Artur Asilbekovich Beterbiev vs. Anthony Yarde & Artem Dalakian vs. David Jiménez RBR.

Kovalev was a fantastic fighter but the fact is is he mentally imploded & couldn't keep it together, mentality & discipline are as much a part of sport as anything & Beterbiev is more consistent, he'll go down as a much better fighter when he calls time & if he beats Bivol

 

Canelo would get wrecked....Bivol I'm still unsure to be honest.

 

Was turning pro at 28 a bad career management decision for Artur?

 

Yeah, the final KD punch was also behind the head of the Yarde. He is clearly targeting that area, and knows how to do it, without referee to penalize him.

 

Good post kirk.. I agree with you. Kovalev imo is better p4p and would beat more styles, but Beterbiev is a nightmare for Kov.

 

Watched it back. Beterbiev likes his back of the head punches don’t he

 

What a great fight! It took Artur a round longer than I predicted but was more of a shoot out than I expected.

Tunde absolutely did the right thing after the ref failed to do so, when Yarde wandered off to his corner to buy some extra seconds.

I'm not sure why some people are surprised by Yarde's heart, he showed plenty of it and a reasonable chin when being outclassed by Kovalev. He was never gonna go down easily tonight.

Yarde's undoing for me was his lack of composure and finesse once he got Artur buzzed and on the back foot. He seriously needs to work on that. Every time he telegraphed an outrageous shot, got turned and pummeled in the corner.

It might be a consequence of facing so few top class fighters, Yarde's used to opponents unravelling when hurt, crumpling under a volume of punches. That was never on the cards tonight.

His movement, positioning and awareness of the ring also leaves a lot to be desired. It led to him getting stuck on the ropes and taking punishment more than was necessary.

Yarde has a lot of the tools needed to be a Champion one day, he's young enough to come again and has improved since the Kovalev fight. Will he learn and change what he needs to? I honestly don't know.

Just a terrific fight, one to watch again and pick the bones out of.

 

I think the Canelo match up is more interesting now.

 

So what's yout logic? Smith Jr doesn't hit harder than Beterbiev. Let's listen from a first hand witness:

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He has 3 belts, think everything’s working out well for him.

 

Kovalev is baby food soft. That’s a guy who got bashed by Ward and sparked out by Canelo. Beterbiev was always his worse nightmare

 

I think prime Kovalev destroys Bivol, probably beats Beterbiev too. He was a legitimately great fighter. Bivol isnt. Beterbiev in his prime was a borderline great fighter.