Originally posted by harwri008
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BoxingScene.com: It looked like against Ismayl Sillakh, Kovalev was indeed very angered. At least, all these gestures during the fight and after the knockout…
- No, I shall not defend Sergey here but… I’ll tell you the story how I see it and, well, how it was. We asked for the Sillakh fight a couple of years ago, when both fighters were rising prospects. Sillakh’s promoter offered us a contract but it wasn’t that good for us. For example, if Sergey had been successful, that promoter would have options on his four next fights. Not that good. We’ve turned that offer down. They moved on with the [Denis] Grachev fight. And in one of the interviews, the Ukrainian, despite knowing Sergey well from his amateur days, while being asked about Kovalev, turned to the camera and answered very ignorantly: “Who is Kovalev?”
That was in the past, long in the past. Now in Canada, during a presser, Sergey said that Sillakh was a dangerous opponent, a good fighter with skills and a punch to go with. And Sillakh said the same, acknowledging the champion. That would have been it but…when Sergey came back to his apartments, he saw what Sillakh wrote in his twitter or blog, saying that he would end Kovalev’s career, that he would sweep the canvas with Kovalev’s body etc. Now it got personal.
And after that, during a face-off after the weigh-in, Kovalev asked him about it. Sillakh told him to shut up and to observe the flashes after his punches. Can I blame Sergey for being very personal with Ismayl? Surely, I cannot.
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