>>> Kovalev gets outclassed in the rematch...

[jack_the_rippuh]

I think Ward's improvement had more to do with Kovalev tiring down the stretch, Kovalev is not a fighter that has to go the distance too often and there was a lot of wrestling.

When they were both sharp, it wasn't a contest. Kovalev was dominant.

Y'all didn't catch the McCallum-esque body shots Ward was landing though. They slowed Kovalev down and his punches lost its snap.

I believe Sergey won though. I think every round after round 2 that Sergey won was being compared to how effective he was in round 2 in the judges point of view.

[jack_the_rippuh]

Sergey took the opening on that shot too early. It would have came again, but he unfortunately made Andre pay too early and Andre never made the same mistake again.

[Redd Foxx]

The only problem is kovalev arguably has the better movement, the better jab, the better speed and better overall outside game. kovalev has the tendency to fall in with his right hand at times tho. The more ward gets the fight on the inside the better...that was the only place he had a clear advantage.

I agree (except for speed) and that's exactly why I think Ward needs better movement in the rematch. Specifically lateral movement and 'Y' pattern movement (striking, then exiting to the left or right) since he is always able to land strikes from the side and Kovalev is just not comfortable doing that.

Kovelev has exceptional linear movement. I expected Ward to combat this with lateral movement as he has in the past, but he didn't (actually, he did, but not enough IMO).

I agree with the last line to a great extent too. I still believe that Ward needed to, and will need to, stay out of range and attack Kov with pot shots and he closes distance (be the first to get off). As well as get inside and work him as only Ward can. He's beaten other strong punchers this way and I've no idea why he chose one of the riskiest approaches possible.

What he did in this fight was "just enough" IMO and could have easily been "not enough" in the eyes of other judges. He best not discount that.

[juggernaut666]

I think Ward's improvement had more to do with Kovalev tiring down the stretch, Kovalev is not a fighter that has to go the distance too often and there was a lot of clinching, holding and pulling which wears a boxer down.

When they were both sharp in the first half, it wasn't a contest. Kovalev was dominant.

This ^^^^^^

The thing is Ward will know he has to do better and his training camp better tell him he didnt win this fight and needs to be be better ,something i think he knows because Kovalev aint going to cruise next time . Kovalev doesnt have to see where he went wrong ,his only adjustment really needed is pace and more right hands after the jab which is basic boxing. Theres really no way to train for jabs that wobble you ,thats a bad indicator for what i think will be a loss for the weaker guy Ward in the rematch if Kovalev starts throwing more than one punch at a time. .

[Scary_canary]

I think Ward's improvement had more to do with Kovalev tiring down the stretch, Kovalev is not a fighter that has to go the distance too often and there was a lot of clinching, holding and pulling which wears a boxer down.

When they were both sharp in the first half, it wasn't a contest. Kovalev was dominant.

Can't disagree with that at all tbh after the first 2-3 rounds I thought that ward didn't want anything to do with kovalev lol I thought it was gonna be an early night, I was clearly wrong, I hope kova gets the knockout in the rematch, there's just something about ward I don't like, not taking anything away from his boxing ability, he's proven he's a good boxer and credit to him for pulling out the win, no matter how I feel about the result.

[Real King Kong]

I agree (except for speed) and that's exactly why I think Ward needs better movement in the rematch. Specifically lateral movement and 'Y' pattern movement (striking, then exiting to the left or right) since he is always able to land strikes from the side and Kovalev is just not comfortable doing that.

Kovelev has exceptional lineal movement. I expected Ward to combat this with lateral movement as he has in the past, but he didn't (actually, he did, but not enough IMO).

I agree with the last line to a great extent too. I still believe that Ward needed to, and will need to, stay out of range and attack Kov with pot shots and he closes distance (be the first to get off). As well as get inside and work him as only Ward can. He's beaten other strong punchers this way and I've no idea why he chose one of the riskiest approaches possible.

What he did in this fight was "just enough" IMO and could have easily be "not enough" in the eyes of other judges. He best not discount that.

Kovalev is really good at measuring distance and using his length and footwork to move in and back out to avoid counter shots. It gave ward some trouble early, particularly cuz of kovalev's sort of off beat rhythm and feinting along with finishing off with the jab. The old 1-2-1 is a bit of a lost art and is hard to deal with when it's accompanied with good footwork...it can be used offensively and defensively. Ward will have to jab with kovalev to offset his rhythm like he did later into the fight. I feel like both figters can make changes...it might come down to who executes the game plan better.

[Scary_canary]

I agree (except for speed) and that's exactly why I think Ward needs better movement in the rematch. Specifically lateral movement and 'Y' pattern movement (striking, then exiting to the left or right) since he is always able to land strikes from the side and Kovalev is just not comfortable doing that.

Kovelev has exceptional lineal movement. I expected Ward to combat this with lateral movement as he has in the past, but he didn't (actually, he did, but not enough IMO).

I agree with the last line to a great extent too. I still believe that Ward needed to, and will need to, stay out of range and attack Kov with pot shots and he closes distance (be the first to get off). As well as get inside and work him as only Ward can. He's beaten other strong punchers this way and I've no idea why he chose one of the riskiest approaches possible.

What he did in this fight was "just enough" IMO and could have easily be "not enough" in the eyes of other judges. He best not discount that.

Redd-foxx Always hittin that nail on the head

[A.K]

outclassed lmao broke boa probably watched a crappy 240p laggin stream, kov destroyed him in his own wrestling game. Ward walked into that hand like a amateur.

[Nay_Sayer]

Outclassed and knocked out.

Lol...

[Redd Foxx]

Ha ha. Great bump. I'm pretty happy looking back on my prediction/analysis, particularly about Ward's movement.