Sergey Kovalev
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Name: Sergey Kovalev
Alias: Krusher
Birth Name: Сергей Александрович Ковалёв
Hometown: Fort Lauderdale, Florida, USA
Birthplace: Kopeysk, Russia
Stance: Orthodox
Height: 183cm
Reach: 184cm
Pro Boxer: Record
Amateur Boxer: Record
- Trainers: Don Turner (2009-2010), Abel Sanchez (2010-2011), John David Jackson (2012-2017), Abror Tursunpulatov (2017-2018), Buddy McGirt (2018-present)
- Promoter: Main Events (2012-present)
- Manager: Egis Klimas (2009-present)
- Sergey Kovalev Gallery
Professional Record
Championship Record
- 12 opponents (9 by KO) beaten in world championship bouts.
- Has a record of 13-4 (10 KO) in world title fights.
- Has a record of 6-4 (4 KO) against former or current world titlists:
- Won against Gabriel Campillo, Nathan Cleverly, Bernard Hopkins, Jean Pascal (twice), and Eleider Alvarez.
- Lost against Andre Ward (twice), Eleider Alvarez, and Saul Alvarez.
- Has a record of 3-3 (2 KO) against former or current lineal titlists:
- Won against Bernard Hopkins and Jean Pascal (twice).
- Lost against Andre Ward (twice) and Saul Alvarez.
Variant Record
- Defeated 6 undefeated opponents with ten or more bouts: Nathan Cleverly, Cedric Agnew, Blake Caparello, Eleider Alvarez, Anthony Yarde & Tervel Pulev.
Amateur Highlights
- Amateur Record: 193-22 or 195-18
- Kovalev believes a number of his amateur losses in Russia were politically-motivated decisions.
- 2000 Light Welterweight Silver Medalist at the Russian Junior National Championships in Saratov, Russia. Results were:
- Preliminaries (1/16): Bye
- Preliminaries (1/8): Defeated Dmitriy Sherenets (9-2)
- Quarterfinals: Defeated Denis Makrushin (15-9)
- Semifinals: Defeated Dmitriy Ivanov (17-4)
- Finals: Lost to Evgeniy Putilov (8-17)
- 2001 Middleweight Silver Medalist at the Russian Junior National Championships in Volgograd, Russia. Results were:
- Preliminaries (1/8): Defeated Boris Borisov (9-5)
- Quarterfinals: Defeated Sergey Sharapov (9-1)
- Semifinals: Defeated Dzhimmi Kapanov (RSC-3)
- Finals: Lost to N/A
- 2004 Middleweight Gold Medalist for Russia at the Ostrava Grand Prix in Ostrava, Czech Republic. Results were:
- Finals: Defeated David Cizek (Czech Republic) (RSCO-3)
- 2004 Russian Team Cup (Middleweight) Matvey Korobov W 4 (22-19)
- 2004 Middleweight Silver Medalist at the Russian National Championships in Samara, Russia. Results were:
- Preliminaries (1/8): Defeated Musa Kurbanov (W/O)
- Quarterfinals: Defeated Nikolay Galochkin (35-12)
- Semifinals: Defeated Islam Patiyev (RSCO-3)
- Finals: Lost to Matvey Korobov (15-38)
- 2005 Middleweight Gold Medalist at the Russian National Championships in Magnitogorsk, Russia. Results were:
- Preliminaries (1/16): Bye
- Preliminaries (1/8): Defeated Stepan Osipov (RSCO-3)
- Quarterfinals: Defeated Islam Patiyev (36-17)
- Semifinals: Defeated Dmitriy Bashkatov (32-20)
- Finals: Defeated Alexey Shcherbakov (W/O)
- 2005 Light Heavyweight Gold Medalist for Russia at the World Military Boxing Championships in Pretoria, South Africa. Results were:
- Preliminaries (1/16): Defeated A. Dyakov (Ukraine) (25-7)
- Preliminaries (1/8): Defeated Benjamin Schmidt (Germany) (23-14)
- Quarterfinals: Defeated Daniel Kooij (Netherlands) (W/O)
- Semifinals: Defeated Christopher Downs (United States) (RSCO-3)
- Finals: Defeated Hamza Gunes (Turkey) (W/O)
- 2006 Light Heavyweight Silver Medalist for Russia at the World Military Boxing Championships in Warendorf, Germany. Results were:
- Preliminaries (1/8): Defeated Christopher Downs (United States) (30-20)
- Quarterfinals: Defeated Mahendra Thapa (Indonesia) (RSCO-2)
- Semifinals: Defeated Mourad Sahraoui (Tunisia) (25-15)
- Finals: Lost to Gottlieb Weiss (Germany) (W/O)
- Kislovodsk, Russia (Light Heavyweight) Artur Beterbiev L 4
- 2007 Light Heavyweight Bronze Medalist at the Russian National Championships in Yakutsk, Russia. Results were:
- Preliminaries (1/8): Bye
- Quarterfinals: Defeated Kiril Berezin (RSCO-2)
- Semifinals: Lost to Artur Beterbiev (24-25)
- 2007 Light Heavyweight Gold Medalist for Russia at the Minsk Tournament in Minsk, Belarus. Results were:
- Preliminaries (1/8): Bye
- Quarterfinals: Defeated Anar Mirzoyev (Azerbaijan) (RSC-2)
- Semifinals: Defeated Colak Ananikyan (Armenia) (35-25)
- Finals: Defeated Sergey Shutov (Russia) (22-18)
- 2007 Light Heavyweight Gold Medalist for Russia at the World Military Boxing Championships in Hyderabad, India. Results were:
- Preliminaries (1/16): Defeated Moussa Konate (Mali) (RSCH)
- Preliminaries (1/8): Defeated Donald Makola (South Africa) (RSCH)
- Quarterfinals: Defeated Zaur Teymurov (Azerbaijan) (RSCO)
- Semifinals: Defeated Abdelhafid Benchebla (Algeria) (29-8)
- Finals: Defeated Oleg Dymkovets (Belarus) (W/O)
- 2008 Light Heavyweight Silver Medalist for Russia at the Popenchenko Memorial Tournament in Moscow, Russia. Results were:
- Quarterfinals: Defeated Andriy Zelenyak (Ukraine) (29-7)
- Semifinals: Defeated Luis Gonzalez (Venezuela) (AB-3)
- Finals: Lost to Abbos Atoev (Uzbekistan) (KO-1)
- 2008 Light Heavyweight Silver Medalist at the Russian National Championships in Kaliningrad, Russia. Results were:
- Preliminaries (1/16): Bye
- Preliminaries (1/8): Defeated Evgeniy Babikov (31-7)
- Quarterfinals: Defeated Anatoliy Shklyarenko (16-8)
- Semifinals: Defeated Eduard Yakushev (17-12)
- Finals: Lost to Alexandr Moskovskiy (9-21)
Regional & Minor Titles
- WBA-NABA USA Light Heavyweight Title (July 2011; 0 defenses)
- WBC Asian Boxing Council Light Heavyweight Title (December 2011; 0 defenses)
- WBC Diamond Light Heavyweight Title (March 2015; 0 defenses)
- IBA Light Heavyweight Title (November 2017; 0 defenses)
- EBP Light Heavyweight Super Title (November 2017; 2 defenses)
World Titles
- (3) WBO Light Heavyweight Title (2013-2016; 8 defenses, 2017-2018; 1 defense, 2019; 1 defense)
- IBF Light Heavyweight Title (2014-2016; 4 defenses)
- WBA Light Heavyweight Undisputed Title (2014-2016; 4 defenses)
Unified Titles
Awards & Recognition
- The Ring Magazine Fighter of the Year (2014)
- Sports Illustrated Fighter of the Year (2014)
Notes
- Started boxing at age 11.
- Moved to the United States in 2009 to start his professional boxing career.
- Participated in an ill-fated 2011 bout in which his opponent, Roman Simakov, died from brain injuries suffered in a seventh-round knockout loss.
- Third boxer in history to win a light heavyweight world title three times (Chad Dawson, Bernard Hopkins).
- Tested positive for synthetic testosterone in samples given to the Voluntary Anti-Doping Association (VADA) on December 30, 2020 and January 7, 2021 cancelling a planned January 30, 2021 matchup against Bektemir Melikuziev. Kovalev was never suspended for the infraction.
Pay-Per-View History
- 1. (11/19/2016) L UD12 Andre Ward "Pound for Pound" (HBO PPV) 165,000 buys and $10,700,000 in revenue
- 2. (06/17/2017) L TKO8 Andre Ward "The Rematch" (HBO PPV) 135,000 buys and $8,100,000 in revenue
- 3. (05/14/2022) W UD10 Tervel Pulev "TrillerVerz V: Kovalev vs Pulev | Cypress Hill vs Onyx" (FITE PPV) Unreleased
- Totals (approximate): 300,000 buys and $18,800,000 in revenue
| Preceded by: Nathan Cleverly |
WBO Light Heavyweight Champion 2013 Aug 17 – 2016 Nov 19 |
Succeeded by: Andre Ward |
| Preceded by: Bernard Hopkins |
IBF Light Heavyweight Champion 2014 Nov 8 – 2016 Nov 19 |
Succeeded by: Andre Ward |
| Preceded by: Bernard Hopkins Super Champion |
WBA Light Heavyweight Champion 2014 Nov 8 – 2016 Nov 19 Super Champion |
Succeeded by: Andre Ward Super Champion |
| Preceded by: Andre Ward Retired |
WBO Light Heavyweight Champion 2017 Nov 25 – 2018 Aug 4 |
Succeeded by: Eleider Alvarez |
| Preceded by: Eleider Alvarez |
WBO Light Heavyweight Champion 2019 Feb 2 – 2019 Nov 2 |
Succeeded by: Saul Alvarez |