Tell me more about the two Andres in the SSS

[YT]pYLcZW102nE[/YT]

This is Dirrell at his worst, he did go on to more or less dominate in this fight though.

Both Dirrell and Ward strike me as being very athletic, and both create the illusion of having skill.

But it is definitely no more than an illusion though, they are about as unskilled as Froch, just in a different way.

 

Ward is good at everything but not great at anything, other than maybe footwork. Very well-rounded boxer. Likes to switch between orthodox and southpaw a lot. Has some question marks about his chin, but also didn't get buzzed at all versus Miranda. If his chin holds up, then he's the type of fighter who should get beaten by a supreme talent, but because he has no real glaring weaknesses, he should be able to beat most fighters.

Dirrell is more naturally talented than Ward, but not as well polished. Also likes to switch stance a lot, although he's naturally a southpaw. Very quick hands and feet, good power when he sits on his punches, but he has some defensive flaws (he tries to avoid punches rather than block them, so he gets hit a lot). Kind of guy who will pull off some good wins because of his speed, but is also in danger of having some bad losses simply because he leaves himself so vulnerable.

Dirrell, sure, but Ward's a lot more technically sound than Froch. Ward's a lot more technically sound than most fighters. I actually completely disagree with your assessment of Ward. He's not all that athletic, and that limits his upside, but he's very well trained. Dirrell, on the other hand, is extremely athletic but uses that to compensate for his other flaws.

 

That is the absolute worst clip you can find of him...but nothing impressive exists either.

 

Is round 4 of the same fight up?

 

I rate Ward significantly better, he has the basics, but lacks any true depth to his skillset in my view. For an olympic champion he seems a terrible counter-puncher and seems to rely on nothing more than beating his opponent to the punch.

I might just be a hater though.

 

Dirrell wasn't knockdown twice by a punch i don't think. Dirrell was basically went down cause he slip from the wet spot. That happen in boxing. I thought Dirrell fought very good in the Hanshaw fight. Hanshaw couldn't find any big shots to land Clean. Dirrell make Hanshaw miss very well. Dirrell even though likes to keep his lands down he still duck punches and is a very good counter puncher.

 

If you're right about that, then he's probably destined to lose all his fights, because he has the slowest handspeed in the tournament other than Froch.

 

Yes.

[yt]1EIylgxDnE0[/yt]

His lack of a right hand when forced into the orthodox stance scares me, incredibly one handed. He will have to stick to fighting southpaw against Froch imo.

 

What the hell fights of Ward are some of these assessments based on?

He has tremendous handspeed. Probably the fastest hands of anyone in the tournament. He's also probably the most fleet footed of the lot. He's not without his flaws but his speed makes up for them.

Ward has learned to be more accurate and is throwing punches more selectively than earlier in his career. He is sitting down on his punches more when he gets in range. He also has learned to use offense as a defensive tactic.

Dirrell to me is the more uneven of the two. He lacks consistency in the ring and is a bit less focused than Ward.

Pressure is probably the best route against these guys. Standing at the end of their punches in the wheelhouse looking for counters could be disastrous against them. The key will be to get inside, rough them up a bit and keep off them their game where they excel.

 

Nice summary.

I think Dirrell is less ready for this than Ward. He is still pretty green and a little rough around the edges, he will have his moments certainly, but I am sceptical that he can realise his potential in this tournament. Which he will have to if he is to go far in it.

Having said that you never know when chucking 'prospects' in at the deep end. In my experience, they tend to do the opposite of what you expect them to do, ie fall flat when you pick them to win, and come good when you expected them to be too green. Dawson - Adamek and Bradley - Witter for example.

 

For anyone who's interested, here's a really in-depth comparison of Ward and Dirrell that I did about 4 months ago...

http://www.badlefthook.com/2009/4/14/821287/prospect-smackdown-andre-ward-vs

 

edit

 

i've watched dirrell in all his fights since the curtis stevens debacle, including the one in tacoma live, and in my mind he is going to go 0 for 3 in this tournament... i cannot see him beating any of the other guys

ward has a shot to win 1 or even 2 of his fights though... he is just a much more solid all-around fighter