Kovalev next move?

[imp]

After the mental and physical loss to Ward...Kovalev is now falling apart.
(First fight was a draw at least)

Do you want him to stay at 175? retire or move up to cruiserweight?

Vodka or no Vodka..no one is afraid anymore.

[Master]

Shocked to see Kov lose so emphatically. He does not look so invincible and intimidating now but he did get some wins in and got a belt. Kov could do it again at the same weight but think he is too small for Cruiserweight.

[mikeeod]

Those type of knockout losses spell big trouble for a fighter who fuels himself with the fear/intimidation of his opponent. He will always doubt his stamina now, and that will cause extra stress which will only tire him out faster. His opponents will force a fast pace and wjile some won’t make it long due to his big right, the ones who see the 7th round will stop kov on exhaustion.

Unfortunately, like Master says, I don’t see cruiserweight as an option at all. Kov’s best bet is to try and entice Adonis into fighting him and then be real selective on future opponents (if he wins).

[J_Undisputed]

For what it is, retire. Kovs been smart with his money. I believe hes invested in some crypto currency brands and others. If he moves back (which i believe if a real possibility-- he grounded himself there after the ward rematch) he makes a killing on the exchange rate.

In a more perfect world, See if Stevenson is now baited into a fight. If so, look to reunite with John David Jackson if possible (Just for publicity) to max out the story/angle revenue on the fight, then cash out and retire. (but kovalev will get lowballed now by stevenson's people and be forced to take it. Duva isn't quite as dirty and ruthless at the negotiating table so i don't even know if he would get the most he could get for the fight. So its probably not worth the trouble. He could hang around and see if Bivol fights him as a step up, but that's a dangerous proposition for Bivol and i don't know if his people would want to go there.

I think the big issue here is Kovalev preps down to the level of his comp (which was good enough when his power bailed him out against most of the division... it was even heading that way for this fight before the stoppage) . That means he won't really be pushed by any trainer and do things his own way. Best trainer in the world cant help you if you don't listen. He looked like he was already thinking about bivol to me and going through the motions with Alvarez. He didn't expect this guy to be fighting for his life. The right hand he got caught with was uncharacteristic and lazy. I don't think his heart is in it anymore. It doesn't have to do with ward (no matter how much kellerman jocks him in the post fight commentary) it has everything to do with Kovalev. Comments by John David Jackson and Abel Sanchez are really starting to fill out the picture now about Kovalevs habits.

Any kind of comeback would require a partial tear down and rebuild to get to the next level. Kovalev is willing to work in camp but i don't think hes digging that deep into himself mentally to find that level. Its hard to maintain a level of "good enough" without slipping. You either strive to get better or slip and get worse (leveling off is just a slower form of descent).

[powerpuncher]

I think we are forgetting that Kovalev isn’t in his prime years. After a mentally breaking loss to Ward, and with age catching up to him, he seems to have lost that edge he used to have. It looked as though he were just going through the motions. His stamina has never been great, but it seems even worse now.

Getting caught by that right hand was just lazy. I think it’s a mixture of things, but he is done being the top guy. It’s unfortunate because I’ve always been a huge fan of his. I think he fights a little longer to make some money against lesser opponents. Then he will cash out against one of the other Russian fighters.

[TitoFan]

All good points here.

For me, Kovalev is near the finish line. Like mikeod said, Kovalev's fuel was the intimidation factor. He's lost that now. He's no longer the invincible "Krusher". I'll never accept either the 1st Ward decision (flaky), or the low-blow barrage that wilted Kov. But this one was different. Alvarez dominated the 1st few rounds.... weathered the storm when Kov came charging back..... and dropped Kov in convincing fashion with a "krushing" (sorry Kov) right hand.

Normally, I'd say this is the type of fight that deserves a rematch. Kov was arguably winning the fight at the time of the knockout, which came suddenly and without warning. But Kov's 35, and his days in professional boxing are numbered.

I'd MUCH PREFER "Hesitant Stevenson" into the ring for a last hurrah..... and obviously I'd be rooting hard for Kovalev to stretch out that f*cking prima donna who apparently doesn't want to fight anybody. Why that dumbass hasn't been stripped for refusing to face the elite fighters in the division is beyond me, but oh well.......

[Hulk]

He got caught pulling straight back with his hands down with the perfect punch in a fight he was winning. He can come back and even grab a title again who knows. I’d still like to see him fight Marcus Browne or Joe Smith Jr. Is Gabriel Campillo still around for a nice early KO win? Lol

[Ron Swanson]

He should probably do something racist to rally his fans around him. Hit the bottle again in lieu of any real personal reflection. Blame everyone else. Then slack in training. It’s worked for him so far

[TitoFan]

https://www.boxingnews24.com/2018/08...t/#more-268248



Seems the door's open for a rematch if Kov wants it.

[Alpha]

https://www.boxingnews24.com/2018/08...t/#more-268248



Seems the door's open for a rematch if Kov wants it.

Personally I'd prefer he take a confidence builder rather than an immediate rematch. He seems pretty stubborn so I think he'll go straight back in there.

[Master]

https://www.boxingnews24.com/2018/08...t/#more-268248



Seems the door's open for a rematch if Kov wants it.

Personally I'd prefer he take a confidence builder rather than an immediate rematch. He seems pretty stubborn so I think he'll go straight back in there.

At his age he may want to take the rematch and he could do a DeGale and win it straight back then give up the title to secure a bigger match.