Andre Ward: "Other fighters are using my lawsuit as an excuse not to fight me"

Because you just don't get it:

Ward, coming off an injury and an extended layoff,

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and more money than HBO was willing to pay for.

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. Then in August, super middleweight prospect Edwin Rodriguez informed his hometown newspaper that he’d turned down a Sept. 28


He can say he was willing to fight Froch all he wanted for the cameras, the truth is, he was not. Actions speak louder than words. Your boy was the one putting up the tough guy image.

 

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The same people you believe when its news you want to hear.

From ESPN as well.

HBO is resistant to spending good money for Ward to face the likes of Dimitri Sartison (a former titlist of the ultimate paper variety with zero name recognition in the United States), equally unknown interim titlist Stanyslav Kastanov, or Caleb Truax, a fun fighter to watch but not in the same league as Ward.

 

Im sure HBO wouldnt have been resistent to spending money on Froch-Ward.

Theres an easy fight to make money wise.

 

But after his first month of sparring, Ward decided he wanted an easier opponent.

:nono

 

So you keep saying.

He ended up fighting a top ranked SMW in November.

 

I don't care what the alphabet organziations rated him, he was untested and not regarded as much of a threat to Ward at all. You are kidding yourself. Not a horrible opponent but not a threat either, an acceptable tune up, but just that.

You've seen the names of opponents Ward wanted and who he decided on, you've read the reports, but keep deluding yourself into thinking a Froch fight immediately following a 14+ month lay off and majory surgery without a tune up was going to happen on two month's notice. Ward isn't a dummy, his shoulder was messed up and he wanted a test run.

Nor does Froch have to waste his time calling such an obvious bluff to prove to ESB posters he's serious. He said he wanted the fight but doubted Ward would be available, he was correct as Ward wanted an easier opponent and got Rodriguez in Nov.

:rofl

 

An unknown SMW who had rejected a headline fight with GGG for half a million dollars at 168 at the beginning of the year I should remind you.

Also, the fact that Ward wanted a soft touch for his comeback was widely reported. Noone really cared, because it seemed reasonable after such a long layoff/surgery and people just assumed he would be back in the mix with real guys afterwards.

 

Not according to STB, Ward is a super man who would jump right in there with Froch after two months of sparring with a surgically reparied shoulder.

 

That's all there is to it. Who the hell want's to fight a guy who does that all night?

 

he was only ranked because froch had beaten all the others!

on a great run, featuring a home-coming, 2 world champs (including the title holder ward declined to unify against), a likely future world champ, a career-high payday and a huge night at the planet's most famous stadium.

yet you reckon he should drop all this on the strength that ward may or more likely may not be willing or able to fight him due to a combination of injury, self-inflicted promotional issues and a desire to have a "loosener" to ease himself back in (nothing wrong with that).

and this based on selected quotes (ignoring any contradictory statements) ward made, by sheer coincidence, on or around the occasion of yet another huge night for froch.

you expect froch to prioritize ward's career over his own.

 

Ward was having no promotional issues of note in the 2nd half od last year.

He was fit and able to fight in the 2nd half of last year.

He said he was willing to fight Froch, hardly a "loosener" neither is Rodriguez by nearly everyone elses standards by the way.

I just think that a guy like Froch who is hailed as a warrior would like to test himself against the best in his division and who has a win over him.

He made a big deal out of having to fight Kessler again, because of his loss in the first fight.

Why not Ward?

 

Well he already beat him pretty easily with one hand.

If a guy is sparring it means his shoulder was at, or pretty near 100%.

Neither of them fought until 6 months later anyway. At which point his shoulder was clearly fine.

But yes, anytime about 2 months after should be just fine, its not like he ballooned up in weight.

 

No one at 168 is a threat for Ward. Thats not the point.

He'd already beaten Froch easily with a broken hand in case you forgot.

So why not go in with Froch after 14 months out?

 

because ward wasn't (and possibly still isn't) ready. froch mentioned summer 2014 as he knew it was the earliest likely opportunity, but he's busy.

pretend rodriguez is a comparable challenge to froch if you like, you're only making you look soft in the head.

we all know what ward said, it's just that some of us are able to discern why he said them.