Without the questionable stoppage

The stoppage was terrible but I think ward would have stopped him soon after anyway.

 

There was no way Sergey was going to survive another 4.5 rounds when he was THAT done by 8th. Andre was landing an onslaught at will and had a completely spent Sergey wobbled and truly defeated.

KO8 or TKO8, take your pick.

 

Kovalev was finished before the last 3 body shots. He was getting battered, and was taking brutal shots to the body leading up to the finish. He was hurt and fatigued, tried to fake being hit low....which Ward should've jumped all over him then and put him down, but he didn't.

Now, after beating him to the point of giving up, he lands 3 borderline body shots, and the entire stoppage is in question? It's bull****. Go rewatch the 8th round. Kovalev was finished, and looking for a way out.

 

Ward either stops Kovalev anyway or, especially if Kovalev got 5 minutes, wins a UD

 

Ward would have gone on to stop him in a few more rounds unless Kovalev got his second wind, but Ward would have taken it on points imo.

 

Great poll to make, It was pretty clear that Andre was going to close the show, the Krusher also didn't show much heart if any at all, once things were not going his way he mentally and physically capitulated,He folded in half at legal belt line shots, one of which was an extremely light tap. He turned his back on a couple of occasions and there was ZERO objection from him at the time it was stopped, He was well and truly exhausted. he had nothing left.

 

Ward's work in the eighth was built on several low blows. The ref warned Ward twice for low blows well before the stoppage, but that was just to make us believe he was unbiased.

If the ref hadn't stopped the fight in the eighth, he would have just continued to allow Ward to low-blow Kovalev to death.

Your question should be: what would have happened if they had hired a neutral ref and neutral judges?

(Reminder: Team Kovalev asked for neutral officials during the negotiations.)

 

Great profile pic..... Nice twist on 'somebody's 'O' has got to go'..... 'One of his 'Os' has to go...'

 

They asked for judges, not a ref.

 

The stoppage was terrible but only because it stopped us from seeing Kovalev do a no mas quit on his stool between the rounds. So yes Weeks robbed us all of that moment.

 

There should be more than 2 options.

How about Kovalev makes it out of the round, but Ward finishes him in the next round or so?

I believe Ward was on his way to a victory at the point. My only issue is stopping the fight on to me what was an obvious low blow as the final punch.

 

Ward threw everything he had in that last round of low blows.

Sk was still throwing back and he could easily have regrouped if given the chance but sadly we were robbed from seeing what would have really happened

 

Where's option C

Ward gasses himself out in round 8 and both take a rest round during the 9th and than both try and steal the final rounds.