Boxing

[Chris]

Well that dented the hype train!! Going 12 with a known quitter!

[Shaggy]

[ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xm8AbfbR7qw"]Sergey Kovalev vs Andre Ward Promo | GP - YouTube[/ame]

[Doc_Piptorious]

Such a great mix of high level talent.

And two very effective styles that contrast greatly. Is a fight that I have wanted to see for some time and is a fantastic fight for the casual fan and the hardcore fan alike because it is so damn hard to call.

So hard to make a watertight case for either of them when both look the have exactly the right sort of high end ability to beat the other.


Logic would dictate that to beat Kovalev you would need a high level technician who brings genuine durability and a very fluid shapeless style of fighting. Ward has those tools and that style.


The same line of logic says that to beat Ward you need a top class fighter who can knock him out of his stride and who has the perfect blend of aggression, power, concentration and also having the skills and patience to be able to go against guys he cannot take out early or at all. Kovalev ticks all those boxes.


And we cannot even look at height and reach for any hint of a sizeable game changer as both men are about six foot tall and both have a reach of about 71 or 72 inches. In terms of weight both will easily make the required weight and both will be carrying similar weight come the first bell.


The one thing they can be split on is activity. Kovalev has fought 11 times in the past three years whereas Ward has had only four bouts in that time.

So how you see that depends on whether you think one is battle ready thanks to activity or has more miles on the clock as a result. And for the other it depends on whether you see the inactivity as a way to avoid wear and tear or a way for ring rust to gather in a big way. Personally it makes for good print rather than having any massive impact on either.


The one thing I do know is that it is a rare sight to see two fighters of this level stepping into the ring with one another and the fact both are undefeated adds another element to the clash.

[Shaggy]

Good read that. I'm a casual fan but an admirer of both. Can't really call it but if I had to go one way I'd back Kovalev due to Ward's relative ring rust.

[Vermilion]

Top post Jaco, perfectly summed up this fight.

[Doc_Piptorious]

Good read that. I'm a casual fan but an admirer of both. Can't really call it but if I had to go one way I'd back Kovalev due to Ward's relative ring rust.

Personally I don't see the ring rust as being an issue. If his four fights over three years were spaced out more than they have been then maybe I would, but the fight that he would have been most rusty in was against Paul Smith, and three of those four fights he has had in the past year or so, so whilst the calibre of opponent has been modest (and am probably being generous with that), it has given Ward 33 rounds of real fight time along with the countless behind the scenes gym and sparring time he will have had.


And to go a step further on the ring rust thing, I also don't see it as a valid excuse should Kovalev beat him. Ward will be in top shape for this fight, and he knows his own body and ability so for me it is a case, for either man, of win and be known as the better man or lose and be beaten by the better man.


I know Gonzalez is currently seen as the best P4P boxer on the planet, and for good reason, but for me the winner of this fight will have a shout at that spot and at the very least jump into the second place slot.

If forced to pick I would probably go for Ward, but I know that is because I am biased towards him and his style of fighting. I also think that Ward's physical strength gets underestimated at times. I don't mean his punching power, but rather his raw strength of body. He is a very hard man to push around or bully in the ring and that strength allows him to absorb quite a bit and also allows him to push.clinch and lean with some authority and drain the other guy. Helps him a hell of a lot when the fighting goes into the trenches and becomes an infighting war of attrition.


Kovalev I bloody adore as a fighter too as he is a throwback to an earlier era in many ways, but still has the skills to go at it with should he not be able to put you away. His destructive style often overshadows the more savvy side of him. He can be quite clever in how he makes angles for himself and he reads other fighters very well. Fighters with traditional styles are meat and drink to him and that leads to probably what I am looking forward to the most from this fight.


The one thing that will be utterly fascinating to see is how long, if at all, it takes Kovalev to time Ward's very untraditional style. Ward is a left handed fighter who fight from a right handed stance, but has shaped his own almost formless style of boxing. He has often said in interviews that he shaped his style from watching the likes of Mayweather jr and Roy Jones Jr, but if you watch his fights he almost looks to move in a manner more akin to how Sugar Ray Robinson did ( making no comparison in terms of ability here of course as Robinson is the greatest ever boxer in my opinion) and it is also reminiscent to something Bruce Lee often spoke of in interviews and that is of having a style that has no style. So basically he is a southpaw who leads with his left, but stands in an orthodox manner, and usually tries to keep his movement fluid but still switch hits and uses the natural advantages that a southpaw has.


My guess as to their gameplans would be that Kovalev will try to keep the fight on the outside and he might even go on the back foot as Ward is not as good going forward as he is on the counter. If Kovalev can force Ward to come at him then Kovalev has the firepower and the smarts to unleash hell on Ward and force costly mistakes.


Ward's gameplan for me would be to try and fight on the counter or try to get Kovalev to engage in fighting on the inside. Ward is a fantastic infighter and he works the body like a demon and it is where his natural raw strength comes into play a lot.


Really is one of the best toss a coin fights I have seen made in a long time. Think we have to go back a good few years to find a fight between two genuine elite level "bigger" boxers (by bigger I mean middleweight or heavier).

[spud_gun]

Is that this weekend?

[Shaggy]

Yep

[spud_gun]

Good stuff.

Generally a slickster beats a fighter. Got to fancy Ward.

[Doc_Piptorious]

Good stuff.

Generally a slickster beats a fighter. Got to fancy Ward.

Yeah but it is rare to see a meeting of such high quality examples.


Course it is doing Kovalev a bit of a disservice to see him only as a fighter. The guy can box quite well, it is just that he is so powerful that not many fighters have been able to experience that side of him


Cannot argue with the slickster beating a fighter though if both are of similar level of quality in their respective style. At the highest level it has probably gone that way a little more often than not, but it won't be history in there taking shots from Kovalev come the weekend so who knows.

[Shaggy]

Erm...

[ame]https://twitter.com/TomLoeffler1/status/796855747099365376[/ame]

[ame]https://twitter.com/Carl_Froch/status/797109674885713920[/ame]

[ame]https://twitter.com/GGGBoxing/status/798959435116728320[/ame]

[ame]https://twitter.com/Carl_Froch/status/799296807662600192[/ame]

[Vermilion]

Bit early for Panto innit ?

[Shaggy]

GGG would give Froch his old nose back in 6 minutes. As if Carl will risk that!

[Chris]

Yep! Dunno what he's doing, he looked fine before. He also kinda looks like he's had a hair transplant when he didn't even need one now has some weird hair as a result! But if he's happier it's all good!

[spud_gun]

GGG would give Froch his old nose back in 6 minutes. As if Carl will risk that!

You think?

Dunno about this version of Froch but i'm fairly sure a Froch from around the Super Six / Bute period stops GGG at 168.