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).