Okay guys I just finished watching the fight and here's what I saw. The knockdown- Obviously the biggest point in the fight as Kovalev beat Ward to the punch with a straight right as Ward was throwing his own. After the knock down Ward's right hand disappeared on the outside. I don't think he threw a right to the head until round 9. Kovalev looked much bigger and stronger then Ward and was able to move him in the clinch quite a lot easier than I expected. Part of it is size and part of it was the type of clinch he was using. This content is protected The double underhook clinch that Sergei kept on going to allowed him to put Ward into the ropes a lot and stifle some of his inside game. That and the elbow on the neck as Ward ducked in low. Ward did a lot of good body work on the inside though. It slowed Kovalev down quite a bit and is probably responsible for him getting back into the fight after dropping a few of the early rounds. That and the reemergence of the right hand late. Dealing with a jab or body jab is one thing, dealing with the right hand following it is a different story. Ward was just a bit too cautious with it. Oh and speaking of the jab, Ward never really had an answer for it. Very few attempts to counter it at all, it would have gone a long way to stopping Sergei from taking at least a couple of those middle rounds if he had to think before he threw it. Ward just used it as an opportunity to get to the inside where he was a bit better off, but Sergei jab was sharper and it made a case for him controlling the fight. I thought a point should have been taken from Ward when he grabbed Kovalev's legs as he pushed him back. That was a blatant foul. Overall I had Kovalev up by 3 points. A bad decision in my view but not a totally blatant robbery. Thoughts?
I don't think it was a bad decision nor a robbery. I thought it was a close decision and whoever received the benefit of it was cool with me.
TBH I really don't care who wins a fight most of the time. The technique fascinates me. If anything I was biased against Kovalev going in after what he did to Hopkins, who is one of my all time favorite fighters. All good either way.
The knockdown had Ward afraid to really try to counter Kov's jab. That knockdown really came from a basic 1-2 trap. Ward would dodge and try to counter the jab and then Kov just caught him with as straight right. It is simple, but nuanced. Early on he tricked Ward into thinking that nothing would come after the jab, and then when he reacted like there was nothing he was immediately punished for it. This made Ward afraid to really try to capitalize off of any missed jabs. Smart move on Kov's part.
Everyone voting for Ward says it was close and could have gone either way. Kovalev was the champ who had to chase Ward the entire fight. He landed more punches, including power shots, and didn't instigate any of the dirty tactics that Ward blatantly exhibited throughout. How then did Ward get the decision as the challenger? You dont earn victory by just surviving, especially as the contender. Corruption in boxing. No other logical explanation. Admit that to yourselves. It is blatantly obvious.
Your original post sums up everything well...you mentioned something interesting here that I was literally just about to mention. If Sergey had SIMPLY just kept up with the jab, it would've been a clear decision for Sergey - Ward had no answer for it and would go back to reset. Sergey was able to have Ward moving back the way he would make his previous opponents do. What Sergey follows up from the jab is dangerous or at least scoring punches.
