the palm of his hand.

. . . and landed nearly nothing of consequence the rest of the night.

[boxing_rocks]

I always hated that excuse. He should've stopped him the first time, Mr. knockout king Kovalev who relied on the judges. Not buying it. Ward beats him in rematch as he figured Kovalev out by the end and not vice versa.

It is not an excuse. He defeated Hopkins on points, and the Ward fight started exact same way: an advantage and KD early, so Kovalev was naturally gliding to what he and most of the others thought was a guaranteed victory.

He went for the stoppage against Hopkins. He faded when Ward figured him out and Ward will do better in the rematch. If Kovalev failed to finish Ward in the first fight when he was hurt.then I doubt he's more effective in the rematch.

Kova wasn't angry enough in the first fight. This time he will do what he did with Sillakh who talked too much.

[Tanzio]

It is not an excuse. He defeated Hopkins on points, and the Ward fight started exact same way: an advantage and KD early, so Kovalev was naturally gliding to what he and most of the others thought was a guaranteed victory.

He went for the stoppage against Hopkins. He faded when Ward figured him out and Ward will do better in the rematch. If Kovalev failed to finish Ward in the first fight when he was hurt.then I doubt he's more effective in the rematch.

Kova wasn't angry enough in the first fight. This time he will do what he did with Sillakh who talked too much.

The only one talking too much so far is Krusher.

[IKSRTFO]

It is not an excuse. He defeated Hopkins on points, and the Ward fight started exact same way: an advantage and KD early, so Kovalev was naturally gliding to what he and most of the others thought was a guaranteed victory.

He went for the stoppage against Hopkins. He faded when Ward figured him out and Ward will do better in the rematch. If Kovalev failed to finish Ward in the first fight when he was hurt.then I doubt he's more effective in the rematch.

Kova wasn't angry enough in the first fight. This time he will do what he did with Sillakh who talked too much.

Being more angry will get him outboxed easier because his composure is one of his biggest assets and he will get tired quicker if he tries to go for the KO and fail. That's part of the reason he didn't have enough to stop ward late in the first fight.

[boxing_rocks]

He went for the stoppage against Hopkins. He faded when Ward figured him out and Ward will do better in the rematch. If Kovalev failed to finish Ward in the first fight when he was hurt.then I doubt he's more effective in the rematch.

Kova wasn't angry enough in the first fight. This time he will do what he did with Sillakh who talked too much.

The only one talking too much so far is Krusher.

Really ?

Andre S.O.G. Ward‏Verified account @andreward Mar 1
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The other side can kick & scream all they want. They can leak info until the cows come home. They. Are. Not. In. Control. And their mad. Lol

[punchoutsb]

This is the right attitude:

"Be ready motherf***er! I'll finish your boxing career," Kovalev stated. - See more at: http://www.BS.com/kovalev-ward ... uYK0m.dpuf

Talk is cheap. We will see on June 17.

That old adage doesn't always hold true. Talk is only cheap in some cases. It's not like Kov is some bitch who has never laced it up or tested himself. Most people felt he won the first fight and even if he didn't, it was a very close fight. I hope both guys talk in the lead up, it will end up making them both more money which they deserve.

[Tanzio]

Kova wasn't angry enough in the first fight. This time he will do what he did with Sillakh who talked too much.

The only one talking too much so far is Krusher.

Really ?

Andre S.O.G. Ward‏Verified account @andreward Mar 1
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The other side can kick & scream all they want. They can leak info until the cows come home. They. Are. Not. In. Control. And their mad. Lol

Sounds accurate to me. If Krusher goes in over pumped, SOGgy will get him out of there. Kovalev needs to be precise and finish. He isn't fighting Sillahk.

[Tanzio]

This is the right attitude:

Talk is cheap. We will see on June 17.

That old adage doesn't always hold true. Talk is only cheap in some cases. It's not like Kov is some bitch who has never laced it up or tested himself. Most people felt he won the first fight and even if he didn't, it was a very close fight. I hope both guys talk in the lead up, it will end up making them both more money which they deserve.

I agree. I hope they both talk ish. But come fight night the words mean nothing. You are correct that the buildup will bring more $$$ though.

[punchoutsb]

Talk is cheap. We will see on June 17.

That old adage doesn't always hold true. Talk is only cheap in some cases. It's not like Kov is some bitch who has never laced it up or tested himself. Most people felt he won the first fight and even if he didn't, it was a very close fight. I hope both guys talk in the lead up, it will end up making them both more money which they deserve.

I agree. I hope they both talk ish. But come fight night the words mean nothing. You are correct that the buildup will bring more $$$ though.

[Bard of Boxrec]

outthrown and outlanded - but totally worked the other guy out

[Enlightened-One]

I’m looking forward to seeing the rematch, despite the first bout lacking in action, since it was very intriguing edge of your seat stuff.

I’ve got no idea who will win, but the fighter that had gained the winning momentum for the second half of their fight was Ward, which can either mean one of two things: Kovalev gassed slightly, as per the Chilemba bout; or Andre had managed to adopt a strategy that solved the Krusher puzzle.

I’d be interested to see if either man approaches the rematch with a completely different gameplan, because in some ways they both need to.

On a side note, to those forum members that repeatedly accused Ward of being a “duck”, what do you think of him now that he’s taking the fight?

On a personal note, I think that this is going to be a commercial failure and do less than 160K PPV buys.

[caldo2025]

Much respect to Andre Ward for signing the contract and I take back most of the stuff i said about him. I think that he was trying to wiggle out of the rematch clause but realized that the fans would never let him live it down. It would be a very bad note to end a career on.

With that said, i'm hopeful that they select the right ref in this one. Robert Byrd was horrible in the first fight and extremely inconsistent and also looked to be gassed for second half and couldn't keep up. I hope that they correct that because it will lead to better action.

Lastly, I think that Kovalev thought that he had the fight in the bag and focused on finishing the fight on his feet only to have the fight ripped out of his hands by some shabby judging. It's a lot different when a fighter goes into a fight knowing he's not going to win a decision and to not bank any rounds because you never ever know. I think we'll see a better effort from Kovalev and he should have a decisive victory. He's clearly the better fighter in all aspects.

[Baby Face Finster]

The only one talking too much so far is Krusher.

Really ?

Andre S.O.G. Ward‏Verified account @andreward Mar 1
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The other side can kick & scream all they want. They can leak info until the cows come home. They. Are. Not. In. Control. And their mad. Lol

Sounds accurate to me. If Krusher goes in over pumped, SOGgy will get him out of there. Kovalev needs to be precise and finish. He isn't fighting Sillahk.

Ward doesn't get anyone that isn't weight drained out of there. Anyone saying or implying Ward will stop Kovalev is delusional and I highly doubt will bet money on it. If Ward wins it's by decision and/or technical decision only.

[Tanzio]

Really ?

Sounds accurate to me. If Krusher goes in over pumped, SOGgy will get him out of there. Kovalev needs to be precise and finish. He isn't fighting Sillahk.

Ward doesn't get anyone that isn't weight drained out of there. Anyone saying or implying Ward will stop Kovalev is delusional and I highly doubt will bet money on it. If Ward wins it's by decision and/or technical decision only.

I don't gamble on sports but I disagree. If Krusher comes in with the wrong strategy, SOGgy can get him out of there.

[Bard of Boxrec]

ward couldn't get a wet paper bag out of there

[Enlightened-One]

Lastly, I think that Kovalev thought that he had the fight in the bag and focused on finishing the fight on his feet...

If this truly was the case, then this shows a complete lack of professionalism from Kovalev, and in my opinion, he deserved to lose the bout if he really did allow several rounds to be close by “coasting” until he heard the final bell.

[Baby Face Finster]

Lastly, I think that Kovalev thought that he had the fight in the bag and focused on finishing the fight on his feet...

If this truly was the case, then this shows a complete lack of professionalism from Kovalev, and in my opinion, he deserved to lose the bout if he really did allow several rounds to be close by “coasting” until he heard the final bell.

I generally don't respond to your posts because you are an annoying troll but it's irrelevant what anyone thinks Kovalev was thinking. Based on what transpired in the fight he should have gotten the decision and the majority of witnesses who saw the fight agree with that assessment. If there were no controversy about the result we wouldn't be having a rematch.

[SaadOffTheDeck]

It is not an excuse. He defeated Hopkins on points, and the Ward fight started exact same way: an advantage and KD early, so Kovalev was naturally gliding to what he and most of the others thought was a guaranteed victory.

He went for the stoppage against Hopkins. He faded when Ward figured him out and Ward will do better in the rematch. If Kovalev failed to finish Ward in the first fight when he was hurt.then I doubt he's more effective in the rematch.

Kova wasn't angry enough in the first fight. This time he will do what he did with Sillakh who talked too much.

He fought very smart, treating Ward like a second rate contender is a good way to get the shit countered out of you. If they're smart they will use the exact same game plan and hope the judges get it right this time.

[lefty]

I think Ward will win the return in convincing fashion.

[boxing_rocks]

He went for the stoppage against Hopkins. He faded when Ward figured him out and Ward will do better in the rematch. If Kovalev failed to finish Ward in the first fight when he was hurt.then I doubt he's more effective in the rematch.

Kova wasn't angry enough in the first fight. This time he will do what he did with Sillakh who talked too much.

He fought very smart, treating Ward like a second rate contender is a good way to get the poo countered out of you. If they're smart they will use the exact same game plan and hope the judges get it right this time.

No, I hope Kovalev realizes that he can't rely on judges especially now when Ward has the belts.

[punchoutsb]

Kova wasn't angry enough in the first fight. This time he will do what he did with Sillakh who talked too much.

He fought very smart, treating Ward like a second rate contender is a good way to get the poo countered out of you. If they're smart they will use the exact same game plan and hope the judges get it right this time.

No, I hope Kovalev realizes that he can't rely on judges especially now when Ward has the belts.

Fighters *trying* to win by knockout against a a very good boxer/spoiler typically do not win by knockout. Kovalev had a very good gameplan last fight and throwing that to the wind to try and take it out of the judges hands would spell disaster. He needs to tighten a few components of his game and make adjustments based on presumed adjustments Ward will make. Fight smart and the knockout has a better chance of happening.

[SaadOffTheDeck]

Kova wasn't angry enough in the first fight. This time he will do what he did with Sillakh who talked too much.

He fought very smart, treating Ward like a second rate contender is a good way to get the poo countered out of you. If they're smart they will use the exact same game plan and hope the judges get it right this time.

No, I hope Kovalev realizes that he can't rely on judges especially now when Ward has the belts.

Good for you.

[greg]

..I believe I was saying last time that the outcome will largely depend on who the judges are...I didn't necessarily mean nationality, although I do believe it's a factor, rather that it will depend whether the judges are offensive- or defensive- minded..it won't be impossible to predict the outcome depending on these factors in case of a close fight...and I expect a close one again..

[Impractical Poster]

With that said, i'm hopeful that they select the right ref in this one. Robert Byrd was horrible in the first fight and extremely inconsistent and also looked to be gassed for second half and couldn't keep up. I hope that they correct that because it will lead to better action.

Was he really gassed out?

This is the first time I've ever heard someone say a ref gassed out. I know I've never seen it.

[Ossyrules]

I'm on the fence right now, which I don't like doing!

Called ward first time in a close fight. But seeing how close it was I can't be confident right now