By Lyle Fitzsimmons

The countdown is on.

In fact, as of this morning we’re at T-minus 11 days.

That’s 11 days until a fight – light heavyweight monster Sergey Kovalev against former super middleweight king Andre Ward – that’s got me as excited as any I can remember in many, many years.

Two undefeated champions. Two masters of their crafts. And a clash in which even the most partisan fans of the Russian or Californian can’t be positive their man won’t come out on the short end.

I’ve interviewed both men, seen both of them at their best, and, based on that, I’m having quite a difficult time imagining either one of them being flat-out dominated – no matter who the foe.

And the more I ponder the match, the more it’s got me thinking of others that had me more and more captivated the closer and closer they got.

Here’s a stream-of-consciousness snapshot of the ones that made the most pre-fight impact.

Ray Leonard vs. Thomas Hearns I – Sept. 16, 1981

For me, it was the “Showdown” that started everything.

I was not only the biggest pre-teen “Hitman” fan at my Western New York junior high school, but I was also pondering the idea that a fondness for writing could ultimately leap from habit to occupation.

And though I was devastated Tommy didn’t emerge with Ray’s WBC belt in tow, I still spun out a multi-page handwritten recap for my seventh-grade English teacher – Thomas Rycombel – that wound up netting me an A-plus and a suggestion that I consider sports journalism as a career choice.

Ironically, seven years later – Sept. 16, 1988 – was my first day at my first paper – the Niagara Gazette.

Larry Holmes vs. Gerry Cooney – June 11, 1982

I look back now and realize how little I knew.

Before the Internet and the perpetual flow of 24-hour sports news on TV, my 13-year-old incarnation got information via the monthly deliveries of World Boxing, International Boxing, KO and The Ring to the Mario’s novelty store on Pine Avenue in Niagara Falls.

And the more I gleaned from those magazines, the more I was convinced a mammoth left-hooker from Long Island somehow had what it took to take down a guy I realize now was one of the most criminally underappreciated champions in heavyweight history.

Fight night revealed how wrong I was. Though Cooney displayed courage he’d never been forced to reveal, he was little competitive match for Holmes, who finishes behind Ali – and maybe no one else – when it comes to the roll call of the best big men who ever lived.

Marvin Hagler vs. Thomas Hearns – April 15, 1985

Thirty-plus years later, everyone recalls three rounds of blistering combat. But all I remember is the chilly, depressing walk home.

I spent several weeks looking forward to ring announcer Chuck Hull booming the words “winner and NEW middleweight champion,” referring to my man Hearns and following soon after what would have been the most significant victory of his multi-division career.

Instead, my mom and I trudged back over the Rainbow Bridge that connects the sister cities of Niagara Falls – New York and Ontario – coming back from watching the duel on a closed-circuit feed at the Sheraton Foxhead hotel, as I braced myself against the post-midnight wind and pondered taking a quick leap over the nearby railing.

As it turned out, I’m glad I managed to keep myself from the dramatic plunge – but I’ve never been able to watch the replay without remembering exactly what that disappointment felt like.

Floyd Mayweather Jr. vs. Manny Pacquiao – May 2, 2015

You never forget your first Super Bowl.

Though I had no hesitation going public with the idea that “Money” would school “Pac Man” whether they’d fought at any moment from 2009 to 2015, it was still a hair-standing-on-the-arms thrill to be in the MGM Grand Garden Arena when the two men went face to face for the Friday night weigh-in – and 24 hours later when they went face to face for Kenny Bayless’ pre-fight introductions.

As the late, great Ralph Wiley once said, “It was an enhanced state of being.”

And even though the fight itself wasn’t a competitive masterpiece, it didn’t mean the reality of seeing them hitting each other – after all the years of posing and posturing – was any less impactful.

Each of the mega-matches I cover from here on will have a high bar to jump.

* * * * * * * * * *

This week’s title-fight schedule:

SATURDAY

IBF mini flyweight title -- Tepic, Mexico
Jose Argumedo (champion/No. 5 IWBR) vs. Jose Antonio Jimenez (No. 1 IBF/No. 11 IWBR)
Argumedo (18-3-1, 10 KO): Second title defense; Undefeated in scheduled 12-rounders (5-0, 2 KO)
Jimenez (17-5-1, 7 KO): First title fight; Third fight outside of Colombia (1-1, 0 KO)
Fitzbitz says: Argumedo is a champ, he’s younger and he’s a better puncher. His challenger – in 2015 – had two foes whose combined record was 0-33-2. But Argumedo by decision

Last week’s picks: 5-0 (WIN: Zeuge, Pacquiao, Magdaleno, Valdez, Shiming)
2016 picks record: 76-20 (79.1 percent)
Overall picks record: 809-268 (75.1 percent)

NOTE: Fights previewed are only those involving a sanctioning body's full-fledged title-holder – no interim, diamond, silver, etc. Fights for WBA "world championships" are only included if no "super champion" exists in the weight class.

Lyle Fitzsimmons has covered professional boxing since 1995 and written a weekly column for Boxing Scene since 2008. He is a full voting member of the Boxing Writers Association of America. Reach him at fitzbitz@msn.com or follow him on Twitter – @fitzbitz.