Andre Ward is one UGLY fighter to watch

I picked Ward to win this tournament easily and he is up to the task.

 

He won't, but like I said, he also won't become a superstar.

Hopkins and Calzaghe were champions for fucking years, they don't get anywhere near as much recognition as they deserve.

Who's a better fighter out of Arturo Gatti and Ricardo Lopez? And yet who had more money and fame?

Boxing is full of such examples.

It's as much a business and entertainment industry as it is a sport.

 

And it's as much a sport as it is a business. Which is why I typed the sentence making that distinction in the first place. Entire point. End discussion please.

 

Like I said to REED, nobody is denying he's a good fighter.

I've been saying he's legit since the Kessler fight. It's obvious, you'd be a fool not to see that.

However, that's not particularly relevant to the fact that he is an incredibly ugly fighter to watch.

I don't mind a bit of dirtiness, but Ward just leans FAR too much that way, without some of the compelling craft that a guy like Hopkins' possesses to offset and compensate for the ugliness.

 

John Ruiz was also roundly criticized for his fighting "style" and forced to go on the road to Germany and the United Kingdom to make money towards the end of his career.

He was also matched hard from the opening of his professional tenure and was never courted by the press or media.

Of course times have changed, Ward is a big American catfish in muddy international waters and must be protected at all times, despite fighting in a style which is eerily reminiscent of the hit'n'hold specialists of recent years.

 

yep, Froch is probably the most proven, most underrated fighter in the sport right now.

 

Even if you do want to look at it from a pure sporting perspetive, Ward's ugliness is still very much relevant seeing as he breaks the rules constantly, and relies heavily on hometown favouritism.

He's not exactly a prime ambassador for the Marquess of Queensberry rules, if we want to look it at from a pure sporting perspective.

 

And has 2 fights on the road compared to Wards, eh...ZERO.

Froch has had 3 fights against 3 of the original Super 6 fighters.

Ward has 1.

VIVA WARD!!!

 

He is. The Arabham fight is supreme proof of that. Frock was the underdog. Most people picked Arabham.

Frock schools him, arguably wins 12 rounds, and still isn't getting as much credit as he should.

Since the Pascal fight Frock has fought one world class fighter after another, and fought on even terms with them at worst.

I know he can look like a sloppy bum sometimes, but he is proven and legit, and I would not be surprised if he beats Ward.

 

Boxing needs a superstar and Ward wins. And has Showtime backing him. And HBO will want him now. And he's American. And he's a gold medal winner. And he's not afraid to fight the best. And he comes across as a very classy guy outside of the ring. I could actually see him on a Pepsi commercial before too long. How often does that happen for boxers?

That his style isn't the most tv friendly isn't as important as it otherwise would be with the above things going for Ward.

 

Like I said, a big ole catfish in smelly murky international waters.

 

I like how Ward fights. He does what he has to do to win. I'll Holla 5000

 

Same here, I like his will to win. Its not like he's faced, or will face, fringe or blown-up guys like Berto does. I don't enjoy watching him fight but I expect him to win the tournament. Its just too bad IMO we didnt see the Dirrell fight, that would have been something different for him in the context of this tournament

 

What? Cheat? Besides....is he ready to die like Biggie?:boohoo:

 

:laughing::laughing:

 

BIGfuckingDEAL???:dunno:...

It's a Couple Guys from ONE Network Saying it...Back when Ward 1st Turned Pro, REED Referred to him as a "Rent-a-Roy" as Well...Ward (& Dirrell Too) Bent Over BACKWARDS Trying to Fight like his Idol, Roy Jones, to the Point that he Came Off as a BAD Caricature...

But as he Matured, Ward has Developed More of HIS OWN Style & There's Elements of Roy AND Bernard in Ward's Overall Style...But as Ward Fights More & MORE, Fans will See Less & LESS of Roy Jones in Him...& the Commentators will Make the Comparison Less & LESS...

The Leonard Reference is Probably Based More on the Olympic Gold Medal & "Boy Next Door" OUT of the Ring Persona...Either Way, SURELY YOU'VE Watched Enough Boxing to DISregard a Couple of UNFOUNDED Comments...U EASILY Get Bent Out of Shape about the SLIGHTEST Shit, Dude...



REED:hammert:

 

Nah.....I just don't like walking into restaurants and ordering prime rib and being served bully beef for twice-the-price.

He's a fine in-fighter, with no regard for the rules. And I'd prefer if I didn't have to sit in front of a PC at 5Am Irish time watching an illegal stream being told otherwise.

athetic:

 

U Know Good & Well there was MORE than Just ONE Performance @ the Root of Wlad's Dismissal from HBO...It was the FACT that he was Safety First to a FAULT...A Big, Powerful Man w/the Capacity to KNOCK Heads from Shoulders...Yet he Almost PASSIVELY Elected to JAB his Way to Victory...

The Ibragimov Fight is what BROKE the Camel's Back...

"Ray Leonard"...Seriously????...AGAIN???...U Nitpick, Nag & Cling to the Most TRIVIAL of Elements, Much like a FEMALE Would...



REED:boohoo:

 

I fear Andre is not ready to die like Biggie, just yet.

 

Not Sure about You, but when REED Watches Streams, he has the Ability to TURN DOWN the Volume on them...If U're THAT Put Off by What U HEAR, Turn the Shit DOWN...



REED:shit:

 

Hold on now....he starched Brock with a 1-2 and left him there. You can't just take the rough and hold it up as the proof in the absence of the smooth.

They thought nothing of going to Germany to televise his stoppage of Rahman which came AFTER the Ibragimov fight, so I find it hard to believe that the Ibragimov fight broke any backs. If it had, they wouldn't have been in Germany. Oh, silly me....Rahman, an American. :doh:

And, the stoppages of Chambers and Chagaev should have invited a reprieve. Instead, they passed on the Peters fight which, let's face it, was pretty decent fare and had a very conclusive ending.

The bottom line is that if Andre Ward was from Canada he wouldn't be getting the praise he does.

 

You are being argumentative.

It's not that I heard them say it!!

It's that they actually believe it and want you/me/us to believe it too.:blackcloud:

It's.....garbage.

Ward is breaking every rule which the American networks have ever held against non-American fighters refusal to fight outside Europe/Home Town{...fuck it..Ward won't even leave Oakland, much less California much less America} , stinky grappling style, poor or sub-standard choice of opponent.

They were actually praising the guy, fucking praising him for doing the bare minimum of taking a fight after their other Darling, Dirrell, bummed off sick. And even at that, this "fight he didn't have to take" {oh the sacrifice, the passion!! Oh!!!} was against none other than Shittio Bika who has lost to just about every decent fighter he ever faced, he even lost to fucking Beyer. :doh:

 

Even Against Brock, there was a CLEAR Sense that Wlad Could've Ended it Sooooooner than he Did...Bottom Line, there was a COMBINATION of Things that Led to Wlad's Dismissal from HBO & the BACKLASH he Got from the Ibragimov Fight was @ the TOP of the List...

If Andre Ward was a Canadian that won GOLD @ the 2004 Olympics, had a "Wholesome" Image, was Well Spoken, UNDEFEATED & On his Way to WINNING the High Profile 'Super 6' Tourney, YES, he'd STILL Get the Praise that he Does....

Your LAME, American CONSIPIRACY Theories have a DEGREE Of Validity in the Heavyweight Division...Not So Much in Lower Weights Though....


REED:boohoo:

 

Rahman was a late replacement for Povetkin.

 

REED is Being "Argumentative"???:laugh11:...

No, YOU'RE Being Overly SENSITIVE & PARNOID...Tarver & Bernstein WEREN'T Praising Ward as Much as the Other Announcer (Can't Recall his Name) was...But the Guy is Still Fairly NEW to Boxing Commentary & he CLEARLY has a Hard-On for Andre Ward...

His Comments Certainly DON'T Affect REED's Opinion of Ward, 1 Way or the Other...



REED:mj:

 

Perhaps, perhaps.

So HBO had agreed to broadcast Klitschko vs Povetkin after Wlad had upset them with the Ibragimov fight??

That dog don't hunt.

And then, even at that, his signing to fight Haye, flooring, cutting and stopping Chagaev when he came in, and stopping Chambers should have set up Peters vs Wlad II in America- based off their very exciting first fight in Atlantic City, perfect as the first fight had also been broadcast by HBO.

But no...HBO turned their nose up at that too.

 

Xplosive is right. Wards style is ugly as hell.

Ward might have 100000x more talent than fighters like Katsidis and Litzau but ill watch Litzau and Katsidis fight before i watch a highlight reel of Ward.

 

Klitschko had two fights on HBO after Ibragimov...Thompson and Rahman.

But don't take this as me wanting to engage you in a Klitschko-related discussion. ::

The whole HBO/Klitschko thing was discussed at the time, why it needs to be done in an Andre Ward thread I have no idea.

 

Here is the rub....I don't like watching guys who stop EVERY shot with their faces...if Ward only dumped some of the dirty stuff, got the fuck out of Oakland for once, and stopped somebody with clean effective punching, then it would be a damned improvement.

For me, right now, Wards attitude is, "this is working, nobody is making me leave Oakland...so fuck it, wash rinse repeat"

For me, that's not good enough.....Froch has already beaten Pascal, Taylor, Abraham and Dirrell, and two of those fights were on the road, one in America, and one on neutral territory.

Yet Ward has 6 points from 2 fights and no stoppages and leads the tournament and we are told by the Showtime crew {Tarver} that Ward is vital to matters concerning Super 6.

In my opinion, Ward is vital to Super 6 in one very narrow regard: nobody wants to see a Froch vs Abraham final.

 

I injected it to show how certain fighters get no network attention despite having produced more fan-friendly fare as of late. No other reason.