Kovalev needs to fix his clinch game

[Sweet Scions]

He said it before the Yarde fight when talking with Bradley and the other guy at the table...

Are you sure it was only then? I could have sworn he touched on it during the actual fight. Maybe it came up more than once.

[Vlad_]

Are you sure it was only then? I could have sworn he touched on it during the actual fight. Maybe it came up more than once.

It was during the event but right before the main event, when he and Bradley were discussing the fight and possible outcomes.

[Scopedog]

He doesn't respond well to duress or close pressure in general. He hates inside fighting and whenever he's hurt his hands drop way too low. It's definitely his big weakness. That's why I think the move to fighting more from the outside and focusing heavily on long jabs was a good move because it means those weaknesses are less likely to be exposed and exploited. The opponents have a tricky time getting inside because his long punches are fast and accurate, but still pretty damn hard even though Kovalev doesn't really sit on them as much - he's just that much of a hard hitter. That said, I don't think those weaknesses are going to go away at this point and are there to be exploited by anybody who can figure out a way into close-mid range. Yarde even managed it at points in the most recent fight.

[Sweet Scions]

Another thing I wonder about Kov - correct me if I'm wrong but I believe he's never actually succumbed to body work? If so wouldn't we need to at least contend with the possibility he just has an exceptionally bad poker face and simply can't conceal his discomfort when hit to the body worth a damn--thus spurring an observant opponent to pursue that more--vs being actually particularly vulnerable there? Just a thought

[MDPopescu]

................................ This:

This is what Anthony Yarde and Sergey Kovalev's trainers said to them during and in between rounds... 👀

"Body! Body! Body!"

"Go under the jab!" 👊

"Listen, if you take more shots like that I'm stopping it - you understand me?!"

This is #CornerCam for #KovalevYarde 🔥 pic.twitter.com/HDk9l9US6j

— Boxing on BT Sport 🥊 (@BTSportBoxing) August 27, 2019

[Weebler I]

Another thing I wonder about Kov - correct me if I'm wrong but I believe he's never actually succumbed to body work? If so wouldn't we need to at least contend with the possibility he just has an exceptionally bad poker face and simply can't conceal his discomfort when hit to the body worth a damn--thus spurring an observant opponent to pursue that more--vs being actually particularly vulnerable there? Just a thought

Depends whether you think Ward's last three punches were (a) body shots (b) enough for the fight to have been called off.

Personally I think they were low-blows, not just because they were visibly below the belt line but because in other fights he has never looked close to voluntarily going down as he did then despite being more hurt, and he has always got back up after being put down.

[Sweet Scions]

Depends whether you think Ward's last three punches were (a) body shots (b) enough for the fight to have been called off.

Personally I think they were low-blows, not just because they were visibly below the belt line but because in other fights he has never looked close to voluntarily going down as he did then despite being more hurt, and he has always got back up after being put down.

I absolutely also see them as low. To me it seems glaringly obvious and hard to argue against. Front and center, no tricky camera angles, etc

[YoungManRumble]

................................ This:

This is what Anthony Yarde and Sergey Kovalev's trainers said to them during and in between rounds... 👀

"Body! Body! Body!"

"Go under the jab!" 👊

"Listen, if you take more shots like that I'm stopping it - you understand me?!"

This is #CornerCam for #KovalevYarde 🔥 pic.twitter.com/HDk9l9US6j

— Boxing on BT Sport 🥊 (@BTSportBoxing) August 27, 2019

Lol Tunde trying to gas him up at the end, but Yarde is having none of it. "Let me be upset, let me critisize myself, that's how you get better"

Kovalev literally beat some sense into him.

[Sweet Scions]

...Actually I'm going to correct myself; was thinking of the ones in plain view that make him initially double over at approx 1:52, but honestly the final ones also look low to me despite the trickier coverage there.

[Vlad_]

...Actually I'm going to correct myself; was thinking of the ones in plain view that make him initially double over at approx 1:52, but honestly the final ones also look low to me despite the trickier coverage there.

They were all low, despite Kellerman trying to blabber on his BS borderline narrative...