Did Kovalev's Tactics Change Your Opinion of Him as a Fighter?

I'm butt hurt PBP quoted me to make his point.:lol1: It's whatever. I did pick Ward to win both fights. :lol1: That was 2015 tho. Everybody thought that.

I guess relative to my opinion of him a year ago, yes. But I still respect his skill level and punching power. I hope he comes back and looks good.

Over the past few years a lot of boxers changed my POV. I never thought Walters would be a quitter. If it was round ten, and Loma just carved him up for 8 rounds straight then i would accept it. Adrien and how he just flusters and fights lazy. Errol being better than i thought Sergey with his Krusher moniker, still being very excuse ridden as a fighter. Especially when in both fights he was dirtier.

I'm butt hurt PBP quoted me to make his point.:lol1: It's whatever. I did pick Ward to win both fights.

Nope, showed he has a granite chin. Made me have a lower opinion of Weeks, though.

To be fair, the general knock on Tyson was that he was a bully who crumbled when you stood up to him (a gross oversimplification, but it's what many have argued.) That's true. He just came up because that's the first name I thought of when I hear baddest man on the planet

There was one thread asking who deserves the title of "Baddest Man on the Planet". And the overwhelming answer was Kovalev (and rightfully so at the time). I'm not criticizing these posters. But when faced with adversity, the "baddest man on the planet" folded. Can you imagine what Mike Tyson would have done had somebody hit him with a low blow? Immediate retaliation. He would never back down from a dog fight. To be fair, the general knock on Tyson was that he was a bully who crumbled when you stood up to him (a gross oversimplification, but it's what many have argued.)

This whole thread is an insult on Kovalev and gloating. You're focusing on the good and completely ignoring the sh1t, namely the low blows and inadequacies of Weeks in the 7th and 8th rounds. I'm not a Kovalev fan and never was. I've been highly critical of his skillset (link) and his resume way before the Ward fight was announced (here's a link). If you're asking whether or not I would have liked to see more grit from him, yes, absolutely. He talked a TON of crap before the 2nd fight and didn't try to prove anything. Even the first 3 rounds that he won, he wasn't impressive and wasn't doing anything new. I absolutely agree with everything here. Ward was much better in the 2nd fight, and Kovalev was the same. His stamina is poor, and his control of distance is god awful. I made note of it back during Kov-Pascal 2, when Pascal went in the corner and Kovalev stepped back to let him out, because he doesn't know how to fight like that. What I disagree with are the 'tactics' you give as reasons for this thread. There's a difference between excuses and facts. Excuses are subjective based on which 'side' you're on. If Weeks DQd Ward at the end of that 8th for low blows, you would be the one making excuses and there would be some idiotic Kovalev fan gloating. But the facts do not change. As to the answer to your question: I've demonstrated that I was not a Kovalev fan and thought he was overrated. Having said that, yes, he's still a bad man and a good boxer. After affects of a few low blows aren't going to change my mind. Ward proved himself to be better that night, and Kovalev failed to make any adjustments. Inside fighting is dirty in general. If Kovalev was a bad man he would of gone to war in the trenches. Instead he clinched and whined.

Where have I insulted Kovalev or gloating? I'm making observations about his behavior during the fight and you are taking it personal. Even the more level headed Kovalev fans in this very thread agree with me and say they would've liked to see him show more grit and get more rugged in the trenches. This whole thread is an insult on Kovalev and gloating. You're focusing on the good and completely ignoring the sh1t, namely the low blows and inadequacies of Weeks in the 7th and 8th rounds. I'm not a Kovalev fan and never was. I've been highly critical of his skillset (link) and his resume way before the Ward fight was announced (here's a link). If you're asking whether or not I would have liked to see more grit from him, yes, absolutely. He talked a TON of crap before the 2nd fight and didn't try to prove anything. Even the first 3 rounds that he won, he wasn't impressive and wasn't doing anything new. There is no spinning of any narrative. The fight is over. From Round 6 of the first fight, to round 12 of the second fight, Ward figured Kovalev out. He is a strong fighter for the first six rounds but isn't the same fighter in the last six. He gets discourage when he can't have his way and control distance and he lacks an inside game.I absolutely agree with everything here. Ward was much better in the 2nd fight, and Kovalev was the same. His stamina is poor, and his control of distance is god awful. I made note of it back during Kov-Pascal 2, when Pascal went in the corner and Kovalev stepped back to let him out, because he doesn't know how to fight like that. What I disagree with are the 'tactics' you give as reasons for this thread. So once again. How about you answer the question instead of making excuses: 3 years ago, Kovalev was widely considered one of the baddest men on the planet. Do you still believe that to be true after seeing what you saw on Saturday night?There's a difference between excuses and facts. Excuses are subjective based on which 'side' you're on. If Weeks DQd Ward at the end of that 8th for low blows, you would be the one making excuses and there would be some idiotic Kovalev fan gloating. But the facts do not change. As to the answer to your question: I've demonstrated that I was not a Kovalev fan and thought he was overrated. Having said that, yes, he's still a bad man and a good boxer. After affects of a few low blows aren't going to change my mind. Ward proved himself to be better that night, and Kovalev failed to make any adjustments.

Can you imagine what Mike Tyson would have done had somebody hit him with a low blow? Immediate retaliation. He would never back down from a dog fight. What would he have done? Has he got balls of steel or something? He would need recovery time like anybody else.

Kovalev has gotten up from knockdowns or overcome stunned moments to later stop his opponents. He already proved his heart long ago and against Ward 2 it was a case of body breaking down from illegal tactics.

Kovalev is a great distance fighter. But he was always limited. Unlike ggg, kovalev dosen't know how to throw short compact body punches and uppercuts.

Eh? Didn't have Ward beating him but it didn't exactly change what I thought of him as a fighter. Too about himself in terms of character. And even since the pascal fights when I heard JDJ giving him pointers on throwing a left hook in the first fight, he didn't listen. It's no surprise why the second going ended earlier when he threw uppercuts and mixed his attack variation. Basically he's too nourished in soviet school as postol seemingly. So I had him losing the second fight with ward before he lost. Character is absolutely critical. You either have what it takes to adapt in order to be number 1 and that includes shedding your own ego and perspective of the realities you're in. Or in his case you can be devoid of realities that you're not absolutely at the pinnacle of ideas and winning. Alone. Nobody is one man island.

Yes I think all of Kovalev's pre fight posturing didn't equate to his performance in the ring. He was fouled and it was an early stoppage but he didn't know how to deal with Ward. If he had the stamina he would have at least retaliated for getting hit low.

Yeah I realised that Kova is a front runner I still think he's an elite fighter Kov still beats GGG

What did you think of the low blows? https://media.giphy.com/media/UBcUmVyfc8dxK/giphy.gif "What do you mean?"

That's exactly what I'm asking. Kovalev seemed like a guy that would stab you for fouling him :lol1: He's the last guy I would expect to turn the other cheek. Total agreement here. I was shocked to see him turn into this submissive softy.

The rough/illegal stuff never bothers me that much unless it's a guy like Khan to uses it to excess. But, turning his back and (the big one for me) trying to get help from the ref really soured my view of him.

even larry voted for kovalev :lol1: that thread was from 2015. yeah i guess kovalev should have gotten dirty too, eye for an eye instead of turning the other cheek That's exactly what I'm asking. Kovalev seemed like a guy that would stab you for fouling him :lol1: He's the last guy I would expect to turn the other cheek.

Yes, a lot. The fighter considered by many to be a killer turned out to be a kitten in the end.