Ward fights very similar to Cotto...what Cotto should be.

[..David..]

say whaat? cotto doesnt even know how to clinch, ward its an expert ( not that its a bad thing its just boring )

and cotto does have power

[Freddy Krueger]

Ward ****** in that fight. He held on against C class opponent. He is doing an diservice to boxing by clinching as much. I think Kessler got this one btw

Yeah, it was a boring ass fight. Usually if you have a good ref, they will deduct points and DQ if it gets out of hand... Ashame boxing doesn't have good refs. The last time I saw a boxer get DQ'd for clinching was a Marquez fight.

[jazluvr]

Ward ****** in that fight. He held on against C class opponent. He is doing an diservice to boxing by clinching as much. I think Kessler got this one btw

I agree to a point with you...He cliched a little too much, but he also kicked ass! He won in obvious fashion. No doubts...wasn't even that close. It was the 1st time i saw him fight, so he might have done much better in other fights, right? thank you for helping me make my point!

He IS undefeated, isn't he?

[Degsy]

Thats boxing, Ward clinched for a reason and he didnt do it excessively, when you have to resort to name calling it shows a lack of knowledge.

Knowing when to clinch is a great tool in the armoury of the boxer, Ali used the clinch extremely well, but normally at the end of a ten punch combination!

Bernard uses it, perhaps too well, but I do enjoy technicians fight, its the same with sports like rugby - where the scrum and the maul are considered boring by some people, but to those who know how difficult they are they have their own beauty.

Ward uses the clinch too much and at this point of his career makes mistakes that someone like Bernard doesn't, I think he could find himself at the end of a few nasty uppercuts if he doesn't get it right. If Ward does loose, which on balance I think he will, it is not the end of the world, he is 24 and has a minimun of 6 years or so to continue improving.

[Bhopreign]

That is one thing Cotto has to learn to do , clinch, instead of backpeddling. That's one of his biggest flaws. It puts him in the mindset of retreat. Nothing wrong with clinching to avoid getting hit with a bomb, or if you sense you might be in trouble if you don't.

Cotto hates clinching, and has choosen to back-up instead to "take a breather"...bad move. Cotto like to be the agressor, the stalker, he needs to set his own pace and keep it during the fight, and fight HIS fight. Clinching is fine, but I agree, Freddie, too much can make for a boring fight.

He just needs to learn an alternative to backpeddling. He's always best coming forward, stalking. I don't think we will ever see a boring Cotto fight, no matter how he modifies his sytle, if the stubborn bastard has the brains to do. A complete overhaul and a good rest are in very much needed.

Clinching is an artform in itself, no matter how someone thinks Riuz is boring his list of wins is impressive. Clinching offsets an opponent's rhythm and keeps them off balanced, sometimes they dont know if you will clinch or hit them, it makes you unpredictable. Paul Williams offset Margarito beautifully by clinching, its a way of doing everything you want in the ring and giving the opponent nothing, thats boxing. I will say if its excessive it can be boring to watch, but smart fighters should think about the win first and pleasing the crowd second if at all.

[JohnCIV6]

The ward/miranda fight wasn't boring at all.. Your an idot if you think so. Go watch the UFC flamer.

[Bhopreign]

I agree to a point with you...He cliched a little too much, but he also kicked ass! He won in obvious fashion. No doubts...wasn't even that close. It was the 1st time i saw him fight, so he might have done much better in other fights, right? thank you for helping me make my point!

He IS undefeated, isn't he?

Undefeated yes, and I bet no poster on this board can name another fight where they saw Ward clinch, like I said its a strategy, they talk like he does it all the time, name me one other fight that he clinched, they cant.

[jazluvr]

say whaat? cotto doesnt even know how to clinch, ward its an expert ( not that its a bad thing its just boring )

and cotto does have power

My point is once Cotto starts backing up, he's losing confidence. That's why i say he needs to learn an alternative for "taking a breather", or getting out of a danger zone fast...thus he needs to humble himself and learn to clinch when he starts to feel overwhelmend.

Backing up means disaster for Cotto.

Ali Cliched a lot. So did Fazier. So did Foreman.

[Degsy]

Undefeated yes, and I bet no poster on this board can name another fight where they saw Ward clinch, like I said its a strategy, they talk like he does it all the time, name me one other fight that he clinched, they cant.

The Cantrell fight - he used his arm brilliantly to tie up Cantrell's left (when he wasn't beating the **** out of him!!) it reminded me of how Calzaghe neutrilised Lacys left (again when he wasn't beating the **** out of him!!

[King Jaffe Joffer]

LOL, Cotto isnt in the same league as Ward as far as boxing skills.. Cottos defense is terrible and has terrible reflexes