Wow... I have absolutely noting but massive respect for Kessler

You always know a great fight when the rounds fly by.

Those 12 rounds...whooosh.

Two great performances, and complimentary words from boh the Calzaghe and Kessler camps (on here), which is refreshing to see.

 

my gf said almost verbatim the exact same thing. she's currently sleeping through marquez-juarez.

 

Yes a poor idiot

 

I think that that sums it up.

 

I totally agree, Kessler really impressed me today, at some points I was absoloutley shitting myself, I almost can't believe Joe pulled it off! It was an absoloutley amazing fight, I can't wait to watch it again. Kessler should go on to do extremely well after this, I hope he get the respect he deserves.

 

I don't think there's any chance in hell that Kessler would dominate Pavlik - he might be able to beat Hopkins or Tarver because Hopkins isn't at Calzaghe's level speedwise and would be a bit easier target (though Hopkins is also an incredibly smart fighter), and Tarver hasn't looked impressive in a LONG time.

Pavlik, however, just came off of one of the most impressive and courageous wins I've ever seen against Jermain Taylor. Let's not disrespect Pavlik just because Kessler looked good tonight - Pavlik's power is beyond Kessler's in my opinion (which doesn't mean he would beat Joe because I think Kessler is a bit quicker than Pavlik, and if he couldn't find the answer I can't see Pavlik finding it).

The bottom line, to echo everyone else's sentiment, is that this was one of the best fights I've seen all year, and (as was the case with the Taylor vs Pavlik fight) BOTH men earned a tremendous amount of respect in my book. Kessler showed a lot of heart tonight and gave everyone the fight they wanted to see, and I think Joe will be able to adapt to and defeat whoever he chooses for his next fight...

 

Great post - Kessler will be back strong

 

kessler showed absolute heart, great fighter

 

I respect Pavlik but he isn't 1/10th the fighter Kessler is. Losing 7 rounds to 5 to Calzaghe actually impresses me a lot more than stopping Taylor. I know the plan is for him to move up, but Kelly's best chance would be to hold the line at 160; I don't favor him over many elite SMWs, and certainly not Mikkel.

 

I guess we'll just have to agree to disagree on this one - I will give Kessler the edge in speed and defensive skills as I don't think Kelly is quite as quick or smart with his evasiveness, but I'm still convinced Pavlik is a far more powerful puncher (only 3 fights won without a KO). The real question is whether or not Kelly could even catch Kessler with one of those power punches...of that I'm not sure.

I do think Pavlik should at least stay in the middleweight division long enough to take the rematch with Taylor and fight Aurthur Abraham if he continues to stay among the top middleweight contenders. The more I think about it, I would probably have to agree that Kessler is the better OVERALL fighter right now - Pavlik is still young and over time he may improve some of the areas where he needs work, such as his defense and agility.

I'm super impressed with Kessler after this fight. He showed TREMENDOUS heart and gave a great effort, and he's now easily one of my favorite fighters out there. I'll definitely be watching his next fight, as well as Joe's.

 

Kind of like Andrade who also gave a good interview after he was schooled by Kessler. Boxing needs more fighters like that. I hate wannabe thugs and trash talkers.

Give me Kessler, Andrade, Mosley, Cotto and Delahoya over the Toney, Judah, Mayweather, Mayorga etc...

 

I'd like to see Kessler become a better body puncher

 

I wasn't a big fan of Kessler before this fight but he impressed me with his performance. He fought like a true champion.

 

My scorecard from when i was at the venue was 9-3.
HBO had it 10-2

judges had it 9-3, 8-4, 8-4

Giving it 7-5 is VERY generous to Kessler.

Having said that im under no illusions that Kessler would completely own Pavlik. He does everything Pavlik does but better.

Pavlik is a B+ fighter at best, hes so limited. He's just another American overhyped puncher who isnt in the same league as Calzaghe, or as I found out tonight - Kessler, for that matter.

 

agree with initial post, Kessler surprised me and thought he did extremely well. Would love to see Kessler v Lacy. Should be a good old fashioned tear up.

Well done Joe

Respect to Kessler