My thoughts on Andre Ward's career

Fashionista · Mar 28, 2018

dinovelvet said: ↑

He had skills few could match from recent era's and his talent level and execution of said talents was fascinating to watch imo. Had it all but stopping power but you can get by without it in this game thats chess not checkers.
His Roberto Duran type terrorization / deconstruction of Kessler was masterful and is unjustly criticized. If any fight of his is worth hating on its Allen Green , which was the ugliest of his career.
He wasn't to everyone's liking and its understandable , but i don' t think you can deny his talents , finesse and craft... Good thread Tinman.
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Wow you actually made a positive post!
If his Dad was a boxer though you would have HATED him.

Fashionista · Mar 28, 2018

BCS8 said: ↑

Ward was a very good fighter let's not beat about the bush. He used ringcraft and rythmn breaking, spoiling tactics to make up for his lack of greatness in any one area. His results can't be denied. But he was also boring, a diva, and the Kovalev fights left a bad taste in my mouth. I'm not sorry to see him go.
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Exactly. That's a perfect summary Nobody is gonna go back and watch Ward's fights.

Hookie · Mar 28, 2018

tinman said: ↑

Now that he's retired is it time to evaluate his legacy as a fighter? I think it is. Like him or not Andre Ward was a great fighter. Personally, I was never a fan. He bored me in the ring and I always thought he was this arrogant and smug guy. He was a diva, he could be inactive. He was never boisterous and obnoxious, but he came across as this conceited and arrogant little douchebag.

That said, he was a talented fighter with some big time fights. A former Olympic champion at 178 pounds, Ward began his pro career at 168 pounds. He was sneaky good, he was a respected fighter all throughout his career, even as an unproven professional, but he never got the DLH treatment. He wasn't crowned before he did anything like DLH. Which makes me appreciate his success more.

He burst on the scene during the super 6 tournament. He upset the tourney favorite in the first fight beating seasoned pro Mikkel Kessler, a very good fighter with a strong reputation as a true professional fighter. And the expectation was that Kessler would be just much for Ward. Or in other words that Kessler was just too skilled and Ward would be out of his depth. What happened was Ward established himself as a top flight fighter who beat Kessler.

Ward breezed through other super 6 fighters that were supposed to inevitably get worked over by Kessler. Some solid names there like Bika, Abraham and Green. Then he fought Carl Froch in the final. Who was an overachieving, grueling, war of attrition type of fighter. Froch was never able to get on track because he just couldn't hit Ward.

Ward cleaned out the 168 pound division with ease. Were we surprised? Well after what he did to Kessler, not really. But you got to give him the props.

Then he moved up to 175 pounds and beat a solid and underrated contender named Sullivan Barrera. Before his final two fights that will forever define his career.

No matter the impressiveness of the super 6 victory the Sergey Kovalev fights will ultimately be the lasting image and legacy of Andre Ward. Sergey Kovalev has his faults as a fighter, namely his stamina problems, somewhat vulnerable chin and the lack of diversity in his punch arsenal. But his jab, timing and power make him an absolute nightmare for basically an LHW in history for the first 6 rounds. If Kessler was a step up for Ward from his early career toils then Kovalev was even a step up from the super 6 contestants. Sergey Kovalev was no joke and everybody knew it, including Ward so props given to him for taking that fight.

I thought Kovalev won the first fight and so did the vast majority of us. Ward was given the decision, but the in the eyes of the masses Kovalev had won that fight. Regardless, neither fighter really did enough to make it conclusive, but you have to look far and wide to give Ward 7 of those rounds.

Does the first Kovalev fight tarnish Ward's legacy? Not at all, if anything it enhances it. Ward was shocked by the power and timing of Kovalev in the early rounds, but showed great response to adversity by winning most of the later rounds. And no he did not deserve every ****ing round on every judges card after the 6th, but I digress. Ward showed tremendous versatility in those later rounds by showing impressive physical strength, stamina and determination. Not to mention he survived the monster of Kovalev who was blowing everybody to smithereens early in fights.

In the rematch Ward came into the fight knowing Sergey Kovalev's kryptonite as he had exposed his greatest weakness. Kovalev is a great fighter, but he is a 7 or 8 round fighter. He just doesn't have the stamina to survive a war of attrition. And Ward was the only guy with the defense and skills to force Kovalev into an attrition type fight. Ward had great defense in the rematch and the fight was close on the cards with Kovalev relentlessly jabbing his way to points. I had Kovalev ahead on my cards. But Ward was avoiding that big right hand and he was making Kovalev tire. By the 6th or 7th round Kovalev was starting to really tire and exhaust his reserves. While Ward was just gearing up for the "fight" part of the fight. He ended up landing the best punch of his career late in the 8th round. A massive, short overhand right that really rocked Kovalev. If Ward had been a solid puncher there is no way Kovalev doesn't go down. But a great finisher has a plan when his opponent takes his best hayemaker, he follows up and goes in for the finish. And that's what Ward did.

I thought the stoppage was premature given the class of Kovalev. A great fighter deserves to go out on his shield in his legacy fight. And I thought the punches were a tad low. That said, given Ward's superior conditioning, strength and toughness I don't think that Kovalev was going to mount much of an offensive in rounds 9 through 12. I see Ward sweeping the later rounds or maybe possibly scoring a clean legitimate KO late. Did the stoppage leave a bad taste in everybody's mouth? Of course it, but given the spirit and direction of the fight, Kovalev had run out of gas and was fading bad. I don't see much of a chance for him to win that fight had it continued.

Andre Ward is an underrated fighter in terms of what he actually did in the ring. He consistently fought the best of the best at their best. And while he only really fought 1 truly great fighter that's more than most have done. And his resume is filled with top level and very good fighters.
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navigator said: ↑

I was intensely invested in the Kovalev-Ward bouts, too, albeit in a way nuanced from yours. These were/are two of my very favorite modern fighters, guys who I believed were among a small handful of the most truly credible combatants currently active in the sport, locking horns in a dream battle for P4P supremacy -- a conflicting scenario, for sure, but not without a sense of vicarious pride at the prospect of two of my 'dogs' facing off to determine pure (as opposed to economic) kingship of the sport.

I wish their fights had been settled without controversy, but how many big, hotly anticipated fights between closely matched men unfold without controversy these days? In the age of social media, there's almost always going to be griping, undermining and stripping away of due credit from both principles, however reasonable the official outcome of a closely fought contest.

After their fights, these guys were treated almost like chopped liver by fans. A pity, because I believed that they had enhanced each other and that each man's stock should have risen in the eyes of the fanbase. Who ever was truly on par with Ward for more than a couple rounds prior to Kovalev, much less for 19 rounds and arguably besting him in their first bout? Ward, meanwhile, picked himself off the canvas, gradually took the fight to the most destructive (and quite arguably the most technically robust) puncher in the sport, and managed to outlast him over the course of two bouts.

I've said it before, and I suppose nobody will agree, but, with Ward absent, Kovalev is my P4P #1 right now until I see clear evidence to the contrary. I'll take the stress he gave Ward over these other guys' best wins any day of the week, and that's on top of the substance he'd already put on his CV prior to the showdowns with SOG.
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Good post but I will add that even with Ward still active I consider Kovalev the better fighter... call me a hater all you want.

Ward is a great fighter. I was a fan. He did a lot in a short period of time... the Super 6 Tournament at SMW. He looked solid vs. Barrera at LHW and he obviously looked good vs. Kovalev. I thought Kovalev won their first fight but it was close. The rematch was B.S.

Hookie · Mar 28, 2018

Yes, those shots were low... real low. Nothing borderline about them. Which border? The bottom of the shorts? Borderline typically means part of the glove hits skin in a legal spot (the stomach) and the rest of the glove hits the trunks (obviously near the top or "border" of the trunks. That's not where any of the punches in question landed. The entire glove landed below the top "border" of Kovalev's trunks. They were just as low as the shots Golota landed on Bowe.

Hookie · Mar 28, 2018

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Iron dome · Mar 28, 2018

tinman said: ↑

Now that he's retired is it time to evaluate his legacy as a fighter? I think it is. Like him or not Andre Ward was a great fighter. Personally, I was never a fan. He bored me in the ring and I always thought he was this arrogant and smug guy. He was a diva, he could be inactive. He was never boisterous and obnoxious, but he came across as this conceited and arrogant little douchebag.

That said, he was a talented fighter with some big time fights. A former Olympic champion at 178 pounds, Ward began his pro career at 168 pounds. He was sneaky good, he was a respected fighter all throughout his career, even as an unproven professional, but he never got the DLH treatment. He wasn't crowned before he did anything like DLH. Which makes me appreciate his success more.

He burst on the scene during the super 6 tournament. He upset the tourney favorite in the first fight beating seasoned pro Mikkel Kessler, a very good fighter with a strong reputation as a true professional fighter. And the expectation was that Kessler would be just much for Ward. Or in other words that Kessler was just too skilled and Ward would be out of his depth. What happened was Ward established himself as a top flight fighter who beat Kessler.

Ward breezed through other super 6 fighters that were supposed to inevitably get worked over by Kessler. Some solid names there like Bika, Abraham and Green. Then he fought Carl Froch in the final. Who was an overachieving, grueling, war of attrition type of fighter. Froch was never able to get on track because he just couldn't hit Ward.

Ward cleaned out the 168 pound division with ease. Were we surprised? Well after what he did to Kessler, not really. But you got to give him the props.

Then he moved up to 175 pounds and beat a solid and underrated contender named Sullivan Barrera. Before his final two fights that will forever define his career.

No matter the impressiveness of the super 6 victory the Sergey Kovalev fights will ultimately be the lasting image and legacy of Andre Ward. Sergey Kovalev has his faults as a fighter, namely his stamina problems, somewhat vulnerable chin and the lack of diversity in his punch arsenal. But his jab, timing and power make him an absolute nightmare for basically an LHW in history for the first 6 rounds. If Kessler was a step up for Ward from his early career toils then Kovalev was even a step up from the super 6 contestants. Sergey Kovalev was no joke and everybody knew it, including Ward so props given to him for taking that fight.

I thought Kovalev won the first fight and so did the vast majority of us. Ward was given the decision, but the in the eyes of the masses Kovalev had won that fight. Regardless, neither fighter really did enough to make it conclusive, but you have to look far and wide to give Ward 7 of those rounds.

Does the first Kovalev fight tarnish Ward's legacy? Not at all, if anything it enhances it. Ward was shocked by the power and timing of Kovalev in the early rounds, but showed great response to adversity by winning most of the later rounds. And no he did not deserve every ****ing round on every judges card after the 6th, but I digress. Ward showed tremendous versatility in those later rounds by showing impressive physical strength, stamina and determination. Not to mention he survived the monster of Kovalev who was blowing everybody to smithereens early in fights.

In the rematch Ward came into the fight knowing Sergey Kovalev's kryptonite as he had exposed his greatest weakness. Kovalev is a great fighter, but he is a 7 or 8 round fighter. He just doesn't have the stamina to survive a war of attrition. And Ward was the only guy with the defense and skills to force Kovalev into an attrition type fight. Ward had great defense in the rematch and the fight was close on the cards with Kovalev relentlessly jabbing his way to points. I had Kovalev ahead on my cards. But Ward was avoiding that big right hand and he was making Kovalev tire. By the 6th or 7th round Kovalev was starting to really tire and exhaust his reserves. While Ward was just gearing up for the "fight" part of the fight. He ended up landing the best punch of his career late in the 8th round. A massive, short overhand right that really rocked Kovalev. If Ward had been a solid puncher there is no way Kovalev doesn't go down. But a great finisher has a plan when his opponent takes his best hayemaker, he follows up and goes in for the finish. And that's what Ward did.

I thought the stoppage was premature given the class of Kovalev. A great fighter deserves to go out on his shield in his legacy fight. And I thought the punches were a tad low. That said, given Ward's superior conditioning, strength and toughness I don't think that Kovalev was going to mount much of an offensive in rounds 9 through 12. I see Ward sweeping the later rounds or maybe possibly scoring a clean legitimate KO late. Did the stoppage leave a bad taste in everybody's mouth? Of course it, but given the spirit and direction of the fight, Kovalev had run out of gas and was fading bad. I don't see much of a chance for him to win that fight had it continued.

Andre Ward is an underrated fighter in terms of what he actually did in the ring. He consistently fought the best of the best at their best. And while he only really fought 1 truly great fighter that's more than most have done. And his resume is filled with top level and very good fighters.
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Ward is negotiating with Bellew team for a comeback at cruiserweight.

Iron dome · Mar 28, 2018

Fashionista said: ↑

Exactly. That's a perfect summary Nobody is gonna go back and watch Ward's fights.
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I review his fight against Kovaleve almost every weekend. I don't think a month has gone by that I've not watched a Ward fight.

Farmboxer · Mar 28, 2018

SOB Ward cheats......................Ward has two losses, both to Kovalev. Ward landed low blows, very low blows, Golota Vs. Bowe should be changed to a knockout by Golota, if Weeks had been the corrupt referee.............If the referee had been Pabon or some other honest referee, Ward would have been disqualified. Anyone who claims there were not low blows is a liar and a cheat themselves! The pictures and video does not lie! Everyone sees those low blows, not just one either! This fight should be changed to disq. How does the boxing world tell everyone there were not low blows when they are fight in front of everyone's eyes?! Ward has two losses on his record..............Kovalev is undefeated............we know it, but the powers that be in boxing don't think you are smart enough to know it! Bob Bennett told me that boxing fans don't know how to score a fight, and he was talking about Byrd! CORRUTPION IN BOXING! Atlas was fired by ESPN for telling the truth! We pay for a fair fight, not fixed fight! This is a good video:
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Can't watch this and say SOB did not land low blows! Hell, Paulie told the truth! Max asked SOB, were those borderline low blows or were they low low blows! Hell, they were so low that they hit the letters underneath his belt! Weeks is a crook, this fight appears to have been fixed, and the powers that be in boxing spit on the fans over and over again...............

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My thoughts on Andre Ward's career

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My thoughts on Andre Ward's career

Fashionista Style over Sport banned Full Member

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Hookie Affeldt... Referee, Judge, and Timekeeper Full Member

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