The sport of boxing has seen an evolution that few welcome, and most hate. Out went the warriors of yesterday, in came a group of talents that prefer to talk heavy and swing light. The good ole days when the best fought the best seem to be a thing of the past. This unspoken truth makes Saturday nights showdown between Russian Sergey Kovalev (30-0, 26KO’s) and American Andre Ward (30-0, 15KO’s) literally a fight for the ages! What was once a spoken possibility is now a reality. With only 4 days until fight night, we take a closer look at these two talents ahead of Saturday’s Keys to Victory, Four to Explore, and Official Prediction.
SERGEY KOVALEV – THE GOOD, THE BAD, THE UGLY
In Sergey Kovalev, you have a modern day ‘sandman’. One of those perennial talents capable of putting the enemy to sleep in a way that makes it impossible to rise back to his feet. 26 stoppages in 30 bouts, and wicked intentions behind every punch. The most intriguing stat of his career is the fact that only two men in his 30 professional bouts have been able to stretch his limits, taking him the distance of 12rds. One is a bonafide Hall of Famer (Bernard Hopkins), and the other was a tune-up bout for Andre Ward where he was asked to “get in a lot of good rounds”.
Having such power can never be a negative thing, but there are times when it can work against a fighter. Power would certainly qualify as a “good” thing for Kovalev, but to take a glimpse into the ‘bad’ side, many have learned in the past that power alone can fail to be enough against a cerebral type opponent. Miguel Cotto was a very feared puncher. Yet in the eyes of a Floyd Mayweather, he was simply another opponent whose limited ‘one round’ in the chamber wouldn’t be enough to save him.
Kovalev will be faced with a similar threat, as Ward has the intelligence to avoid such power, while landing his own. With 30 fights in the bag, Kovalev only has 114 rounds in the books. That could be a very troubling thing against a man who has just as many victories, yet nearly double the amount of rounds in the books (218). While Kovalev has a nice selection of opponents in his rearview mirror, none of them compare to the talent he’ll stand across from Saturday night. Power is his one calling card. Does he have a chance if he can’t land? There lies the “ugly” part of his equation. Stay tuned.
ANDRE WARD – THE GOOD, THE BAD, THE UGLY
For Andre Ward, although he lacks the power of Kovalev, the resume he brings to the ring shines in a comparable way to the gold medal he won during his famed Olympic run. Accolades in tow include not only that gold medal, but a victory in the Super-Six Super Middleweight tournament which combined the best talent worldwide, as well as a string of victories that go back to the tender age of 12 years old. There’s no way to overlook the ‘good’ in a talent which has proven to be great, but when you cut to the core, there’s an element of ‘bad’ which can be just as important heading into this clash.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WCmNPB2yxlY
Of all the good associated with Ward, the element of ‘bad’ is quite ‘ugly’, and very visible when you look at the limited activity of his recent resume. Injuries and legal battles have made him somewhat an afterthought in the mind of many fans and media. Only 7 fights in the past five years has left the sport wondering if he can recapture the talent used in his rise to greatness. Conventional logic says his mind is his saving grace and it still works fine. But a deeper logic looks back to recent bouts where shots landed that we aren’t always used to seeing.
When the bell rings Saturday night, will rust present in his last two bouts resurface? Possible. But in the same mind that has given him this level of success is a hunger that refuses to lie down in the face of adversity. A famous man once said “the only way to unparalleled greatness is to make sure the fire within you burns stronger than those fires around you”. With all of the skepticism and doubt cast his way, the fire within Ward burns bright. If he wins, that same doubt will serve as the reason he was able to figure it all out. Saturday can’t get here quick enough. For now, we speculate. Saturday night, watch it happen! Stay tuned!
(Vivek “Vito” Wallace can be reached at 754.307.7747. Tune in to weekly FaceBook Live Chats, or follow him here on Boxing247.com)