Hey All. Do you guys think Prime Matt Saad Muhammad can beat Current Andre Ward?

100%. Dawson has nothing to offer Saad. One of the least competitive matchups I can possibly think of.

 

Ward is undersized and underpowered here. MSM is more accurate and will be landing the cleaner, harder punches.

Ward's physical style won't work against the bigger, stronger guy in MSM.

 

This said Chad Dawson this morning.

And didn't this guy do this exact same thread the other week? Or something similar.

Ward brings little stylistically to a fight with Saad. Saad had tremendous uppercuts and the jab to give Ward issues.

 

I might go with Ward in the upset here. Saad just spent so much time in 3rd gear and not really pressing the action until he got busted up or tagged good. Then, he puts it in 4th gear and watch out. But he so often fought in that 3rd gear of his and nobody ever had a hard time landing on Saad.

I think Ward pulls a negative type fight and certainly doesn't trade. Or even try to hurt him but just pick and peck and stink out the joint in a safety first effort. Never provide openings and make Saad use his feet. But I can picture him pulling it off and Saad not gritting his teeth and doing his non-aggressive thing instead of pressing on the gaspedal.

 

I can just as easily envision Saad jabbing Ward's head off like he did Yaqui Lopez. Can't see Ward being effective enough to win a decision.

 

But that's Lopez and he was another guy not hard to hit. All of those Saad opponents back then were traders or easy to hit. That was one of the factors of that Qawi fight--Saad was going to have to break down a guy's defense and not having a silver platter for him.

I don't think of Ward as the silver platter type guy.

 

He certainly broke down Conteh, who'd looked back to his best in that fight.

Ward would struggle in that era of LHWs IMO. Kates would beat him IMO.

 

I think Ward is at the right weight class right now; I really don't think he's big enough for 175 in a grand sense, though the current weakness of the division might help him if he moves up.

Historically, though, I think Ward is a bit undersized. He'd struggle.

 

Let's say Ward is perfectly adequate fighting Saad, weighing in at 172 or whatnot...how would this go down stylistically? Can Ward stifle Saad for the duration?

 

you yourself raised a good point with the lopez fight; saad had a great jab when he used it and he was more than the all action brawler he's remembered for. saad could box when needed, brawl when needed and had the power to take ward's head off if he leaves himself open (which he occasionally does).

i was VERY impressed with ward against dawson and he is shaping up to be a hell of a fighter. but against a bigger, stronger, MUCH harder hitting saad i don't see his spoiling being nearly as effective

 

Question is if he can shut out Carl Froch and make a mockery of a weight drained Dawson, can he do enough to win enough rounds against a much better opponent?

Maybe he could. A fighter of real quality is Ward. But Saad? Dunno. I wouldn't think so.

 

Ward has an ugly, and for lack of a better term, sloppy style. It doesn't appear that he's landing clean shots very often, but he's undoubtedly effective, so maybe he's landing more than the camera work reveals... He smothers himself and he's pretty physical; that doesn't go very far against Muhammad.

He (Ward) jumps in to land sneaky punches, but you need to land consistently, hard, and clean on Matthew to whip him, and sometimes that isn't even enough.

At some point in the fight, MSM is going to get sick of being outmaneuvered and having rounds stolen by punches he doesn't respect (very much), and he's gonna get active.

In other words, Ward is effective for a time, stealing rounds with his spoiling, but at some point Matthew is gonna turn up the heat, and that's when Ward gets burned.

 

That's a fair analysis Dave. I can see that.

 

Ward, Dawson, Hopkins,.....Saad would have steamrolled all of them.