I use to think with bivol , gvozdyk, and beterbiev all there now that the skill level would be higher , however if anything they just made Kovalev look better in my opinion I even favor this version of kovalev to beat beterbiev. Bivol is still sharpening his tools and trying to perfect his craft. he might be the 2nd best overall fighter at 175 behind Kovalev Note: dont get butthurt over this opinion it's just an opinion. I did pick beterbiev to win tonight , I just saw certain things ,where I noticed certain fighters on a certain IQ level could perform well against beterbiev.
I think you picking Kova over AB may suggest that youre perhaps not evaluating AB properly. I know you see flaws in him, but he would be the overwhelming favorite to dispatch Kova in emphatic fashion, and I think thats a very realistic prognosis. So I could understand the top guys not being as good as maybe you thought they were... but when you go on to say you favor Kova to beat AB, to me it says youre just not gauging AB correctly. But... time will tell. If Kova ever fights one of those three, will be a good barometer.
is it that you think beterbiev is more of a crude slugger, not a technician, and since a slugger was able to beat the technician it makes the division look bad? well, styles make fights, and the best often have their very particular susceptibility. gvozdyk absolutely is top class and was showing it while he had the legs to do so.. sometimes there'll be that excessively powerful and rugged boxer that comes along and reigns on the technicians parade. it happens. there are world class technicians, world class genetic talent, and variations of both that push, pull and tangle with each others strengths and weaknesses. maybe someone does come along and beat beterbiev, but maybe that guy gets clowned by gvozdyk. we'll see. let's not downplay beterbievs own boxing skill though.
Just small things I see the speed and reaction timing along with not cutting off the ring as good as I thought he would do
I agree to a certain extent, Kov feels like the most complete fighter and he can't really fight on the inside all that well. He is a master at mid and long range though. Bivol is almost complete but lacks power and a certain creativity with his offense imo. Gvozdyk has good technique but is sort of basic with his offense like a lot of tall rangy boxers are. If he had a better left hook, he could have done much better tonight. Beterbiev is skilled but lacks athleticism and a bit of quickness although his power and strength makes up for it in spades.
I disagree. Both fighters showed world class skills and were highly competitive. It was only in the later rounds where Beterbiev was slowly breaking down Gvozdyk by using distance and picking his shots to the body. I’d say that was skillful stuff. Although I will say that in terms of pure boxing skills Kovalev is a notch above both of them due to his jab and great use of range. Beterbiev is more successful up close.
you don't neccesarily need to be dynamic or top class in those area to be elite though. GGG isn't the speediest guy and his reaction timing to counter attacks isn't the best given he tends to get hit a lot but he's incredible cause he does so many other things right. the thing about cutting off the ring is it's hard to do against a quality mover like Gvozdyk. once oleksander lost his legs he didn't even need to cut the ring off, he was right there to tee off on.
I think Beterbiev was the less skilled fighter tonight. His toughness, strength and power won him the fight. He dispatches this version of Kovalev in a similar fashion he did against Gvosdyk perhaps a bit earlier.
if kova or canelo dont ko him by the 8th rd, i dont think they beat him. but, he will be there to be hit for both of them, right from the start. prime kova ko's him. if canelo can swing with lhw power, he can also stop him.
...what? That was maybe the most skillful light heavyweight championship match-up since Hill was active, if not Conteh.
On rewatch I notice now Beterbiev was patiently taking his time to pick his spots and was slowly turning up the heat once Gvozdyk started to fade. His strength and power wasn’t the only thing that helped him win, it was his intelligent ring IQ and his ability to adjust. He didn’t just come forward and swinging wildly, he used smart pressure, switching range, and was even boxing on the outside.
