Some thoughts on Ward vs Kova

Very good fight.The movement and the way ward fought is what I expected in the first fight, he did a lot better this time out. I was not very happy with the way it ended or the hbo team last night. They were not borderline shots or questionable, they were low plain and simple. Hypothetically if they were body shots a fight of this caliber shouldn't have been stopped where it was stopped in my opinion. I felt a little cheated out of the other rounds that we could have seen, and the commentators throwing salt in the wound.

Good thread.

Ref stopped it from nowhere. Should have paused fight for a little give warning to ward at the very least. Can't condone low blow just cos ward landed a legitimate punch that hurtb kov before. If anything that is a bigger reason to give kov a break

I think the last punch landed was a low blow but that's because Kovalev was leaning forward, the couple of others before that were borderline, but the point is Kovalev was already ready to go at that stage, he was very unsteady from the right hand and the shot to the liver shot especially. A good liver shot the hardest punch to take in boxing, it takes everything away from you, your legs, your wind and your heart. Kovalev was showing signs of breaking throughout the fight, he was complaining about almost every body shot, legal and illegal. That made it clear to Ward that he's getting uncomfortable and there for the taking, so instead of showing that weakness to Ward, he should've either gone low himself or been more composed about it (easier said than done of course). I'll say simply that the "straw that breaks the camel's back" and causes a fight to be stopped shouldn't be a questionably legal shot. I understand that Weeks was looking at Kovalev seeing him reeling and probably looking for a place to stop the fight, but right after a punch that many thought was low at the time it was thrown (let alone the two preceding punches which looked pretty damn low to me) is not the time. There's a bad reaction to this stoppage because the fight-ending shot was a foul. If Ward had thrown three questionable shots and then a big bomb to the head and Weeks stepped in, I don't think you would have the same sort of reaction (though doubtless some would still be complaining about fouls).

I mean, low blows will take a lot out of you and it looked like he got hit by a series of them at the end. I'm not terribly surprised he wasn't dancing around the ring after those shots either. I think the last punch landed was a low blow but that's because Kovalev was leaning forward, the couple of others before that were borderline, but the point is Kovalev was already ready to go at that stage, he was very unsteady from the right hand and the shot to the liver shot especially. A good liver shot the hardest punch to take in boxing, it takes everything away from you, your legs, your wind and your heart. Kovalev was showing signs of breaking throughout the fight, he was complaining about almost every body shot, legal and illegal. That made it clear to Ward that he's getting uncomfortable and there for the taking, so instead of showing that weakness to Ward, he should've either gone low himself or been more composed about it (easier said than done of course).

Kovalev left the ref without a choice but to step in. He was nearly on his knees and not fighting back, he wasn't down so he couldn't get a 10 count, no standing 8 count. He wasn't defending himself and looked absolutely shattered. There's a reason he didn't complain when the fight was stopped, but rather afterwards, when he regained his energy. I mean, low blows will take a lot out of you and it looked like he got hit by a series of them at the end. I'm not terribly surprised he wasn't dancing around the ring after those shots either. This isn't a situation where a guy was eating a ton of head shots and could be at risk of brain damage. If he was really that winded then give him an opportunity to take a knee, or give Ward an opportunity to put him down.

Good points. Andre's movement was the biggest change. Kovalev just couldn't lay power into anything he threw because Andre was too mobile, and wasn't afraid to mix it up with him either. That left Kovalev with the jab but it was really just a matter of time before fatigue got to Kovalev. That's why I kept calling BS on his claims. Kovalev just doesn't have a great gas tank. Yep. Kovalev's jab is his best weapon, Ward's legs neutralised that as much as possible, making it very hard to measure your opponent/judge the distance correctly. And yes, Kovalev's gas tank has always been dodgy, he made the same excuses against Chilemba, there's no footage of it but apparently he was ****ed against Boone in the first fight as well. Yes, ultimately I feel that Andre Ward had the fight in the bag and probably would have stopped Kovalev low blows or not. However I think it's tough to view that stoppage as a good ending to the fight, when the fight-ending punches were all very low, hitting not just on the belt line but below it too. It was my immediate reaction and the reaction of the people I was watching the fight with that the fight seemed to have been stopped on fouls, and then having Max Kellerman saying this would be taught in gyms for years left a bad taste in my mouth to close off what had been a competitive and interesting fight otherwise. I take nothing away from Ward, he fought a great fight and made the right adjustments. I don't believe he set out to foul Kovalev and I also don't blame him for Weeks stopping the fight from what looked like reeling shots. It was just not a great way at all for the fight to end. Kovalev left the ref without a choice but to step in. He was nearly on his knees and not fighting back, he wasn't down so he couldn't get a 10 count, no standing 8 count. He wasn't defending himself and looked absolutely shattered. There's a reason he didn't complain when the fight was stopped, but rather afterwards, when he regained his energy.

Ward landed some low blows, but the punches that really did the damage were legal, the right hand rocked Kovalev to start it all off, followed by a clean left hook to the liver at 1.02 of round 8, which visibly had Kovalev grimacing and that took the last wind out of him imo. Kovalev simply couldn't cope at close quarters, he's overly reliant on keeping guys on the end of his punches and can't shorten them up when an opponent gets close. No hooks, no uppercuts, just 1-2s. His output was much higher than it was in the first fight, which lead to him getting hit more and ultimately emptying his tank quicker. Also I don't know if anybody else noticed, but Ward looked a bit slimmer than the first time around, he looked lighter and that gave him the extra mobility he didn't have in the first fight. He used his legs a LOT more in this one. That's also one of the reasons Kovalev wasn't as patient or accurate as the last time, a moving target is always harder to hit. Big ups to Dre, it's not the size of the dog in the fight, it's the size of the fight in the dog! Great post dude.

Yes, ultimately I feel that Andre Ward had the fight in the bag and probably would have stopped Kovalev low blows or not. However I think it's tough to view that stoppage as a good ending to the fight, when the fight-ending punches were all very low, hitting not just on the belt line but below it too. It was my immediate reaction and the reaction of the people I was watching the fight with that the fight seemed to have been stopped on fouls, and then having Max Kellerman saying this would be taught in gyms for years left a bad taste in my mouth to close off what had been a competitive and interesting fight otherwise. I take nothing away from Ward, he fought a great fight and made the right adjustments. I don't believe he set out to foul Kovalev and I also don't blame him for Weeks stopping the fight from what looked like reeling shots. It was just not a great way at all for the fight to end.

Good points. Andre's movement was the biggest change. Kovalev just couldn't lay power into anything he threw because Andre was too mobile, and wasn't afraid to mix it up with him either. That left Kovalev with the jab but it was really just a matter of time before fatigue got to Kovalev. That's why I kept calling BS on his claims. Kovalev just doesn't have a great gas tank.