Kovalev vs Chilemba on Monday

Chilemba is ranked #7 by The Ring and he is the type of spoiler that most fighters and especially punchers tend to avoid. He drew&lost to Bellend because of his passiveness but he has never lost easily and never been knocked out.

Kovalev should win clearly, but it will be interesting to see if he can get rid of Chilemba inside the distance. Not the easiest warm-up fight but it could prepare him for Ward

 

He was flat out robbed in the first fight with bellend. Bellend got an absolute gift IMO in that one. Kovalev should be too good for him but I'd agree that an early stoppage would be very impressive.

MTF

 

::

 

kovalev will KO this circus freak early

 

Great fight. Chilemba should trouble kovy a bit, but he just dont have the firepower to keep him off him

 

So Kov won on points? Heard he didn't look great and that he might not have given it 100%.

 

Jimmy spoiling things for those of us who haven't watched the fight yet, the selfish young chap.

MTF

 

Oops, sorry bud.

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/WUjBGlCH-ww" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

 

Kovalev looks strong from here, so far.

But he does appear to be in 'sparring mode,' so to speak. Not looking to do too much other than get some rounds in.

 

he definitely had trouble landing compared to other performances. chilemba gave good account of himself.

 

Nah Kovalev is feather-fisted, Chilemba went the distance

 

Chilemba was cagey and tough but Kov really seemed to slow down after the first few rounds. I've noticed it before with him. I will say just when it looked he had lost the snap in his punches he hurt Chilemba bad, but he needed that to get the fight back under control.

 

Ward will murder kovalev

 

doubt it.

 

Ward doesn't murder anybody.

He just makes fights ugly and boring.

 

maybe kovalev was flat and chilemba is one of the toughest light heavyweights out there. but kovalev looked very ineffective and a sharp ward should be able to win 10 rounds vs the guy. he looked the same against an ancient hopkins. it doesnt give me confidence that he can get to ward

 

I favour Ward after seeing the Chilemba fight. I think Ward will land the cleaner, more accurate shots. Will have his chin checked though.

 

kovalev won like 10 rounds, knocked the guy down and hurt him on multiple occasions. this was not some chump he was fighting.

 

Willie Monroe and Yory Boy Campos weren't "chumps" either when GGG and Tito fought them but they were the kind of guys you expect a dominant KO artist to KO without too big of a struggle. Kovalev needed to get him when he did to regain control and it looked like if it didn't happen then it would get less likely as the fight went on.

 

Kovalev is just frustratingly patient. He rarely gets careless and just waits for a shot to land and hurt the opponent. Then he will shift a gear and try to get rid of him, but it's still with some recognition that the fight is 12 rounds and he doesn't want to shoot his wad. He's really not all that different from old Wlad with his approach, he just happens to be a little more aggressive, probably because his stamina is a little better, and he hits harder p4p, so he gets ko's earlier.

 

you are right. kovalev is average since he lost two rounds. ::

when i witness the absurd lense that so many boxing fans judge with, it is really no surprise the sport has become such a joke.

 

Little testy today, aren't we? Kov showed flaws in this fight and it wasn't just his opponent. His style burns more energy that it seems to at first glance and he gets sloppy and frustrated as he fatigues. He may have a lot of trouble keeping Ward in front of him if he can't weaken his legs early.

 

I saw the same guy he's always been it's just the opponent was able to hang in there.

I don't see much of an inside game with Kovalev (I've always said that)

I saw a guy who routinely over shoots his right hand then falls off balance (I've always said that)

I saw a guy who doesn't have particularly fast hands or feet (I've always said that).

He's only effective when coming forward (I've always said that)

He does have power and is very effective from long range to mid distance. If he keeps the fight at that range and keeps Ward backing up he wins the fight. If we see Kovalv popping his jab and getting it countered early it's a long night for him. At some point he'll stop jabbing.

If Ward counters him and makes him overthink and Kovalev tries to box with him he loses. Ward in close might be the best and safest place for him. He'll be the better inside fighter and will get off better counters. It's a matter of whether Ward can handle his power and whether Ward can match him in physical strength as far as I'm concerned.

 

Chilemba is legit top10, unlike Munroe and Campas. Kovalev has destroyed guys of that level, too, not to mention their styles were far easier.

I agree with Double, only in this era is winning nine rounds with a KD considered as a weak performancr

 

This fight enhances Tony Bellend's legacy.

MTF

 

Also, I think Kovalev with John David Jackson learns a great deal from this. Perhaps just the crucial things to overcome Ward. It is a 50:50 fight

 

Is it just me or has Kov taken his foot off the gas?

I think he has. Three years ago against Cleverly he was one of the most ruthless fighters we've seen in awhile. Against Chilemba he's touching gloves after each round n shit. I was like wtf??? Did Kov go to dinner with Shane this week or somethin?

I'm gonba favor Ward at this point. Kov looked very flat n off, and Ward will counter the Hell outta him performing like that.

Still the biggest challenge of Ward's career, because at any time Kov can land and change the fight. But I'm like 60-40 favoring Ward right now.

 

They are stablemates at Main Events, and I'd bet they've probably sparred quite a bit...it looked a bit like that, maybe Kovalev was more anxious to impress in front of the home crowd

 

Watched it again. It felt like Kov could have finished him but didn't go for it.

He'll have tone ruthless against Ward to win that fight.

 

Lmao at the great Isaac Chilemba. Campos was a legit and feared contender when Tito fought him and he accomplished a lot more than Chilemba. Chilemba is nothing special and he's beaten no one. He's a light heavy Willie Munroe.

This is an example of boxing fans not having or ignoring any context when comparing fighters.