By Radio Rahim

In the early part of his boxing career, Sergey Kovalev (30-0-1, 26KOs) was trained by Abel Sanchez.

The relationship didn't last too long. They eventually parted ways after a little more than a year. Kovalev would go on to hire John David Jackson as his new trainer.

On November 19th at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Kovalev will headline his first HBO Pay-Per-View event as he defends his IBF, WBO, WBA light heavyweight titles against Olympic gold medal winner Andre Ward (30-0, 15KOs).

 

Last week, Sanchez sent the Internet on fire when he made certain statements regarding the role he played in Kovalev's development as a boxer.

Sanchez explains that he wasn't trying to steal the training thunder of Jackson, but he believes that his gym played a big role in Kovalev's overall development.

"It's not about the credit that I deserve, because he became a champion without me. Although I had him for eight or seven fights with seven knockouts. I had him after the Darnell Boone fight, where he was basically beat as a lot of people say. But that confidence that we gave him in our gym and the style that he developed in our gym has taken him a long way," Sanchez explained to BoxingScene.com.

"Obviously John David Jackson has been working with him for a while, but as you've heard Sergey say himself - all that he does he learned it in the streets [of Russia] - so maybe none of us have done anything for him."

"I had him for a year and three or four months. When I asked him to leave I wished him well and told him that he would become a world champion because he had all of the qualities to be a world champion."

If Sanchez was confident about Kovalev's ability to become a world champion, why would the veteran trainer ask him to leave?

"There were some personal issues. I just didn't think that he could be guided. I think that Sergey has a mind of his own. Sergey is very strong willed. Sergey is a very smart guy. I didn't think that he could be guided," Sanchez said.

"Really it's not about the money for me. I knew he would be a world champion, but I want to have fun when I go into the gym. Even if its a guy with a lot of losses, I want a guy that I get to teach. I didn't think that Sergey could be guided like that, so better somebody else do that than me and I could stay home."