Ah, you called the bluff. I don't keep an ATG ranking but what I tried to say is that in terms of accomplishment they've reached as far as each other. Or should I say opponent wise considering the belt. I'm certain that if they'd go through each others resume they'd get the same results. But neither have tested themselves against top level.
Could Ward beat Kovalev, Beterbiev, and Stevenson (who he's already ducked) in a fair fight? How would that chin of his hold up if the referee was from a neutral country who actually punished him for holding on like an octopus and fouling instead of allowing him to get away with it carte blanche all night? That chin of his is obviously going to be much more vulnerable to getting cracked if he's not allowed to use excessive holing as a means to reduce the amount of punches his opponents land on him. Ward had home country referees for every one of his pro outings. In fact, he's had Californian ones for an awful lot of them (at least 75% of them) and this is obviously massively advantageous for someone who uses excessive holding as a defensive strategy. Like I said, if he's not allowed to get away with that he's going to get hit a lot more which is something which will really even up the playing field for his opponents. Can a chin that has been severely dented by the likes of Darnell Boone and Kenny ''The Real Krusher'' Kost withstand the bombs of Kovalev, Beterbiev and Stevenson? 1:03 mark (Boone KD followed him getting badly hurt by Kost) [YT]V45e1dERVVw[/YT] Ward was one or two shots away from getting put to sleep by a fighter (Kost) who has a pitiful 33% and that was amassed against a murderer's row like this: Julio Cesar Lanzas 0-0-0 John McLean 0-1-0 Kwan Manassah 6-19-2 Marris Virgil 15-60-3 Jason Dietrich 8-15-0 Butch Hajicek 0-0-0 Chad Taylor 0-1-0 Nathan Martin 7-3-0 Can someone who gets wobbled and stunned by Arthur Abraham jabs take take the bombs of fighters who are known for having SAVAGE power up at 175? Abe only has like a meager sub 20% KO percentage up at 168 or something. 10:26, 18:44 and 19:21 marks. Look at replay at the 21:07 mark. Ward feels that jab right down to his boots. He needed his best poker face to ride that one out. [YT]qPDMPDkyDyo[/YT] Abe was more than holding his own for the first few rounds, IMO. I had it at no worse than two a piece going into the 5th round, IIRC, and let's be real here Abe gassed very early in that fight too. Look at how he slumps over the ropes at the 28:58 and 32:55 marks of the video. The fight hasn't even reached the halfway mark and he's blowing out of his ass. What savage punchers has Ward fought at 168? Kessler, Froch, and Abraham, Bika, Green and Miranda all carry power down at 168 but I wouldn't describe any of them as savage punchers at that weight class, whereas Kovalev, Stevenson, and Beterbiev all carry frightening power up at 175, the kind of power that can take out extremely durable rock-chinned LHWs and drop fighters who have never been floored or stopped before or whom it's a very rare occurrence to see hit the canvas. Paul Smith rocked Ward with a right hand the other night for goodness sake, the difference in power between a flabby out of shape domestic/European class Paul Smith and tomato cans like Kenny Kost and the likes of Kovalev, Stevenson and Beterbiev is night and day. Literally night and day. Ward referred to Kovalev, Stevenson, and Golovkin as ''boogeymen'' and referenced the fact that he'd already fought lots of ''punchers'', but who the f*ck has he ever fought whose power is even in the same ballpark as Kovalev, Stevenson and Beterbiev's? By the way, Lomachenko is top 2 when it comes sheer talent and natural ability. The guy is a freaking freak. So is Rigo too.
Wilder get's too much hate. I remember before the Stiverne fight everyone said he'd get KTFO, lose to decision, glass chin will shatter, etc. What happened? Yeah.. yet the same people still hate. It's really pathetic honestly. Wilder is the second best HW right now, I'm fairly certain Povetkin will lose. It'll look similar to Wlad vs Povetkin, but more brutal IMO.
This. Kovalev is a beast... Ward is a wonderful boxer, but Kovalev is a relentless animal. Kovalev vs Ward would be the best fight of the decade, more so than Pac vs May which was pretty one-sided.
I disagree. I know it was back in the amateurs but Artur beat Kovalev twice, not once, TWICE! Artur does not have "quick hands" nor a reach advantage. In fact, Artur is a very calculated fighter. He slowly lures you into one of his treacherous punches. I can't wait to see Artur vs some of the big guys in the division. Loaded with potential.
Artur cleans out the division imo. He would rip wards arms off if he tried to clinch him Nd beat him with his own arm
Look at how far that right hand from Beterbiev knocks Alexander Johnson's head back. Johnson has clearly got a damn fine set of whiskers on him too. 5:40 [YT]2nvKJyvHXtg[/YT] Johnson looked like he was trying to simulate being back in his mother's womb when he went down from the shot that finished him in the 7th. 22:27 mark. Artur has got some seriously heavy, heavy hands. ''He's very strong, very tough. Hits very hard with a lot of power. I think he's definitely going to be one to watch in the division. I don't think there's many who could last with him.'' What is it about Beterbiev that makes him so good? ''It's his power. I mean sometimes you box with him or out box him but sooner or later he's going to catch you with one of those big shots and he's just got so much power for a light-heavyweight.'' --Bob Ajisafe 'Beterbiev has sparred recently with Bob Ajisafe and Blake Caparello, who believes Campillo (25-6-1, 12 KO) is in for a brief outing. "I really think it will be a short night for Campillo," Caparello said. "This guy has some incredible brute force. He could even chase and hunt down a strong Sergey Kovalev in the ring' Arthur Beterbiev is in the last straight of his training camp. Like any fighter about to fight in the ring, he is sparring with partners. But Beterbiev has a secret weapon: former world champion: Jean Pascal. Pascal: Artur's preparation is very important to me. It's a team effort and the reasons why I help Artur are that he's a great fighter and a nice guy and when he wins in the ring in September (2014), the whole team is going to win, me, Marc (Ramsay, trainer) and the whole Groupe Yvon Michel. (aka "GYM", the promoter) so there's no bad blood. Twice a week, Pascal joins Beterbiev in the ring. These sessions are normally secret but TVA Sports had special access. Marc Ramsay: He brings a lot in terms of experience and speed. We had a great sparring partner with the same level of power that Cloud has, in terms of resistance, but we wanted someone with more speed than Cloud so we don't get surprised in the ring on fight night. The exchanges are fast and explosive. Ramsay: We try to mix it up for the fighter. The important thing is to avoid surprises on fight night, so during training we really try to make Artur's life difficult. Pascal is convinced that despite Beterbiev's short experience as a pro, he will be ready for Tavoris Cloud. Pascal: Honestly I wouldn't be surprised if he knocks Cloud out. Artur Beterbiev is renowned for his power, as Pascal confirms. Pascal: Artur is a brute, I remember the first time we sparred, he hit me so hard my neck hurt for a week. He's a very big puncher, he's very strong physically but he's also very smart.
Artur Beterbiev vs Jean Pascal should happen soon. They always train together. There is a video on youtube where Pascal said he hits HARD, he was surprised by how hard he its, and that he had a sore neck for a week. Kovalev vs Beterbiev <-- would be :good I think he is ready NOW to take on the top fighters in his division, despite his lack of pro experience.
Ward is a protected species, he has everything going for him going into every fight, location, refs and GOD of course. Id say kovalev KO's that glass jawed american fairy. Definitely
Golovkin was promised a fight with Cotto by the WBC, but now Cotto will pay Golovkin step aside money to fight Alvarez..............Alvarez will probably beat Cotto and then he will refuse to fight Golovkin as well.............WBC is afraid to enforce their rules..........Golovkin is Cotto's mandatory.....................