Opinions on Andre Ward?

For what it's worth, Dawson himself said after the fight last night that the weight wasn't an issue.

 

I've yet to see the Dawson fight, sadly. But I've been highly impressed by Ward so far and don't expect it to change after seeing the fight.

He's done a better job in cleaning out a division than what's usually the case and he's done so in impressive fashion. That he decisively beat a very good, naturally bigger champion does nothing to diminish that - even with the issue of weight.

I'd like to see him against Dirrell now. That's perhaps what's left for him at this weight.

 

I think he would've handled Chad at 175 and it would've been a bigger achievement.

A great SMW already but if he goes up to 175lbs and cleans house then he'd be an ATG fighter.

Chang-esque with his tricky inside game. But really poor punching form for the most part.

I agree with S_S's breakdown of Ward as a McGirt-level operator. But you can only beat what's in front of you and Ward has textbook stand-up European fighters, awkward beasts and now the stereotypical uber-boring southpaw stylist among his scalps. Forcing the stoppage adds to this win because Dawson, and I've been saying this for years, has so many deficiencies in his application it's unreal.

When I met Jean Pascal at the Froch-Dirrell fight I told him this. I told him that Dawson didn't concentrate much, took rounds off and could be outworked if you picked your spots and evaded him in the rare occasions he decided to let his hands go.

Ward was able to handcuff him and shut him down further. But Dawson seemed a lesser physical force than Lalonde against Leonard. And he was never all that strong anyway.

For me, Ward is the best in the game today. A big fan, even though his Christianity makes me think lesser of him as a human being

 

I think Ward is the best fighter in boxing right now. This fight was significant as well as impressive...and quite stupid for Dawson. This is why I admire fighters who stay in a particular weight class instead of hopping around so much. Dawson should have known that 165 wasn't his weight class. Ward deserves credit regardless of any "drained by weight " issues brought forth by either Dawson or anyone else.

 

It's news to me that dawson didn't blame any weight issues..well, good for him, because he has no excuses..Ward was just superior.

 

168 :good

And yes, Chad was classy in defeat.

 

What exactly do you have against christians. If it makes him a better person, than there is nothin you can really complain about. It's a personal choice, heathen.

 

No harm in being a McGirt-level talent. Buddy did well for himself. I do think Ward will have a better career than Buddy. Ward is very, very good. A win over Dirrell will cement his claim as possibly a top 2 SMW of all time.

 

Dirrell isn't significant enough for me to care about Ward beating him.

I'm not dossing McGirt either. I'm an admirer. But he's not on that level of ability.

 

This is what Dawson said after the fight:

http://www.eastsideboxing.com/2012/ward-dismantles-dawson/#more-1434

Classy in defeat, Dawson said: “I did everything I had to do to prepare for this fight. He (Ward) was a lot faster than I thought he was. He is strong too. I don’t take anything away from him because he is definitely one of the best. I just felt like I couldn’t get anything off tonight. I didn’t have a problem with the weight; the weight was fine. I am going to go back to 175 and decide what I am going to do next. Andre Ward is a hell of a champion.”

 

In my book he clearly beat Froch, so that makes him undefeated with wins over Abrams and Froch. That, and Dirrell's style, is enough to make it interesting IMO.

 

Personaly I don't see Ward as having much to prove at 168, and I don't see anybody who can beat him at 175.

He should be looking at becoming a multi weight class champion now.

 

Why has this been moved? This was to get perspective from some sane posters and not the usual dross you get on here.

 

I was there. Froch won.

I watched it on DVD when I got home. Dirrell won.

Negative tactics, lack of regular fighting and like Dawson a seemingly similar lack of mental strength mean I don't see him as a major player in the division.

Far better options for Ward IMO. Dirrell didn't want any of it and played 'brain injury'.

 

He's very good. He needs to fight Dirrell in a city not called Oakland next. Don't think there's much else left at 168, time to head up to 175. He can clean that out, spend a few years there, and retire.

My main problem with Ward is that I just don't care about him. Like at all, win or lose. I skipped most of the 2nd half of the Dawson fight, as I struggled to find myself caring about it at all.