Effect any fighter so early on in the fight? Or are fighters expected to brush a cut like that off? I only ask because its uncommon to see a cut at the back of the head.
A cut.... no. But a cut that's so bad that it's gushing blood like a waterfall can cause people to be light headed adn faint. So yes, definitely.
Yeah, I definitely think that affected his performance, not sure if the outcome would be any different, but a rematch is probably warranted.
Fighters brush off cuts all the time. They usually don’t bleed quite so much as we saw on Kelly’s head though. Had that cut been bleeding like that above his eye, or bleeding into his face, they’d probably have stopped that fight right quick. I think in a sport where you need to be in optimum shape, sure. If you lose enough blood, you can become lightheaded.
Of course it would be on a fighters mind when gushing that much, but wasn't the reason he lost, gas tank was - I know not your question. But a cut affects game plan and tactics as well as mindset
It didn't look like it bothered him at all, but possibly that vast amount of blood he lost made him weak.
I think it added to the panic. He had hurt Ava and the guy was still there, he was being walked down. getting more & more tired and it all just snowballed. How did it all go wrong? Slowly at first, then all at once.
I like Kelly but he was out of his depth tonight. Ava was impressive in the way he was patient and grew into the fight, when he got rocked early I thought he was going to fold. Tough to see where either of them go from here, Kelly has to rebuild but that fight will take a lot from him. Ava is just in between Euro and world level and quite small framed
It was textbook perfect on how to deal with a fast/flashy fighter. Weather the early storm, attack the body, punch inside his shots & pressure, pressure, pressure. I dont think Kelly can come back from this. Everyone will just pressure the **** out of him.
Its a shame though, he looked great in the first couple of rounds. He just wants to win easy, take breaks & slide around the ring. He is just not keen to get in the gutter and scrap it out. Being a world champion is not for everyone I guess.
I think it might have weakened him and he didn't look like it was bothering him as us watching might expect. I would like to see Josh get back soon, he is still young. He can fight slick but he needs to stop leaving his hands so low, he's not as flashy as he thinks he is. He also needs to fight smarter, he basically allowed himself to gas. He fights in bursts but he lets his opponents get off and it's been quite telling from his past few fights. He did hurt Ava briefly but he doesn't really have much pop, can't really see him fare better at 154. A lot of people correctly predicted this would happen and it did.
I think that cut on the back of the head had alot to do with why he gassed towards the end.. how did the cut happen though? I was switching out the buttons on my fightstick and missed it
If I saw it right he came in with his head low and there was an accidental elbow. I am suspicious of elbows in general but this one looked like Kelly was mostly at fault. All he had to do was to stay on his feet, maybe grab a round or two more and he wins. Just terrible decision making on his part. Hearn made it sound like Avanesyan had earned the right to get knocked out by someone at the world level. After waiting all this time he ought to get that chance before the rematch, though these guys are pretty well matched.