I think Ward and Dirrell are among the most well known US fighters. Pretty much on the same level as Tim Bradley and Devon Alexander, maybe even more due to their olympic run.
I'd argue that none of the ones mentioned are as well known as Bradley, but that's a moot point. Compare that to Froch in England, where he is perhaps their first or second most recognized current fighter, and their most accomplished champion. Or to Kessler in Denmark where he is basically the best fighter their country has. Or Abraham in Germany, with his massive following. Dirrell and Ward are nowhere close. Neither was a champion coming in, which is part of the reason. Another factor is simply that Abraham might be the second or third best current fighter out of Germany, but neither Dirrell or Ward are the second or third best fighter out of the US, because the country is larger and the talent pool deeper.
MSG, Las Vegas, there are some good places for this one. Get Ward's ass outta his hometown, but it's only fair to stage it on a neutral ground for both.
That's a fair point... Have you heard of Kretschmer? No?! Me either... until recently (last Saturday) when he headlined the Gamboa card in Hamburg (not Kretschmer's home town!). It drew 4000+ people and the production was at the highest level. Loads of money invested there and surely even more made. It makes me sad that Ward-Kessler and Dirrell-Abraham, very significant bouts, were in small arenas with cheap productions. It's a shame...
Froch is not a popular fighter in england - you basically have David Haye with his great self-promotion - then Amir Khan, Ricky Hatton & Joe Calzaghe then Froch. and 2 of those guys are retired Honestly Matthew Hatton gets more press than Froch - he is serisouly bitter about it, pretty much why he used to spend his spare time calling Joe out before.
In boxing home advantage is almost everythign if the fighters are fairly even. We have seen this clearly in the Super Six where every single fight has been won by the hometown fighter.
Btw. the Ward-Dirrell fight is crucial for both. If Dirrell does not win - he is out! If Ward wins - he is secured the weakest opponent in the semis and is almost certainly in the final already. If Ward loses, then his way will be much harder.
Can Dirrell even fill an arena in Michigan? Ward can pack Oracle and Arco Arena. Dirrell cant draw for ****.
Oakland was packed, and Joe Louis Arena was about 60% full, but you gotta figure Detroit is a shitty place and everybody there is unemployed. Not to mention the Red Wings can't even sell out that place and that was the first time in a while where there was a big fight in Detroit. I think Dirrell did a nice job of selling that place and it was electric, and Ward has sold out Oakland his last couple of fights with Miranda and Kessler and that place was hoping as well. They both do well in their hometowns and I think at MSG, Atlantic City they would sell out or come close to selling it out.
This could be a close one. I wouldn't want 20,000 rabid fans influencing the decision either. Happens way too often.