Kovalevs jab to the body will be a key to beat Ward

[IronDanHamza]

don't you just love how kovalev has been reduced to that as the fight gets closer? think about it and read some of the responses or some of the threads. ward is the only one of the two that boxes, that has fundamentals, the other is just there to stand and take the punches. he has never shown any real boxing ability nor skills.

oh and if you mention the hopkins fight.... buh buh but bernard was 78 years old

I don't see anyone saying that.

Whilst Kovalev definitely has underrated skills and boxing ability surely we can all agree that Andre Ward is superior in those catergories?

[Reloaded]

I would not be surprised at all if Ward gave a Floyd Canelo type win .

I would not be surprised in the least if Kov landed the bomb and it was all over .

Its a great fight and I expect a nip and tuck battle but the above could happen .

Why do some of you guys bag either guy , its a great fight between 2 elite fighters on their game that also happen to be two of the most genuine no bs fighters in the game .
We dont get fights like this all to often I dont know why fans of both dont just enjoy the ride ,,, way to much fanboy hate in this forum .

[Kagami Taiga]

don't you just love how kovalev has been reduced to that as the fight gets closer? think about it and read some of the responses or some of the threads. ward is the only one of the two that boxes, that has fundamentals, the other is just there to stand and take the punches. he has never shown any real boxing ability nor skills.

oh and if you mention the hopkins fight.... buh buh but bernard was 78 years old

I actually see more people underrating Ward than Kov. Very few people are talking down Kovalev even among the Andre Ward fans. It's a great fight and yes Kov is a very capable boxer. Difference is, there might not be any boxer in the world more skilled than Andre Ward right now.

[BoxingFan85]

Chilemba took that punch away from him.... and used it against him.

Chilemba avoided right hand not jabs man..

[BoxingFan85]

Ward has to fight in angles than be in front of the jab or right hand.. Basically staying to his right more often and coming in with his typical body shot only this time it's coming from the sideways more like how Loma does..



Although Kovalev might adjust it in the middle rounds and probably mix it up with faint rights and left uppercuts which Kovalev rarely does..

[Redd Foxx]

I actually see more people underrating Ward than Kov. Very few people are talking down Kovalev even among the Andre Ward fans. It's a great fight and yes Kov is a very capable boxer. Difference is, there might not be any boxer in the world more skilled than Andre Ward right now.

^This has a lot of truth to it. No one rooting for Kovalev seems to want to admit it, but his resume has left him less prepared for Ward than vice versa. I don't know how people equate a 50 year old Hopkins to Andre but it's just not a relevant comparison. Nothing Ward has done in his last 6 fights resembles the Hopkins we've seen in the last 10 years.

Not to say that Ward has faced anyone with that same unique combo of power+hand speed we see in Kovalev. But, he's been better prepared through the fighters he's faced.

You're right in that Kovalev is getting talked up a lot more than Ward. Even in the media, the consensus seems to be "Kovalev smashes everyone, Andre will have to bring something really special". Whereas I see it being, "Andre is extremely hard to hit cleanly without getting countered, Kovalev had better cook up a clever game plan".

[xhiddenx87]

Both have a good jab to the body, but ward makes a good movement with it...so its hard to counter..not impossible, but you should really train for that, the problwm with that is the feints...you are going to eat feints all night.

But remember the power in kovalev's jab could make a difference...but skill wise Ward has a really good edge.

The thing is, that ward will try to jab to the body very carefully, because of Kov right hand. Thats the plan all night...stay aways from the right hand and try to feint and rush kova.

[Kigali]

Ward is capable of doing the same but we can't ignore the fact that Chilemba still took some punishment for his efforts. Ward has the talent and knowledge to neutralize Kov's offense, I just don't if he can do it for the entire fight!

I have the fight 50/50 at this point. Can't wait to see how each performs for the first few rounds, that usually tells me all I need to know.

Kovalev doesn't have the gas tank to make this a 50 50 fight.

[spenz]

A lot of questions:

Is ward even skilled enough to make the difference in the fight? Kovalev is seen more as a typical brawler because of his menacing punching power, but it is totally misleading, kovalev is a skilled boxer himself. This is not your typical brawler pitted against pure boxer.

Is kovalev strong enough to prevent andre ward from his usual clinching tactics? Would he even allow it if he does have the strength?

We know that ward is a faster than kova, but, is he really much faster than kovalev to make a difference in the fight?

Ward is marketed as the smarter one, will that show against kovalev who is deceptively smart too?

If ward is hit by one of those bombs, is his chin sturdy and body sturdy enough to handle the blows?

There are a lot of questions in my mind which makes this fight quite interesting. So I pray to the boxing gods that no training injuries or other mishaps will happen en-route to the actual fight.

[Kigali]

A lot of questions:

Is ward even skilled enough to make the difference in the fight? Kovalev is seen more as a typical brawler because of his menacing punching power, but it is totally misleading, kovalev is a skilled boxer himself. This is not your typical brawler pitted against pure boxer.

Is kovalev strong enough to prevent andre ward from his usual clinching tactics? Would he even allow it if he does have the strength?

We know that ward is a faster than kova, but, is he really much faster than kovalev to make a difference in the fight?

Ward is marketed as the smarter one, will that show against kovalev who is deceptively smart too?

If ward is hit by one of those bombs, is his chin sturdy and body sturdy enough to handle the blows?

There are a lot of questions in my mind which makes this fight quite interesting. So I pray to the boxing gods that no training injuries or other mishaps will happen en-route to the actual fight.

Kovalev is not the master boxer you're pretending he is...not by a long shot.

Take away his power....does he still win?

Nope..

Power won't be a factor in the Ward fight...defense and stamina will.

Kovalev is getting his ass kicked badly.