Kovalev's HBO exclusivity contract is making undisputed champions a thing of the pass

[Ham Porter]

Adonis can still do numbers in Montreal. He's still the money A-Side.

Stevenson doesn't do any numbers in Montreal. He can't fill a third of the venues he's fighting at and his ratings are absolutely abysmal. Nobody wants to watch a coward that has consistently ducked the best competition available.

[about.thousands]

Stevenson doesn't do any numbers in Montreal. He can't fill a third of the venues he's fighting at and his ratings are absolutely abysmal. Nobody wants to watch a coward that has consistently ducked the best competition available.

How many tickets did Kovalev sell in Vegas and why hasn't he been back since Duva & Main Events proclaimed Vegas as his home? You gotta be a real draw to headline Vegas. That's why you've never seen GGG headline there

[IMDAZED]

How many tickets did Kovalev sell in Vegas and why hasn't he been back since Duva & Main Events proclaimed Vegas as his home? You gotta be a real draw to headline Vegas. That's why you've never seen GGG headline there

There's a reason Kovalev is already saying he'll fight Ward in Oakland.

[about.thousands]

There's a reason Kovalev is already saying he'll fight Ward in Oakland.

Exactly. People think what Floyd did was easy. Naw he just made it look easy. Ain't nobody ever dominated the boxing game inside and outside the ring like him. The big boys fight at the MGM, not the Forum, MSG, Stubhub.

[Ham Porter]

How many tickets did Kovalev sell in Vegas and why hasn't he been back since Duva & Main Events proclaimed Vegas as his home? You gotta be a real draw to headline Vegas. That's why you've never seen GGG headline there

I'm not pretending Kovalev is a draw, but his stock is a hell of a lot higher than Stevenson's is right now. That's not even remotely debatable.

[SplitSecond]

In agreement with Porter. But Duva also says Sergei would undoubtedly sell out in Russia. Apparently he's a celebrity on TV in Russia.

Oh, and the fight with Ward isn't happening in Oakland. Part of the deal was the fight couldn't take place in Oakland or Russia.

[Eff Pandas]

But that doesn't mean the fight shouldn't happen.

I don't disagree. I'm a fan of this fight happening. I just think there are a lot of kinks in the chain with making this fight & its not some super big money fight that will get big dogs like HBO bending & twisting things to make it happen.

I don't see there being virtually any shot of this happening this year. Come 2017 after we know the result of Ward vs Kovalev I think this fight is back in play again, but once again Stevenson & his people are gonna need to submit to HBO or wait for Kovalev to leave HBO if they want this fight. And Stevenson will need to realize he'll be turning 40 years old in 2017 & that his days are numbered in the sport. He doesn't have the leverage he thinks he has.

[BennyBlanco]

You say a fight a month like its a bad thing.

It is a bad thing when HBO has been averaging 15-16 shows per year recently.

And don't get me started about competitive fights in boxing. I think most reasonable minds would agree no one is doing a ton of competitive fights vs the number of fights they put on. The sport of boxing is less about competitive fights than it ever has been. Thats a boxing problem, not a HBO problem.

I disagree...at least this year, right now. When I see Showtime's schedule populated with fights like Jack vs. Bute, Wilder vs. Povetkin, Charlo vs. Trout, Lara vs. Matirosyan, Thurman vs. Porter, Cuellar vs. Mares and Santa Cruz vs. Frampton - all 50/50 fights, or very close to it - I don't see it as a boxing problem. Showtime is doing their part to encourage competitive fights.

But when I see Kovalev vs. Pascal, Crawford vs. Lundy, Ortiz vs. Thomson and Golovkin vs. Wade...I do see an HBO problem. On HBO's first two cards, there were 4 fights total. Add up all the judges' scorecards on all four fights, and by my count, it's 88 rounds to 4 in favor of the A-side. For the first three shows - 6 fights total - it's 121 rounds to 13 in favor of the A-side
That's an HBO problem.

HBO has Ward vs Kovalev penciled in for November 19. If both wins their next fights I don't see any reason that fight doesn't happen.

The eternal optimist. Two words: not happening. At least not in 2016. You can take that to the bank.

And I couldn't disagree more that Kov needs Stevenson as much as Stevenson needs Kov. This isn't even debatable if we are being reasonable. 2 years ago Kovalev needed Stevenson more. But now Stevenson has done zilch with his career while Kov has had some meaningful fights & has a fight with Ward lined up that could give him a whole new level of respect in boxing if he wins. And maybe most importantly Kov just turned 33 a couple days ago & Stevenson will be 39 in a few months. Plenty of great fighters have gotten old on one random night at a younger age than Stevenson is today. His opportunities are burning daylight.

Really? What is Kovalev's star-making fight? The Ward fight that will probably never come? The Blake Caparello rematch? Pascall III? Agnew II? Braehmer?

Without Stevenson, Kovalev has no opponents, and he'll have to play out his career against no-namers and no-hopers. Without Kovalev, Stevenson has the same fate. That's what I mean when I say they need each other equally.

[Eff Pandas]

I disagree...at least this year, right now. When I see Showtime's schedule populated with fights like Jack vs. Bute, Wilder vs. Povetkin, Charlo vs. Trout, Lara vs. Matirosyan, Thurman vs. Porter, Cuellar vs. Mares and Santa Cruz vs. Frampton - all 50/50 fights, or very close to it - I don't see it as a boxing problem. Showtime is doing their part to encourage competitive fights.

But when I see Kovalev vs. Pascal, Crawford vs. Lundy, Ortiz vs. Thomson and Golovkin vs. Wade...I do see an HBO problem. On HBO's first two cards, there were 4 fights total. Add up all the judges' scorecards on all four fights, and by my count, it's 88 rounds to 4 in favor of the A-side. For the first three shows - 6 fights total - it's 121 rounds to 13 in favor of the A-side
That's an HBO problem.

The eternal optimist. Two words: not happening. At least not in 2016. You can take that to the bank.

Okay so I'm an eternal optimist for expecting Ward vs Kovalev happens this year, but you are reasonable when you assume competitiveness isn't a boxing wide problem cuz Showtime actually has a schedule of fights this year after basically taking a hiatus largely last year? Cmon man. Competitive fights are few & far between in boxing & usually are later than they should be. Showtime throwing together a nice schedule this summer doesn't change that overall fact going on in the sport. If Showtime continues on this path fair enough, but I see a handful of good fights...thats it, nothing more.

Really? What is Kovalev's star-making fight? The Ward fight that will probably never come? The Blake Caparello rematch? Pascall III? Agnew II? Braehmer?

Without Stevenson, Kovalev has no opponents, and he'll have to play out his career against no-namers and no-hopers. Without Kovalev, Stevenson has the same fate. That's what I mean when I say they need each other equally.

Well your whole assumption is based on Ward not fighting Kovalev so I'll just wait til that fight happens or not happens to wait for your argument to fall apart or your argument to stand cuz I say Kovalev gots a better opponent in front of him than Stevenson is for Kovalev via Ward.

And even if I agree neither had an opponent I'd still suggest being with HBO, who is most peoples go to for high level boxing, is the superior brand to be affiliated with therefore Kovalev is still in the drivers seat with all this & Stevenson is gonna need to bend.

And if I even agreed with you about the networks the fighters are involved with I'd still suggest Stevenson turning 39 in a few months gives him far less time to make this fight therefore he'll need to bend before Kovalev does.

This isn't rocket science. This is basically the same edge Canelo has over GGG being almost a decade younger. GGG has a lil extra upside with the alphabet title angle, but thats assuming that group sticks with its promise & that Canelo gives a **** about that title. And regardless the real prize for GGG is the fight with Canelo not some ****ty belt he'll auction off on Ebay for 2k in 20 years so GGG loses out if he doesn't get the fight just like Stevenson loses if he doesn't get the fight. Kovalev & Canelo got more big fights left ahead of them.