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Okay guys...predictions please.
Break down the fight for me and explain what each fighter has to do to be the clear winner this time.
I want Ward to win but had Kovalev the winner last time on a very close fight..perhaps the body shots and comeback edged it for Ward in the first one in the eyes of the judges.
What happens to the loser post fight and does the winner fight Stevenson or move up in weight?
for some reason I want Kov to win
i'm positive ward is a much nicer fella and id be much more inclined to invite ward round for tea than I would kovalev
I just think the Kov brand is more appealing, and I definitely prefer to watch him fight
But Ward is one of the few "lb4lb" American superstars which means Kov has to win decisively to get the win (probably by KO), so I think ward will do it again
I thought Ward figured him out to edge the first fight. So I expect Ward will start where he left off, the fight will be an utter bore with Ward getting a clear decision (9-rds-to-3 / 8-4?), yet the rounds will look close-ish hence they'll be lots of "robbery" claims again.
Ward will win again, not much different to the last 8 rounds or so of the first fight.
Kovalev is very good, but Ward could've been one of the greats, I just think he fucked his career up a little bit .
People will say "bullshit, he's had a great career!" But I think he had been more active, he would've gone from strength to strength.
Not sure I care now after the last fight. It was underwhelming. Maybe goes the same. Maybe Kov stops him. Maybe Ward wins every round. It's not exactly Barrera/Morales 2.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Fenster
Oddly enough, you'll probably get your wish. The prospect of retiring undefeated, coupled with his penchant for going years without fighting, may pretty much make it academic. Officially retired or not, a victorious Ward won't be chomping at the bit to get back into the ring.
Quote:
Originally Posted by TitoFanQuote:
Originally Posted by Fenster
Oddly enough, you'll probably get your wish. The prospect of retiring undefeated, coupled with his penchant for going years without fighting, may pretty much make it academic. Officially retired or not, a victorious Ward won't be chomping at the bit to get back into the ring.
Ward found a way to escape with a hugely controversial win last time out. I suspect he'll find enough tricks in his bag (or borrow some from Wlad) to befuddle and frustrate an angry Kovalev this time around also. Left up to the judges, anything short of an outright mauling by Kov will result in an automatic Ward win by UD.
What would I like? Kovalev win by painful KO.
Kov wins a controversial decision and there is a 3rd fight which will settle the dispute. Like Morales v Barrera.
Ward was injured.Quote:
Originally Posted by Primo Carnera
Plus, he had alot of business issues that kept him on the shelf..Sh&t happens.
Post Kovalev, Ward can fight and beat Stevenson and unify the division and then possibly fight Badou Jack as the first defence.Quote:
Originally Posted by Fenster
I don't see Ward at cruiserweight or Heavyweight...so hopefully we get a mega catch weight fight with GGG.
Then he can retire..with millions in the bank..undefeated and a commentary job with HBO?
Injured? Business issues? He signed a couple of shit contracts and sulked and tried to get out of them.Quote:
Originally Posted by impWard was injured.Quote:
Originally Posted by Primo Carnera
Plus, he had alot of business issues that kept him on the shelf..Sh&t happens.
He signed the contracts, suck it up and get on with it.
Surely even the biggest Ward fan (and I reckon he's a great bloke and a brilliant boxer) can't stick up for him.
His career could've been so much better!
Let's deal with Present day.Quote:
Originally Posted by Primo CarneraInjured? Business issues? He signed a couple of shit contracts and sulked and tried to get out of them.Quote:
Originally Posted by impWard was injured.Quote:
Originally Posted by Primo Carnera
Plus, he had alot of business issues that kept him on the shelf..Sh&t happens.
He signed the contracts, suck it up and get on with it.
Surely even the biggest Ward fan (and I reckon he's a great bloke and a brilliant boxer) can't stick up for him.
His career could've been so much better!
The guy has 3 or 4 years left in the sport...that's a possible 6-8 fights.
I just don't ever see Ward getting the KO against Kovalev..Ward was getting stunned by the Jab of SK and at no point in the fight did SK seem hurt.
Ward should start on the body early if he wants to take a clear decision.
We saw in the first fight Kovalev is completely incapable of fightnig on the inside. My greatest fear is Ward decides to make it easy and beat him up inside from start to finish.
As far as a prediction. Logic says Ward gains more from the first fight than Kovalev because he will be more comfortable with the weight and will have the top level experience for the first time in many years. Kovalev had been fighting top level. But damn, Kovalev was doing work early. I wouldn't bet one penny on it but if forced to pick I suppose with great trepidation I would say Ward.
The Americans will not permit a Russian to win against one of their most highly-regarded boxers.
Once again, all four officials are from the USA.
The ref will permit Ward to use his ugly, illegal tactics: deliberate head butting (Kovalev dealt with it in the first fight by putting his arm around Ward's head), pushing, holding, bending at the waist, arm-clamping, wrestling, etc.
The ref will help Ward survive the distance, and once again the judges will be there to rob Kovalev.
Not a Ward fan then ? 😂😂Quote:
Originally Posted by Freedom
Ward showed that he can adjust well. It's tough for me to see ward not starting out where he left off. He is a great fighter. I regard Kovalev very highly also, but I just don't see Kovalev being able to adjust as well as ward can.
I think ward wins in the eyes of the fans but the judges will score it for Kovalev to force a trilogy
As others have already said, Ward is the smarter boxer and will likely make the adjustments to avoid the early ass kicking he took in the first fight. It will resemble Barrera vs Juarez 2 or Mayweather vs. Castillo 2. The smart boxer usually plays it safe in the rematch. That said, Kovalev is a hellacious puncher and no dummy himself. I'll be rooting for Kovalev to right the wrong decision in their first match.
All in on Kovalev stopping him.
I honestly used to be a huge ward fan, and I am still kind of a fan but he is such a diva. He had potential to be an ATG easily. I think that he could have been known as the best SMW ever.
Now, being a Kovalev fan, I want Kovalev to knock him out to maybe make ward less of a diva.
If Kovalev uses his jab a lot to set up his power shots he will win.
He threw to many single shots from range last time , you don't beat Ward winging single power shots.
What's all this Kovalev racist stuff about? I remember the monkey t-shirt Stevenson thing, but assumed it was most likely a cultural misunderstanding, Russia doesn't do PC. Many fans/media/reporters talk about him like he's a Klan member or something, is there evidence of him openly hating black bods?
They used John David Jackson as proof he was not racist.Quote:
Originally Posted by Fenster
Quote:
Originally Posted by MasterThey used John David Jackson as proof he was not racist.Quote:
Originally Posted by Fenster
If only racism were that easily defined. I'll bet a lot of subtly racist people deflect their own racism by pointing to someone like Kov.
http://www.boxingscene.com/roc-natio...emarks--116923Quote:
Originally Posted by Fenster
I knew I'd read something recently. I'm sure he actually said something similar about another black boxer too.
If you were putting money on it you'd be betting on Ward though. I think Kovalev had his chance in the first fight when he floored him but he couldn't finish it. I don't think Ward gives him another chance and will bore his way to a decision.Quote:
Originally Posted by Spicoli
I was going to give it a miss as I'm going away for a few days but now it looks like I can't go till Sunday so I'll now spend twelve rounds hoping Kovalev manages to land something and almost certainly being disappointed.
Why Andre Ward is unpopular:
1. He is a very privileged boxer. He was given home advantage for all his Super Six fight, and was even awarded points when he skipped a round in the tourney. Everyone else had to travel.
2. He sued his dying promoter, Goossen was a Christian who did everything he could for Andre.
3. Ward is a dirty fighter, and has home refs who permit him to use illegal tactics while admonishing his opponents for the slightest reason (sometimes for no reason). He hit Mikkel Kessler with obviously deliberate head butts, and Kessler's eye was damaged.
4. Hypocrisy. He pretends to be a Christian, while lying a lot and being an extremely selfish, hateful person. Calls himself the "Son of God" with a smug arrogance and an egotistical smirk. Would a real Christian deliberately injure another boxer with illegal head butts?
5. He has a feeling of entitlement. He seems to believe he's God's gift to the sport of boxing.
6. He demands all the advantages including home advantage for every fight. He's a poor sport, will use anything he can to win, because he doesn't really have world-class power, speed, and technical skills.
7. Whines and bitches about racism and all the disadvantages he's had, while being the luckiest and most privileged boxer in the world. Will not be honest about how his "arm-clamp, wrestle and clinch" style turns people off.
8. Corrupt judges gave him an undeserved decision win in Ward-Kovalev I.
Freedom,
Ignoring all the Christian bollocks and all the crap outside the ring..Ward is still undefeated inside the ring..judge his boxing skills and his excellent WWE hugging style.
His style is not for everyone but let's not start talking about moral high ground when all these so called Christian and Muslim boxers are in the most brutal sport on earth.
They're all a bunch hypocrites.
Get over it.
I'm sure that Kovalev is a bit racist but a language barrier is always a problem. Coming from somebody who learned a second language, a lot of vulgarities don't have the same meaning to me and seem a lot less harmful. I'm guessing that in russian he wouldn't be as harsh. That's just my opinion thoughQuote:
Originally Posted by Kirkland Lainghttp://www.boxingscene.com/roc-natio...emarks--116923Quote:
Originally Posted by Fenster
I knew I'd read something recently. I'm sure he actually said something similar about another black boxer too.
I think if people traveled to Russia they would understand that none of Kovalev's racism is by accident. And there is far far more going on than is being talked about.
Ward put on muscle for this fight. Presumably to try to up his punch resistance (neck and shoulder exercises) and bull Kovalev around the ring once he clamps on to him. He's hoping that looking like the stronger fighter during the hugs makes him look like the aggressor and not like hes hiding from kovalev in the clinches and somehow swing the rounds more in his favor without actually doing any more work than he did before. Look for Ward to start the hug and slug early and play a carefully orchestrated but seeming aggressive all out ambush early (he'll throw big shots on the inside and from safe angles). Presumably at the last 20 seconds of the 1st (only if he feels hes confident in believing he has an accurate sample of kovalev) or 2nd round to try and make the statement to kovalev that hes not afraid and set a tone. Only in the last 20-25 seconds (so if he gets clipped, he'll hopefully make it to his feet and then be walked back to his corner to collect himself.) So he ties up Kovalev early, leans on him and pushes him back and tries to work him over in the clinches and try to wear him out early (and conserve his own energy). Kovalev gets most of his offense smothered this way (as his strongest punches tend to be his long straight punches) and unless he learns to get nasty in the clinches, won't deter ward from coming in and spend most of the rounds trying to break free from the Kraken.. The worst will be seeing ward hulk up just to go back to the same tactics.
Kovalevs plan for this fight is to probably grind ward to a halt the way he feels he should have in the first fight. Not a bad plan if Ward was a stand up fighter, but he's not and often times works off of a jab out of a crouch. Kovalev should have spent his time concentrating on fighting while backing up. That is... using his feet to pivot or sidestep to offset wards feint to the body then jab up top and throw to wards body and ribs behind the jab instead of trying to come over the top and head hunting. Stepping back and switching his stance (he does it enough going forward to throw a straight left and then straight right in succession) and throwing the uppercut would also improve his chances.
Still with all of this.. somethings don't change. One of those things is Ward doesn't like to get hit. Seems terrified of it at times, actually. And that alone will still make the rounds close for Kovalev as long as he keeps throwing. The other thing is that Kovalev feels like fighting harder is better than fighting smarter and will try to force it rather than listen to his trainer. I'm not sure i'm interested in watching the next chapter of this clusterf*ck but if Krusher pulls off the improbable and lays out Ward and takes the air out of his fluff, i'll probably watch it on repeat for a solid week.
Considering Kovalev's English isn't brilliant his typing skills are electric according to that video that accused him of taking off Ward.
Looking forward to this fight.
He really didn't mean what it looks like he meant, what he really meant got lost in translation, their sense of humour is a little different from ours, he was taken out of context, there was an earthquake, a terrible flood...........Quote:
Originally Posted by powerpuncherI'm sure that Kovalev is a bit racist but a language barrier is always a problem. Coming from somebody who learned a second language, a lot of vulgarities don't have the same meaning to me and seem a lot less harmful. I'm guessing that in russian he wouldn't be as harsh. That's just my opinion thoughQuote:
Originally Posted by Kirkland Lainghttp://www.boxingscene.com/roc-natio...emarks--116923Quote:
Originally Posted by Fenster
I knew I'd read something recently. I'm sure he actually said something similar about another black boxer too.
One incident could possibly be explained away. You would think him posting photographs comparing a black man and a gorilla would mean the same in any language or culture but hey, let's give him the benefit of the doubt on the first one. But repeated incidents, no.
So proud that there is no thread about Mayweather vs McGregor being finalized here.
Really excited for Ward/Kovalev II. Ward looks in much better shape. Hopefully that isn't with intention to wrestle but rather in case he must wrestle.
I was thinking about making a new thread about it...Quote:
Originally Posted by Ron Swanson
Bound to happen sooner or later. Just with all the publicity it is already getting I didn't think it would take so long. And was happy to see it did.Quote:
Originally Posted by powerpuncherI was thinking about making a new thread about it...Quote:
Originally Posted by Ron Swanson
I think Kovalev gets the win he deserved last time.
I never scored the first fight but I didn't think it was a robbery, I wasn't surprised when ward won
thing is tho I think it would be naïve to think that Ward doesn't have the advantage with the scoring, I think anywhere but America and he would have to work a bit harder
Ward won a close fight and he did well to come back from the knock down and hard first round. Ward took the fight to Kovolev and was outworking him on the inside. Credit him for that.Quote:
Originally Posted by erics44
I rewatched the first fight (yes, i'm a sicko), had Kovalev winning about 8-4/7-5. On original viewing I overvalued Ward taking control of the 2nd half. I also noticed Ward had the crowd and some seriously loud cheerleaders making noise, which is obviously a great benefit to any fighter.
Overall it was a fight that Kovalev could have won wide on pts or lost a tight decision, the home fighter got "lucky," nothing new.