andre ward- does inactivity/weak opposition matter?

[Madison Boxing]

Im just gone be real and post a serious post...WHY THE **** DO KNOWN GGG FANS KEEP QUESTIONING WARD??? why are ya'll so focused on him in a negative way? You can not down his resume or recent comp and praise GGG at all period..GGG is fighting ****ing Brook next after he just faced Dominic ****ing Wade....Call a spade a spade damit!!!

Stop blaming everyone else for this **** drama show he is giving ya'll and accepting it. It is smoke and mirrors people, now if Ward does not fight Kovalev, **** ON HIM ALL YOU WANT AND I WILL JOIN IT!!!!!!...But stop slamming fighters who dare to be great and praise others who only talk about it damn!!!

hes done more than ward has in the last 5 years. And yeah his opposition hasnt been amazing unfortunately, but hes been lining them up and knocking them out. The only people in the arena that wards been sending to sleep are the fans.

[Madison Boxing]

It has to matter. He hasn't faced a top opponent in years. It's almost like he's rebuilding his career to an extent.

His last fight was a complete waste as far as getting acclimated to the weight which would be my biggest concern. Had he fought a legit LHW in size at the very least, I would be more comfortable picking him to win. The Skills are there he's not going to forget how to fight, but not facin anyone near elite will definitely be a cause for concer against Kovalev as far as adapting to his size, power, and most importantly timing.

yeah i agree, its not as if these four tune ups have been gradually increased in difficulty, arguably brand is the worst out of the lot, an old super middleweight

[Larry the boss]

hes done more than ward has in the last 5 years. And yeah his opposition hasnt been amazing unfortunately, but hes been lining them up and knocking them out. The only people in the arena that wards been sending to sleep are the fans.

more hating for no damn reason

[mlac]

[IMG]//media.*****.com/media/5YF9dwGZ29rVe/*****.gif[/IMG]

He is a total loon, i love it

[Kigali]

We will really get to see if he fights Sergey. Ward is at a level that it doesn't become an issue to him fighting B level guys.

Check Kovalev's resume...B level would be a compliment.

[Kigali]

It has to matter. He hasn't faced a top opponent in years. It's almost like he's rebuilding his career to an extent.

His last fight was a complete waste as far as getting acclimated to the weight which would be my biggest concern. Had he fought a legit LHW in size at the very least, I would be more comfortable picking him to win. The Skills are there he's not going to forget how to fight, but not facin anyone near elite will definitely be a cause for concer against Kovalev as far as adapting to his size, power, and most importantly timing.

You must be drunk or kidding.

Look at Kovalev..

He doesn't have anything close to elite on his resume...and that includes 50 y/o B-Pops.

I'd rather have Ward's resume than Kovalev's.

[Dinamita 03]

You must be drunk or kidding.

Look at Kovalev..

He doesn't have anything close to elite on his resume...and that includes 50 y/o B-Pops.

I'd rather have Ward's resume than Kovalev's.

Pay attention to the topic at hand, we're discussing the opposition faced in the last few years. Kovalev's opposition is head and shoulders above Wards in the past few years, emphasis on the the bold as that is the topic being discussed. Kovalev hasn't faced anyone truly elite as Ward, but debating who has faced better opposition recently implies you're more ****ed up than me. Facing legit LHW unlike Ward will also be a factor in terms of power as well.

[soul_survivor]

can top fighters go years without fighting anyone who can fight back (e.g andre ward), yet raise their game when it matters against a top fighter like kovalev? Or does five years of fighting noone with a pulse reduce a fighters skill levels that significantly? i.e is ward going to be the same ward who was fighting world level opponents in the super six? Please discuss...

I think it normally would but in the case of Ward, he is an absolute gym rat so I don't think there is any physical deterioration there. Add to that the fact that his style requires the bare minimum exertion and that he is relatively young in terms of pro fights, he'll be fine.

Favourable modern judging is also in his favour and what I mean by that is that judges often score fights like robots now.

[AB3]

I think although ward hasn't looked great at this weight against much lesser competition you can't say thats how he will be with Kovalev. if there is 1 Fact of boxing its that Truly Great Champions Elevate their skill level when they are facing better opponents. The clutch ability is a gene all greats have so we will see if Ward has it on fight night bc he will for sure need it for Kov

[Chrismart]

It's hard to say. You would think him being inactive, then partaking in what were 'warm ups', could catch up with him as he steps up a level against a very good guy. A guy who has been putting in some of his best work recently.

I think Ward will come in and look sharp on fight night though.