Andre Ward is as tough as old boots
In getting off the floor in the second to outpoint light-heavyweight supremo Sergey Kovalev in Las Vegas, Andre Ward showed another layer to his already phenomenal arsenal – his resilience. Kovalev, who lost his WBA, WBO and IBF world titles to Ward, is a monstrous puncher and clinical finisher. Usually, when he has someone hurt, they don’t hear the final bell. Ward, however, got up from the heavy second round knockdown he suffered and weathered the storm. Yes, Kovalev seemed to boss the first half of the fight but Ward displayed a rare sort of courage and skill to take control of the last six rounds. Not only that, he did it against one of the best fighters on the planet. However, it was not as clear cut as that…
We need a Kovalev-Ward rematch
What was a 50-50 fight on paper ended up being just that after the final bell. A lot American media had Kovalev a slight winner, though for every observer who had the Russian winning, there was someone else who felt Ward deserved the nod. Whatever the case may be, it all points toward a rematch. The fight was exceptionally close and could have gone either way – considering the stakes were so high, it seems only fair that Kovalev is granted an opportunity to win back his titles. While it was no barnburner, the fight was an intriguing watch and to see the two best lught-heavyweights in the world square off again would have a lot of appeal.
We could be in for a fun ride with Claressa Shields
Double-Olympic champion Claressa Shields made her professional debut on the Kovalev-Ward undercard, and it was a humdinger. She outpointed fellow amateur standout Franchon Crews over four hellacious super-middleweight rounds. Fighting without headgear for the first time, Shields had to deal with a marauding Crews in the early stages before almost stopping her late on. It was a terrific advertisement for Shields and women’s boxing in general, and if her debut is anything to go by, Shields will provide plenty of thrills and spills during her career.
Marco Huck has still got it
Though he may be moving toward the end of his career, former world cruiserweight champion Marco Huck proved he is still a serious player in the division by outpointing Dmytro Kucher in Germany. He didn’t look outstanding, but Huck was in control against a dangerous and hungry contender. In fact, Huck badly wobbled Kucher in the eighth and almost found the finish. By all accounts, it was a typica Huck display with the Serbian fighting in bursts and nullifying Kucher’s eager assaults. The win marks Huck’s second since his crushing stoppage loss to Krzysztof Glowacki last year.
George Groves deserves another world title shot
Having thrice failed in world title fights, George Groves is pursuing a fourth chance. The Londoner – undoubtedly one of the best super-middleweight in the world – holds high rankings with governing bodies and could land a shot at the vacant WBA title soon. At the weekend, he soundly outpointed Eduard Gutknecht at Wembley Arena. Tragically, Gutknecht collapsed after the fight and was taken to hospital, where he was operated on and placed into a coma.
