Comments Thread For: Daily Bread Mailbag: Mayweather-Castillo, Kovalev-Ward

[daggum]

Well, I haven't seen Kovalev-Boone 1 but I read it was more like a flash knockdown whereas Ward was out on his feet. Kovalev seems to have a decent chin, seeing as he was taking some good shots from Pascal.

Ward's the one who's moving up to 175 where there will be bigger, stronger guys and he's already in his 30's so who knows how he'll do at that weight, could be dangerous for him.

ward got dropped a couple times in the olympics in one of his "wins" in one of the knockdowns ward even got a point and his opponent got nothing. how weird! also he got hurt by paul smith. its clear his chin is not very good. probably why he has to hold nonstop and ducked big punchers like bute and stevenson.

[PowerFlow]

Thats exactly who I was thinking of. Taking fights on short notice, debatable decisions, just having an unstable life/personal situation I think...... just not being regarded as a top fighter can make it tougher.

That also puts a better perspective on the records of some of the older fighters who fought back in the day..... where not only did all that still apply, but life was just tougher in general.

Undefeated records dont mean much really, but in Mayweather case it really is remarkable how he managed to stay undefeated considering his resume.

He is the ultimate professional, but you would have to think there was a bit of luck in there as well..... injuries/Castillo/Judah/etc.

So true about fighters of the past.

And I agree, there's always a little bit of luck in all successes. The stars align, etc. If just a few things would have been different, Mayweather would not have his perfect record. Having said that, the dude earned it. How many fighters take their craft and training as serious as him for as long as he did. Pretty amazing.

[aboutfkntime]

As I said I know more about boxing than you will ever know , sometimes I am having a conversation with other people on here and then you write into it saying ****** things with all kinds of garbage , as for the bet your so big on canelo and ward so instead of all the internet posturing lets puts some money on it , I told you I'll have golovkin to beat canelo and I'll take kovalev to beat ward it's that simple, this solves everything in regards to these 2 matchups.. I'm not the one who is considered the local idiot on this site you are , your the last person I want to write to me and I don't really want to write back , l certainly am an ignorant **** to people who behave like you and I'll continue doing it as a long as your writing to me so best course of action is you keep away from my posts and I'll keep away from your's it's that easy...as for integrity when it comes to keeping a bet or holding up a deal I know I'll keep sincere ....it's a question you need ask yourself gumbo ....now f@ck off and don't write back

I dont take you seriously, and I dont trust you..... so, no

Golovkin beats Canelo at 160, not sure about 156..... and I suspect Golovkin aint too sure about it either, which is why he won't be a man of his word and give Canelo a reasonable catchweight.

Golovkin won't fight Canelo at 156 because he doesn't think that he can beat him...... which is the exact same reason why he avoided Ward.

Ward beats Kovalev.

[aboutfkntime]

As I said I know more about boxing than you will ever know , sometimes I am having a conversation with other people on here and then you write into it saying ****** things with all kinds of garbage , as for the bet your so big on canelo and ward so instead of all the internet posturing lets puts some money on it , I told you I'll have golovkin to beat canelo and I'll take kovalev to beat ward it's that simple, this solves everything in regards to these 2 matchups.. I'm not the one who is considered the local idiot on this site you are , your the last person I want to write to me and I don't really want to write back , l certainly am an ignorant **** to people who behave like you and I'll continue doing it as a long as your writing to me so best course of action is you keep away from my posts and I'll keep away from your's it's that easy...as for integrity when it comes to keeping a bet or holding up a deal I know I'll keep sincere ....it's a question you need ask yourself gumbo ....now f@ck off and don't write back

And nope, I don't think I will " stay away " from your posts.

If you wanna troll, and behave like a silly casual fan, then you will be treated as such.....

.... come correct son, you saw what happened to hero and kafkod.

[tokon]

Excellent mailbag. Like another poster said, probably the best thing I read on here.

Yes, The Breadman is a good read.

[tokon]

The Kessler fight showed a side of Ward that you didn't get into. That fight had 88 Ward initiated clinches and he had no points deducted for the continuous holding. (I can't post the URL yet but if you want to see clear evidence supporting this point just go to Youtube and search 'Ward Kessler 88 clinches' and you'll find the 'compuclinch' video fast enough)

In some Ward fights the referee will be important.

In a GGG fight, for example, where Ward is the bigger stronger guy, if he is allowed to neutralize GGG by punching then diving in head down and clinching, as he did with Kessler, then it will be a long night for GGG. GGG is good at backing up to maintain distance but it will be tough. If, however, Ward is penalized for excessive such clinches (as he should be) then it becomes a very different fight.

Ward is indeed very very strong. Froch thought he could manhandle Ward but was himself manhandled inside.

In a Kovalev fight Ward won't necessarily have the strength advantage he normally has, but he will want to dive in and clinch to get out of danger. The referee will remain a factor but because Kovalev is himself very strong, this will be somewhat less important. He won't be able to neutralize then wear Kovalev down the same way he does clinching smaller fighters. But even though the ref won't be as important was in the case of GGG it will still be a factor because this clinching tactic is so favored by Ward and is very effective, even though it is against the rules.

Sadly, this rule is very unevenly enforced. If I were managing a fighter like GGG or Kovalev and taking on Ward I would want to be very confident that the selected referee would be one that would enforce this rule fairly. Some clinching is fine, but Ward has taken it to ridiculous extremes when facing a dangerous opponent.

Yes, good analysis of Ward's tactics.

Referee's failing to penalise excessive clinching is hurting boxing too.

[tokon]

if refs actually enforced the rule, Ali would be disqualified in half his fights ,especially vs foreman. Ali was the Wladimir of the 70s. he clinched, headlocked and landed rabbit punches nonstop. but since its a sin to criticize him, everyone ignores how dirty he was.

clinching is just something you have to accept. if refs dont enforce it then ward should not change a damn thing about his game. but there are ways to avoid a clinch, instead of crying boxers need to learn to break free themselves. kovalev does it to perfection, its impossible to clinch him, he puts his arms up and slides right out to continue punishing you. what ward does would probably not work there. but wards boxing IQ is superior he will find a way to win. theres many layers to his game. he dominated abraham with a jab, he mauled green, bika and kessler with inside fighting and destroyed froch from the outside. ward has many tools in his arsenal. him vs kovalev is the biggest fight in boxing.

I don't necessarily agree that "clinching is just something you have to accept".

Not when it's taken to a level that is against the rules.

Then the clincher should have points deducted etc.

[sunny31]

ward got dropped a couple times in the olympics in one of his "wins" in one of the knockdowns ward even got a point and his opponent got nothing. how weird! also he got hurt by paul smith. its clear his chin is not very good. probably why he has to hold nonstop and ducked big punchers like bute and stevenson.

Yes because Froch, Kessler, Abraham, Green, Miranda, all powder puffs. At least be consistent. I think his chin is proven, plus its very difficult to actually hit him on it, especially when he's at the top of his game. At the end of the day if Kovalev finds anyone clean they are going to be struggling, I don't think that is what decides this fight personally. He does hold too much sometimes and it does effect the aesthetics of a fight, but its not why he has won any of his fights, when that is a big deciding factor in a fight then I think you can complain.