Quote Originally Posted by Gandalf View Post
Will the referee be fair to Kovalev? Absolutely not. When it comes to the likes of Hopkins, Mayweather and Ward, the referee may as well be a babysitter. Kovalev needs to keep his head and box and either it earns him an ugly decision or the power gets the stoppage. I don't think Hopkins can win unless the referee does a Rios, but Kovalev is a cool customer. I don't think he will get distracted.
It's hard to stay focused when your opponent is doing whatever he wants, while he complains to the ref that you are fouling him. Hopkins should have been an actor.