By Keith Idec
NEW YORK – Sergey Kovalev’s knockout prediction wasn’t the least bit surprising Monday.
He is, after all, considered the puncher in his rematch with Andre Ward. He also dropped Ward in the second round of their first fight, which Ward came back to win by unanimous decision November 19 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
But when James Prince provocatively stated during a press conference that Kovalev is the one that could get knocked out when they fight again June 17 in Las Vegas, Ward’s co-manager made people take notice. The 33-year-old Ward (31-0, 15 KOs), while arguably the best boxer in the world, has won just two of his past 11 bouts by knockout or technical knockout.
The 34-year-old Kovalev, meanwhile, didn’t seem the least bit concerned about Prince’s prediction for what will happen in two months at Mandalay Bay Events Center.
“He cannot knock me out,” Kovalev said. “He slaps like a woman with his punches. He’s not gonna knock me out. And the reason why there was some blood from my nose, it was from an elbow. It wasn’t a punch, so he’s not gonna knock me out.”
Russia’s Kovalev (30-1-1, 26 KOs) feels he needs to win their light heavyweight championship rematch by knockout because he doesn’t want to leave the outcome to the judges again.
The former light heavyweight champion cannot believe all three judges thought Ward won their first fight. Each judge – Reno, Nevada’s Burt Clements, New York’s John McKaie and Las Vegas’ Glenn Trowbridge – scored their 12-round fight 114-113 for Ward.
“I will destroy him,” Kovalev said. “Really, I will punch much more and harder, with a goal to destroy him, to deliver pain for him. I love to make pain for my opponent. He, right now, deserves it.”
Prince promised a very different result when it was his turn to speak Monday.
“As I see it, hasn’t much changed,” Prince said, before intentionally mispronouncing Kovalev’s first name. “Sergio, your code has been cracked. We know who you are now. So understand that. And, you know, come June the 17th, you will see one of the greatest fights ever. And as I stated earlier in the interview with HBO, don’t be surprised if Kovalev gets knocked out this fight. It’s that type of atmosphere going on right now. So don’t you be surprised. So we look forward to that moment.
“And I noticed that you’ve been real vocal lately about a lot of things. But you need to know that when you’re dealing with men of God, we don’t have no fear of nothing you bring to the table. So understand that. And once again, the United States, we shall be victorious against Russia, as always.”
Keith Idec is a senior writer/columnist for BoxingScene.com. He can be reached on Twitter @Idecboxing.
