Sergey Kovalev v Saul Canelo Alvarez 2/11/19 Sky Sports/DAZN

[Master]

Buddy McGirt, Sergey Kovalev's secret weapon, is more than just a trainer

Buddy McGirt was elected to the International Hall of Fame as a boxer, but he probably has a better résumé as a trainer.

He’s made a specialty of rehabilitating fighters who had lost their way, most notably with the late Arturo Gatti. With McGirt in his corner, Gatti remained one of the sport’s most entertaining fighters, but he didn’t fight as if defense would get him committed to 40 years of hard labor in a penitentiary somewhere.

His latest project is Sergey Kovalev, the mercurial WBO light heavyweight champion who is notoriously difficult on trainers and who has largely called the shots himself throughout his career.

Kovalev, 36, is on the backstretch of his career. He had a brutally difficult fight in August which, to his credit, he won despite nearly being stopped by Anthony Yarde, and a little more than two months later, he’s back in the ring.

And he’s not in the ring against just anybody. On Saturday at the MGM Grand Garden (9 p.m. ET, DAZN), he’ll defend his title against Canelo Alvarez, who is bidding to win a championship in a fourth different weight class.

A prime Kovalev would have made for a great match with this prime version of Alvarez. But the 36-year-old Kovalev with miles on him is about a 4-1 underdog at the MGM Grand sports book. Alvarez is -500 while Kovalev is +350.

Kovalev, though, has a secret weapon in McGirt, who has that Svengali-like ability to get fighters, experienced ones in particular, to raise their games yet again.

“I think Buddy should be in the Hall of Fame as a trainer, too,” said former middleweight and light heavyweight champion Bernard Hopkins, who lost to Kovalev in a 2014 title fight. “There are trainers and there are guys who get you in shape and ready to fight. Buddy is a teacher. Buddy is one of the few guys who can come in at this late stage and make a difference.”



Kovalev lost back-to-back fights to Andre Ward in 2016 and 2017 and seemed about done. He took a pair of tune-up fights in which he scored unimpressive TKO victories over Vyacheslav Shabranskyy and Igor Mihalkin. He then lost his belt when he got knocked out on Aug. 4, 2018, by Eleider Alvarez.

“After [the second Ward fight], he had a few fights and won back the title and was knocking everybody out again,” McGirt said to Yahoo Sports. “He got comfortable doing the same old thing again. What you have to understand is, when a lot of fighters get to a certain age, they can’t pull the trigger as quick as they used to. That’s when you have to use this more.”

He tapped his head with his index finger as he said that. And McGirt was one of the savviest fighters of his time, but his understanding of the fighter’s psyche is up there with the best who ever worked a corner. He knows what makes a fighter tick and how to get the best out of him.

He knows when to push a veteran in training and when it’s time to have a few easier days. It’s all about fight night and McGirt is a master at getting veterans there healthy, hungry and motivated.

It’s all about interpreting body language and those often subtle signs. It gets back to teaching, and it’s not always about explaining the best way to throw a jab. Sometimes, it’s teaching them to stay within themselves and that the 36-year-old version of you can’t do the same things physically that the 26-year-old version could.

“Anybody can train, but if you teach … ” McGirt said. “If you train your dog, you’ve got a good dog, but if you teach your dog as well, you’ve got a better dog.”

McGirt has a difficult challenge. Alvarez is at the top of his game and is arguably the best pound-for-pound fighter in the world. He may get some argument from fighters like Terence Crawford, Vasiliy Lomachenko and Naoya Inoue, but Alvarez is a well-trained, intelligent fighter at the peak of his profession.

Alvarez also figures to be highly motivated to chase the fourth title, which is an area reserved for the sport’s legends.

Only 19 fighters have accomplished that feat, and of those eligible, only two are not yet in the Hall of Fame.

Kathy Duva, Kovalev’s promoter, believes McGirt gives Kovalev the best chance to pull this upset.

“I can amplify [Kovalev’s] comments only to say that I had a conversation with a Russian reporter the other day who has known Sergey and he mentioned that Sergey, since this past summer, has changed,” Duva said. “He’s different. What’s changed? What’s different? I don’t understand it. It’s clearly the introduction of this fantastic team, Buddy McGirt being, if not the best, one of the best trainers in the sport, and Teddy Cruz, his physical trainer. Both made a huge impact.”

If Kovalev pulls the upset, don’t be shocked because so many McGirt-led fighters have done this before. Just don’t expect to hear him tout his game plan or the strategy he devised.

Guys fight for him because he respects them and treats them as intelligent adults. He goes well above and beyond to try to help a fighter to win, and he engenders a great deal of loyalty.

And when it’s over, he’ll throw 100 percent of the credit on the guy who did it in the ring.

Just remember, while most of the credit rightfully belong to the fight, if there is an upset, McGirt’s role in this can’t be overlooked.

https://uk.sports.yahoo.com/news/bud...193616791.html

[smashup]

Canelo will breeze this by a massive points win.

[powerpuncher]

Kovalev is a 4-1 underdog? That is pretty wide IMO. Kovalev definitely isn’t who he once was, but he isn’t that far gone to be that massive of an underdog.

[TitoFan]

Kovalev is a 4-1 underdog? That is pretty wide IMO. Kovalev definitely isn’t who he once was, but he isn’t that far gone to be that massive of an underdog.

4-1 is pretty wide, but I like that it's like that. It's an acknowledgment that Kovalev is ripe for the picking. The guy was knocked out to the body by that fearsome puncher, Andre Ward.
He (Kov) may as well come into the ring with a bullseye painted on his torso.

[TitoFan]

"Reynoso: Canelo READY for Beterbiev; Kovalev is better"



Vintage shit right there. Talk up Kovalev, claiming he's better than Beterbiev........ "call out" (in a way) Beterbiev without having the slightest intention of ever facing him.

Meanwhile, Canelo admits his plans of running back to 160 at some point.

Life is good right now if you're Canelo Alvarez. Franchise Champion, with all the protections afforded to that bogus title....... and free rein to hop and skip between weight divisions, pretty much like the lioness scouring the Serengeti in search of weakened water buffalo. Boxing old-timers must be turning over in their graves at all this.

[Fenster]

It's actually 7/2 (3 and half to 1) in the article not 4/1 (sorry to be so anal).

Kovalev is seriously being overlooked here, little Canelo has to get to his body first. Kovalev doesn't just have big power but a great jab and skill. His revenge over Alvarez was superb. He's folded twice against an all-time great and a world-class 175-er, in neither did he have such physical advantages.

Having said that I fancy Canelo to win, he's in his absolute pomp and looking better and better with each fight.

[Batman]

It's actually 7/2 (3 and half to 1) in the article not 4/1 (sorry to be so anal).

Kovalev is seriously being overlooked here, little Canelo has to get to his body first. Kovalev doesn't just have big power but a great jab and skill. His revenge over Alvarez was superb. He's folded twice against an all-time great and a world-class 175-er, in neither did he have such physical advantages.

Having said that I fancy Canelo to win, he's in his absolute pomp and looking better and better with each fight.

Odds are 4.33 on paddy power

[Gandalf]

Kovalev is slightly over the hill, but he has skills, power and experience. If he can fight smart preserving his energy while exploding when need be he can put Canelo down and take it. But we know how Canelo fights go. He nicks 4 rounds and the fight is his.

[TitoFan]

One of the few times we agree on anything (Canelo's chances), including boxing. But rather than thinking Kovalev's being overlooked, I tend to agree with what this guy says in the article.


"Just the fact that Kovalev hast lost almost half of his last seven fights suggests that he’s NOT as good as Beterbiev. Kovalev was almost knocked out in his last fight by Anthony Yarde as well. The 36-year-old Kovalev (34-3-1, 29 KOs) is looking really shaky right now, and he might not even be the fourth best fighter at 175. If Kovalev is better than Beterbiev, then why is almost getting knocked out by a limited fighter like Yarde?

It’s obvious that Reynoso has to say something on Kovalev’s behalf to validate him as Canelo’s opponent for Saturday. If Reynoso brought up the undeniable fact that Kovalev isn’t as good as Beterbiev, he would be discrediting Canelo in doing so. Reynoso kind of has to build Kovalev up in the eyes of the boxing public.

If he told the fans that Beterbiev is the far superior fighter than Kovalev, then people would see Canelo as a cherry picker. Unfortunately for Canelo, that’s how a lot of boxing fans see him. He did well in choosing to fight Gennadiy Golovkin, but he also didn’t face him until he was 35-years-old. It took Canelo three years to finally face GGG. He didn’t fight him when he was at his best at 32 and younger."


Nothing but raw truths in that excerpt. Reynoso is just playing the part, as it to be expected. Were Canelo facing Beterbiev (fat chance) instead of Kovalev, Reynoso would dismiss Kovalev as dog meat. The dominant Kovalev is long gone. Yes.... he fought admirably in his revenge fight vs. Alvarez. But the fact of the matter is that powder-puff punching Ward exposed his Achilles heel..... and that fact is not lost on Team Canelo, but rather became the determining factor in seeking the fight. Lightly regarded Yarde had Kovalev on queer street, further adding to speculation that the Krusher is now "used-to-be" Krusher.

Also....... good to see someone besides myself point out the painful facts about the GGG fights.

It's refreshing to see someone knowledgeable validating your own accurate, albeit unpopular opinions.

[Fenster]

It's actually 7/2 (3 and half to 1) in the article not 4/1 (sorry to be so anal).

Kovalev is seriously being overlooked here, little Canelo has to get to his body first. Kovalev doesn't just have big power but a great jab and skill. His revenge over Alvarez was superb. He's folded twice against an all-time great and a world-class 175-er, in neither did he have such physical advantages.

Having said that I fancy Canelo to win, he's in his absolute pomp and looking better and better with each fight.

Odds are 4.33 on paddy power

10/3 - yeah little bit shorter here than Vegas.

[armin]

kov should have this

[powerpuncher]

I don’t bet, but if I did, I would for sure put some money on Kovalev. As I’ve said before, if he stays sharp and disciplined, he should be able to use his jab and win the fight pretty easily. Canelo wears out just like Kovalev does. Also, Canelo is probably bulking up which will be even worse for his stamina.

[Beanz]

It is a fascinating fight but I can see Canelo being disciplined enough to win on points and outbox an ageing Kovalev.

[Primo Carnera]

Kovalev will be paid a very good retirement purse to lose.

[Spicoli]

Really convinced this all boils down to Kovs current mental preparedness. He is going to have to push through with the same focus he had the other Alvarez and we all know those two are worlds apart. I have no doubt he'll get seriously hurt in the body at some point but if he can revert a bit and fight with a nasty but smart two fisted attack behind the jab and those subtle half steps to get the shorter guy walking on he's as live as anyone and wouldn't be shocked to see Canelos nose and forehead implode. Both of these guys can throw plans out the window and fight thickheaded. Head says Canelo via stoppage late, heart says Kovalev fights with surprising discipline and gets crooked on the cards.