Who do you think wins? Break it down.
Stevenson's speed is his biggest asset and if he catches Kovalev clean, he surely goes down. The other way around has to be true too. I think Kovalev's 'slowness' is overstated. I don't think he's THAT slow, I just think we haven't seen him feel threatened yet so he's not throwing as fast (and possibly as powerful) as he could.
I saw on the graphic before the Hopkins/Kovalev fight that Kovalev has a massive reach advantage over Hopkins but when I look at Hopkins' & Kovalev's boxrec pages, it says Hopkins has a superior reach, so I don't know if it's accurate. Does anyone have proof of Kovalev's & Stevenson's reaches?
Nothing against Kovalev, but I just get this feeling Kovalev going to get KO by Stevenson. I just want this fight to happen, I hope both teams make it happen.
Kovalev is a MUCH more well rounded and versatile fighter than Stevenson is. Take away Stevenson's left hand and you will beat him.
This^
I feel like the outcome will be influenced by how John Jackson prepares Kovalev for this fight, just like with Hopkins. They had a good gameplan, and it showed.
If Kovalev can nullify Stevenson's straight left and counter with his own right hand, it will make the fight much easier for him. He just needs to prepare properly.
I think his right is ok for what he uses it for, which is to distract, bait and judge range.
It's one of the reasons that I originally picked Stevenson to win is because Kovalev can be baited and walked into shots, and that's what Stevenson is doing most the time with his right hand. Unfortunately I think he over uses the same setups and a smart fighter (which Kovalev seems to be in his own way) should be able to nullify it
What I'm getting at is if he exchanges jabs with Kovalev, which one do you think will land and be effective?
His jab sucks though, he paws it with his right hand and it doesn't do much.
I think his right is ok for what he uses it for, which is to distract, bait and judge range.
It's one of the reasons that I originally picked Stevenson to win is because Kovalev can be baited and walked into shots, and that's what Stevenson is doing most the time with his right hand. Unfortunately I think he over uses the same setups and a smart fighter (which Kovalev seems to be in his own way) should be able to nullify it
difference is Bhop wasn't throwing anything back, in the first 6 rounds, Stevenson will throw and he will land. Kovalev has been caught with plenty of punches in his career, the Pascal fight was not the anomaly, the Bhop fight was.
Imo that fight is not going 6 rounds, it probably won't make it out of 2 rounds.
Stevenson doesn't have the chin or the elusiveness to carry Kovalev beyond 3 rounds, either he knocks Kovalev out early or Kovalev knocks him out.
Don't forget the 5" advantage in reach for Adonis... Enough to keep Kovalev humble before whipping that left.... 5" is ENORMOUS !
Since the reach is measured from fingertip to fingertip, a broader chest may or may not account for the additional distance\reach.
In either case, that 77" vs 72" isn't a big difference.
I predict Stevenson vacates so he doesn't have to step in the ring with Kovalev.
He can't. Kovalev has made it so Quackenson has to fight if he wishes to retain any credibility whatsoever.
Stevenson has improved a lot over the last two years, but he is still too repetitive with his arsenal. He relies heavily on the left-hand as the coup de grace. Which is going to become a severe handicap against Kovalev. Stevenson also, has a very lazy jab ... because for the most part, he's just using it to setup the straight left hand.
Kovalev works distance very well and if he sees an opponent constantly trying to setup the same shot over and over, then he will start measuring how close Stevenson has to be to connect, and stay out of range. Then the question becomes, what else does Stevenson have to intimidate???
What will occur when they are both in range will determine the fight. Since both have power and both have a good amount of skill. Though I would lean a little more in favor of Kovalev in the skill department.
Technique - Kovalev
Power - Equal
Skill - Kovalev
Inside game - Unknown (Both are range fighters)
Ring generalship - Equal
Determination (Will to win) - Kovalev with a slight edge
intangibles - Stevenson (Stewart trained Stevenson well, but I think he's lost some of that training over the years. If he can bring the fundamentals back to the forefront and utilize them as taught, he can make a serious fight out of this.)
I'm leaning Kovalev, but wouldn't be surprised if Stevenson shocks ...:boxing:
As long as Comrad Kovalev can counter that left brick coming over is right hand he should be fine. Unfortunately chances are a couple of those one timers will make it to his head.. Not funny... He showed in Pascal's fight that he can be hit on a regular basis... Better boxer overall ? Maybe... Could Stevenson put him to sleep early ? Maybe ... Could it be an all time HOF fight ? Probably ... :)
Kovalev can't be aggressive enough in this fight to KO Stevenson. He'll be facing too much risk of getting one-timed by Stevenson's left.
I was undecided on this fight until I watched Stevenson look uncoordinated and lost against Bika. He's a big puncher who can't fight. Kovalev can box, he can punch with both hands, and he can fight.
Superduckenquack is the most one armed boxer since Donny LaLonde.
There is nothing there that Krusher can't handle. Ko 8th rd.
Never thought I'd be hoping for a Russian to win a fight....
better then a pimp winning
I give slight edge to Stevenson, though i think Kovalev is overall a better fighter.
Kovalevs tendency to square up when coming forward and retreating is what makes me think Stevenson would be more likely to get the ko. However Kovalev impressed me against Hopkins with his patience and boxing skills, he could easily win this.
Also Stevenson hasnt been fighting as tough opposition as Kovalev has, so it is hard to tell at this stage.
Stevenson proved last night why he is hiding from Kovalev. all he does is throw the left to the body and head. he fought an old small guy who stood still while the pimp threw the same left 3000 times. all you need to do which Hopkins did to Trinidad is to get away from the left and easily KO the pimp
Great fight in my opinion. It is an interesting match up and needs to happen for the sake of unifying a division with the definition of championship confusion (lineal vs majority belt holder)
I beleive, and hope, that Sergey Krushes Quackonis.
Kovalev admitted he fought poorly vs Pascal and got hit with lefts that he should have avoided. Sure, if he boxes poorly the pimp could catch him. But if he boxes intelligently as he did vs Bhop then it will be an easy fight IMO.
difference is Bhop wasn't throwing anything back, in the first 6 rounds, Stevenson will throw and he will land. Kovalev has been caught with plenty of punches in his career, the Pascal fight was not the anomaly, the Bhop fight was.
His jab sucks though, he paws it with his right hand and it doesn't do much.
His jabs are more for testing waters and distract but the cause why he can keep the distance most of the time are his rangy straight left (which is a constant threat for the opponent) and his footwork.
11y ago
Kovalev vs Stevenson - who wins? | BoxingScene Community