© Tom Casino / Showtime Boxing

American contender Andre Ward outboxed reigning WBA super middleweight champion Mikkel Kessler last night at the Oracle Arena in Oakland, CA, winning the Showtime's Super Six tournament bout.

Kessler came forward early but couldn't find the target as Ward used excellent footwork to stay out of range while punishing the Dane with lightning quick left hooks and right hands.

Ward started to mix in the jab as Kessler got closer in the third but the fourth and fifth frames saw both men forced to shake off hard punches from the opponent.

© Tom Casino / Showtime Boxing

Ward started holding any time Kessler got on the inside and as a result the action came sporadically until the challenger began to open up with right hands that the champion couldn't avoid.

Kessler couldn't keep up by the eighth and was also cut by this point from the right hands and numerous head clashes. The champion attempted to gain control of the bout in the ninth but couldn't hurt the quicker Ward, who continued to strike first with harder, more numerous shots.

The champion was badly cut by more head clashes, the last of which brought about the end of the bout at 1:42 of the 11th. When the cards were read, Ward was declared the winner 98-92 (twice) and 97-93.

Andre Ward moves to 21-0 (13) and captures the WBA super middleweight title in a major upset. Mikkel Kessler loses for just the second time in his career to fall to 42-2 (32).

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