Why don't we hear more about Kovalev's unlikely rise to the top of boxing

nice one--and indeed, an interesting life story Mr Kovalev has.

Before Sergei, no one in Kovalev's family had earned their living from boxing, but Kovalev's mom--a heavy equipment operator in a former tank factor in Chelyabinsk, whose employer frequently paid her in food in lieu of a salary during much of the 90's--was (perhaps still is) a frequent street fighter. (Kovalev describes her as "a little bit crazy")

no doubt, a boxing pedigree is a huge head-start--eg, Mayweather, Eubank

but personally i'd never bet against a guy with a pedigree like Sergei's

i've heard several stories from boxing fans who have run into to Kovalev at nightclubs, etc. and recognized him; the common theme among them is that he's a a really decent human, a regular guy who appreciates his fans and loves to talk boxing with them when he has time.

aside from his skills in the ring, what has always impressed me about SK, is how he handled the death of Roman Simakov--the fighter who died three days after he lost to SK in a 2001 bout.

Simakov's parents were furious at SK; among other things, they filed a criminal complaint with the police

Simakov's former trainer, nore the bout's referee were ever under police scrutiny though

despite all of this, SK made a number of polite requests--all refused--to visit Simakov's parents to offer his condolences in person

Kovalev took half a year off from boxing after the Simakov fight

Kovalev donate what he earned from his next bout to Simakov's family

 

Probably because he's born in the "wrong" country and was supposed to get the bad guy image in the US because of it.

His story is truly amazing, and the guy that believed in him and used his own money to bring him up, deserves a shout out as well.