Illegal blows, but Ward was going to win...

I thought the same. It leaves a bad taste and isn't good for the sport.

 

Sums it up perfectly in my opinion.

 

cant blame the american judges this time

 

Based on how the judging was going, I agree.

Based on what I think was happening in the fight, I don't agree. Although Round 8 certainly swung things in Ward's favor.

If you're Kovalev, you have to be just done with American reffing and judging. The guy gets seemingly everything against him.

 

Bet everyone would say 'Klitschko was going to win' if the klit Joshua fight had been stopped in that 6th round when Joshua was all over the place staggering around.

Kova could've come back, simple.

Then again, Ward may have done another couple of low blows just to make sure.

 

Not sure if the bodyshot before the right hand was low or not, but regarding the finishing shots:

- They weren't intentional - Ward was going to the body and Kovalev covered up. Stuff like that happens in boxing.
- They were borderline - They landed mostly on the beltline, not on the balls.

Given these circumstances, there's a limit to how much you can accuse Ward of illegal shots.

The stoppage though was definitely bad. As I said earlier, the outcome of the fight that was to follow has absolutely no relevance to what transpired earlier. Whether Ward would have won or not is irrelevant. Kovalev deserved a count. I understand the position of a referee and his responsibility to protect a fighter, but these guys are pro boxers and that profession carries a risk. Kovalev should have been given a count and asked whether he wanted to continue or not.

 

Most sensible post on the matter. Why do fans here go into full discredit mode when their fighter loses? Ward was robbed of a clean victory IMHO. Had the ref given a standing 8 count, Ward would have ended it by stoppage in the next few rounds I feel.

 

I thought a count might have been in order but the way Kova didn't throw back for like 30 seconds and then sat on the ropes looked like he lost his will to fight. You don't recover from bodyshots, they will just get worse.

 

Marlon Tapales has shown you can....he looked totally ****ed Vs Pungluang from body shots...

 

ok let me rephrase, 9/10 times when you get as hurt as Kova did in the body you are done and won't recover. Especially if it comes late in the fight. Kova already had problem with the pace while Andre didn't. There's a very small chance that he comes back to _survive_ the fight let alone win a single round after that point.

 

Weeks stopped it early

Yet Kovalev didn't complain

Ward fought dirty and chippy

Yet Kovalev didn't retaliate

I thought Kovalev was winning again but he really did fold and looked done. Ward hit him low and weeks should not have stopped it but on flip side I really couldn't see Kovalev coming back. He was breathing so heavy and Ward looked stronger than ever

 

Standing 8s are forbidden for alphabet fights and in American fights:

http://boxrec.com/media/index.php/Standing_eight-count