Dawson-Ward Dawson was dead at the weight, that's my opinion anyway. He looked fairly sharp early on, but as the bout progressed, you could see how much making the weight had taken out of him. This is nothing against Ward though, I would much rather compliment Wards performance than blame it on weight draining, etc. Dawson agreed to the weight, no one forced him after all. Wards feinting and parrying of Dawsons jab made it almost none existent from early on, this allowed him to close the distance from the outside, and start the great success he had. Dawson had a bit of success with the right hook as Ward rushed in, early, but this didn't last long. Wards targeting of the right hand to the mid section of Dawson did him wonders (one of the best examples of consistently targeting the body I've seen in a while). Very smart actually. A boxer coming down in weight, get those body shots in for insurance. Straight right and finishing on the left hook worked a treat. The above is a great example of actually studying your opponent, you can believe what Ward said before the bout, his whole life is Chad Dawson up until fight time. Ward struggled early on with the southpaw stance, particularly in the 3rd, was losing out quite a bit in terms of foot placement (although still getting his shots off)...that was until the knockdown, and if you notice, that was probably the first time that round that he managed to get superior foot placement. Once again impressed by Wards judge of distance, unbelievably good in terms of foot defense, then his explosiveness and judge of distance to get himself in position to land his own shots. Great to see, one of the best in the sport, or arguably the best at the minute at it. It's going to take something special to beat him anytime soon IMO. Very little doubt that he will be the next P4P #1 once a few names leave the sport. Charr-Vitali Vitali is showing his age quite a bit now (he has in his last couple bouts)...particularly in his legs and movement. I wouldn't be surprised if he retires now, I always thought the Haye bout would convince him to stick around after this one, but I actually think Haye has a very good chance in this match up now. I gave Haye a slight, slight chance in this match up a few years back (I gave Haye more chance against Wlad a few years back based on the punchers chance alone) but now, I actually think he could catch him at the right time. Vitali's movement is now limited, his reflexes are not quite the same, he is never going to fight with his hands up. As a result of this, he was more upright than usual IMO last night, he was there to be hit by a very good opponent (not Charr, but if he was in with a very good opponent). Although Charr did catch him a couple of times, his punches had nothing on them. Against an explosive opponent like Haye, it makes it interesting. Vitali has a great chin, but no chin is indestructible. Whether Haye has the power, accuracy, or if he is good enough to land consistently on that chin is another question. It certainly makes it interesting though.
Good analysis, Ward's inside work was amazing not seen a dominant inside showing like that in a long time.
Good post, Ant. Ward's first knockdown was reminiscent of what Pac likes to do (with the stances reversed). Throw the straight downstairs to distract and follow it up with the other hand up top. A carbon copy of the knockdown: This content is protected And yes, Vitali should just retire. He's facing a smiliar scenario to what Lennox Lewis was all those years ago. He knows his body is ageing and it's not worth sticking around any longer for a younger, dangerous guy to take advantage of him.
:good That's what I missed out. Very, very clever on the inside, positions himself very well...if he has one hand free, he allows himself to get shots off, whether it be shots to the body, or some stinging uppercuts. Really great to see.
Aye, great example. Distracts them with a shot to the body (whether it lands or not) which a lot of the time removes the lead hand from a defensive position and leaves a gap for the hook up top. :good Haye v Vitali a few years back I would have loved to see. I just don't like seeing boxers go on past when they should. Particularly a dominant boxer like Vitali who I would have put money on Vitali destroying a few years ago. I'd still watch it, but not quite the same, especially if Haye were to pick up the win.
Cheers :good I'd probably still favour Vitali, just for the simple fact he wants to hurt Haye. Haye wouldn't show the activity he showed against Chisora either. Interesting bout though, still. Caught up on all the boxing now. Matthysse v Ajose was ****ing awesome. DeMarco...well...
Good post. I honestly think Ward is the best fighter in the game right now. He's already a star in boxing terms, I'm not sure if he can ever be quite the star Pac and Floyd are in terms of popularity, though.
:good He is providing more evidence to that argument with each bout. In terms of P4P, the likes of Mayweather and Pacquiao have longevity on their side. I agree with your last statement, can't ever see him being a global superstar along the lines of those two, but in terms of actual boxing fans and the like, they know.
