I picked Kessler to win and by KO, i was gutted too see first thing this morning when i got up that one of my fav fighters had lost, could you please fill me in the details of these questions. How rusty was Mikkel after his recent inactivity? Did he underestimate Andre in any way? How was his general condition? Did the Headbutts,elbows, and low blows effect him in any way during the fight? Did he have a Plan B,C,D? Do you think he will be affected by this loss? Do you think he can make the changes to his overall game? can he still win the super 6? I think that covers all the questions, thanks.:good
1. He looked a little rusty. We wasn't active early at all and had no head movement. 2. Absolutely. I think that was his biggest problem. He fought like he only had to hit him once or twice and Ward would go away. 3. Good. But he wasn't throwing a lot. 4. Th last head butt had the biggest effect on him, but he was so far down it didn't matter. There were no elbows and nothing more than maybe two borderline low blows that had no effect. 5. NOPE 6. I hope not. I still think, if he gets his head on straight he can advance inthe tournament. Though his demeanor after the fight was poor, a LOT of excuses, and didn't acknowledge any of his short comings, so maybe he won't improve on them. 7. I am beginning to be doubtfull about this. He didn't change after Calzaghe, and his attitude after the fight was like he was robbed, which doesn't bode well. 8. He has a shot, but someone has to take Ward out for him, because stylistically Ward is a huge problem for him. Keith
Kessler looked very "basic" against Ward, not changing up to adapt to Ward. Ward was just way too dynamic-countering, jabbing, combos, defense, and most of all-SPEED. The difference in speed was huge. I think Kessler thought he could walk down Ward and use his very good jab to control Ward. He should have realized though that when Ward showed the excellent movement/defense he did, that he needed to go to plan B. Except, I dont think Kessler had a plan B, or has ever had one for that matter. The head butts were a non-issue in that had he not recieved them, he still would have had no answer to Wards movement and speed. I know Kessler is a world champion however, he looked like a completely ordinary, almost amateur, boxer against Ward. I think Kesslers chances vs. Froch and AA, if he has to face them, will be much better then vs Dirrell or even Taylor (although Taylor has a bunch of his own problems). Dirrell and Ward both are very dynamic/adaptive/ unconventional type fighters in their movement relating to offense and defense. And both are extremely fast. I think that both the speed and movement really threw Kessler off his game. Thing is, hes a champion. He should be able to deal with that, right? Also, think the complaining/excuses after the fight were pretty low class coming from a champion. He was totally outclassed and looked to use the excuse of butts and elbows as to why Ward beat him so badly. None of Wards butts looked at all intentional and again, had there been no butts Kessler was still losing the fight based on his inability to adapt.
Kessler looked like ****; slow, clusmy, and one dimensional. Ward should have been disqualified for blatant cheating that started in the second round, but just like the other two super six fights, the hometown fighter fouled at will with impunity. Now that I've seen recent action from all six fighters, there is absolutely no doubt in my mind that Lucian Bute is the true World Champion at 168.
in responce to rccwilliams why an earth didnt he spar with southpaws, very stupid call from kesslers camp
ward put on a masterful boxing display. end of story. kessler's still good, but at this point i only really see him beating froch or taylor in this tournament. he'll get knocked by AA and dirrell will whoop him too only not in as impressive of fashion as ward. the fact that kessler didn't spar with ONE southpaw tells you something. if he's gonna even get close to beating a ward or dirrell, he better actually prepare to do so. :verysad
I don't think rust was a major factor. Probably. He was in outstanding shape and never appeared unusually winded. They made for convenient excuses to justify the fact he was THOROUGHLY outclassed. Nope, just a plan A. Yes, he can no longer believe the hype surrounding him. This was a wake-up following his similarly one-sided loss to Calzaghe which INEXPLICABLY elevated his standing amongst fans. Ward is a class above Kessler. Yes. Not if he has to face Ward again. :smoke
no thanks mate, i dont think i can bear watching it right now, plus this computers crap anyhow so itll take a couple of years to download, thanks anyway:good