Kovalev: Chilemba Was Like a Test For My Fight With Andre Ward

Question: Your last fight was in your native Russia. What did you learn about training outside the US and fighting Isaac Chilemba, a fighter you said has similarities with Andre Ward?

 Sergey Kovalev - “I was very excited to be fighting in my home town and very happy because for a long time I didn’t fight there. The most important thing for me was that I fought there as a world champion and I defended my titles. There was little bit more pressure when I fought there because I had more responsibility, I had my family, my friends and everybody who knows me in Russia to take care of. I did not want to let everyone down, but I think I gave good fight and all fans enjoy it.

"Also, Chilemba is tough fighter, very good defense, so he is not a fighter that you can think will be easy. The fight against Chilemba was like a test for my fight with Andre Ward. We never know what Andre Ward will bring against me on November 19, he is good defense and is fast so I must be ready for anything. We are preparing for best possible Andre Ward in camp, so all I can do is train hard and prepare with my coach and my team. I am going in the ring with strong belief that I will get victory.”

Toledo, Ohio - Undefeated fighters super lightweight Sonny "Pretty Boi" Fredrickson (14-0, 9 KO's) and featherweight Tyler "Golden Child" McCreary (11-0, 6 KO's) will see action on November 19, as part of the highly-anticipated Light Heavyweight Unification showdown between Sergey Kovalev and Andre Ward at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Fredrickson and McCreary, both natives of Toledo, Ohio, will both perform on their biggest stage to date. The two will be featured on the Kovalev-Ward freeview telecast which begins at 7:00 p.m. ET/4:00 p.m. PT on the Pay-Per-View events channel prior to the official telecast, and to be announced cable, satellite, and telco channels. The freeview will also be available through livestreaming on HBO Boxing's YouTube channel.

Fredrickson will fight Gabriel Duluc (11-1, 2 KO's) while McCreary will battle Vincent Jennings (5-2-1, 4 KO's).

Kovalev vs. Ward takes place Saturday, November 19 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas and will be produced and distributed live by HBO Pay-Per-View beginning at 9:00 p.m. ET/ 6:00 p.m. PT.