By Ryan Burton
MGM Grand, Las Vegas, NV - It is hard to believe but during Andre Ward's (30-0) illustrious 12 year career he has yet to set foot inside of the squared circle in the fight capital of the world Las Vegas, Nevada.
That will all change on Saturday night when he faces WBA/WBO/IBF light heavyweight champion Sergey Kovalev (30-0-1) in a pay-per-view showdown dubbed "Pound for Pound". The 4 fight telecast will be distributed by HBO pay-per-view.
The Oakland, Calif. native has fought several times in California but surprising will be making his Las Vegas debut at the T-Mobile Arena.
When asked why it took so long, especially considering he was promoted for several years by Southern California based Goosen-Tutor Promotions, Ward took the high road and said that this was the perfect fight and stage for his Silver State debut.
"It is tough. I don't really have an answer to that. To me it is my journey. Me personally I look at it like what better time than this? At this stage of my career this is a wonderful time for it. I have always pushed to fight here and as you guys know I had a west coast promoter for many, many years and for one reason or another it didn't work so I had to swallow that and keep working. I think that it is just a good thing that it is happening now," said Ward.
Kovalev vs. Ward "Pound For Pound", a 12-round mega-fight for the WBO/IBF/WBA light heavyweight title at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, is presented by Main Events, Roc Nation Sports, Krusher Promotions and Andre Ward Promotions and is sponsored by the MGM Grand Hotel & Casino, Corona Extra, Monster Products, JetLux, Zappos, Jordan Brand and Shoe Palace. The championship event will be produced and distributed live by HBO Pay-Per-View® beginning at 9:00 p.m. ET/6:00 p.m. PT. Tickets are available on axs.com and the T-Mobile Arena box office.
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