By Radio Rahim
Last June, Andre Ward (30-0, 15KOs) returned to the ring for the first time since November of 2013, and even that fight took place on the back of a layoff that was over a year in length.
Between legal issues with a former promoter and suffering numerous injuries, Ward has averaged one fight per year since 2012. This year has been the first time where Ward has fought twice in a twelve month period since 2011 - when he won the Super Six tournament.
On November 19th, Ward will take part in his third fight of the year when he challenges IBF/WBO/WBA light heavyweight champion Sergey Kovalev (30-0, 26KOs) in the headline bout of an HBO Pay-Per-View event. The card is likely taking place at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
Ward closed the deal on the fall showdown last night, when he dominated Alexander Brand over twelve rounds at The Oracle in Oakland, California. Kovalev was in action last month, when he won a twelve round decision over Isaac Chilemba in Russia.
Jackson believes Ward wasted away his prime years with his stints of inactive. While he has a lot of respect for Ward's abilities, Jackson says Ward is no longer the boxer who dominated the entire super middleweight division for several years.
"Here is the one thing that people don't realize, the fans [don't realize], and I will stress to them. That last five years of Ward's life has been wasted. He's had three fights [since 2013]. His prime years are gone. Those were his prime years. Now he's in a different phase. He may say he has it, but those prime years are gone and he can't get them back," Jackson told BoxingScene.com.
"The best years are gone and now you're facing a killer. Can you hold him off? If you couldn't knock that other guy out, what are you going to do when you get in there with Sergey?"
That being said, Jackson is far from overlooking the contest.
"Ward is an intelligent, very smart fighter. Anyone that has gone undefeated as an amateur and then undefeated as a pro, that is something you've got to respect. Having said that, he does like a challenge. He is difficult and he is good at what he does. We have to break him down systematically and beat him at Sergey's game," Jackson said.
"He may do some things that he gets away with, but we will break him down and the fight will go our way. It is a dangerous fight because he is a boxer - he is not a puncher - he has a tendency to be more crafty. So it is a great challenge for me and I welcome the challenge - to prove that I am one of the better trainers in boxing, one of the better teachers in boxing. That's why I love the challenge of an Andre Ward fight."
