Heart says I want Kov to render Andre's annoying ass unconscious for several minutes. Head says Kov blew his opportunity in the first fight. Even STILL, he deserved the win. Ward by clear decision this time.... hope to Hell I'm wrong. Unless Trump is at ringside... in which case the Russians might influence the judging.
I think it would be funny if Ward wins all 12 rounds convincingly, but the decision is given to Kovalev and then the camera shows Trump and Putin doing high fives at ringside.
Joke aside, that kind of shit happens. If they want a trilogy for example. Shit is corrupt. Could very well happen. Ward could even get another gift.
I think Ward's legacy might be enhanced with a loss now and a win in the rubber match. Fighting the Super 6 and Kovalev twice already shits on Floyd and Roy's legacies during their primes.
I don't see it happening with these particular two unless it's in the contract. If Kovalev wins people will be glad he got rid of Ward so they won't be interested in seeing it for a third time. If Ward wins again there's no reason for Kov to get a third try or for the public to want it.
Ward has impressive accomplishments: Miranda, Kessler, Abraham, Dawson, Green, Froch and now Kovalev. He's beaten the who's who of his era and weight class. Problem is though most of teh guys he beat were already beaten up by other guys. Mayweather has still beaten far more former/current/future champions AND/OR undefeated fighters than Ward (or anyone else) has.
Kovalev and Froch are Ward's best opponents. Dawson was weight drained, though Ward would have beaten him anyway. Ward has a good resume but it has holes in it too.
Ward's horrible to watch, has personality of a pen, and this annoying arrogance. Who TF would I like him?
Kessler, Froch, and Kovalev "shit" on Toney, Hopkins, Johnson, Hill, Corrales, Castillo, Chavez, Cotto, Hatton, Canelo, etc?
In the first fight I picked Ward, this time I lean towards Kovalev. Picking Ward makes sense, as he was able to finish stronger last time. However, there are three points that make me pick Kovalev 1) Ward has the rare ability to change tactics in the middle of a fight which can't be overlooked. However, Kovalev seems to develop very well between them. In second fight he destroyed Boone, who caused him some trouble early. The first fight with Pascal was somewhat competitive, the second was a blowout. And he was much better against Ward than against Chilemba in the previous fight. Maybe he is good in picking up stuff from fights, maybe Jackson is a good trainer or perhaps, as I believe, it has something to do with his lack of experience. Despite the amount of fights he has had, he hasn't had that many long fights as his power has always ended them quickly. Be as it may, Kovalev seems to be still improving 2) I don't see Ward being able to improve much from the first fight. Kovalev knows exactly what to do different this time (trying to cope with Ward's holding, probably going to the body more, improving stamina for later rounds). At this stage of his career, I don't believe Ward finds a new level 3) Judges tend to over compensate in the rematch in favor of the fighter who got the short end the first time. The audience will probably support Kovalev too, which does affect judges. Kovalev by commanding decision
Yeah now that you mention it, we gotta throw Kessler in there. Even though he was already beaten previously by Calzaghe, I remember ALOT of people thought Kessler was gonna beat Ward. The way he dominated that fight was impressive even though I never cared for Ward's style. But the Froch win was probably more significant due to it being for all the marbles in the super 6.
No, they don't. I think the opponents listed are comparable. I was thinking more of Ward having no gaps in his resume of guys he should have fought. Floyd and Roy have major gaps.
Not sure about how they were ranked at the exact time of the fight but it appears looking at this list Chavez-Whitaker and Jones-Toney could have been #1 and #2. The Ring Magazine's Annual Ratings: Pound For Pound--1990s - BoxRec Mayweather-Pacquiao would seem an obvious one as they were 1 and 2 for years but i don't think Manny was #2 by the time it finally took place.
I'm pretty sure that in 1993 the p4p leader was still Pernell Whitaker with Toney being #2. The win catapulted Jones to Pernell's prime contender. Chavez vs Whitaker is a good shout, that might be the one
I think you're correct regarding JT. Makes me wonder where Leonard/Hearns/Duran and Sanchez vs Gomez were ranked at the time of their showdowns.
I'm not quite sure about The Ring but I had Leonard at #2 and Duran #73 before their first fight, then Leonard #3 and Duran #74 before the rematch
Fuck Mayweather vs McGregor...I'm HYPED for this one! Did y'all see the final presser. this is going to be an ATG fight.