With 2017 being one of the best years for boxing in a long time we are about to be treated to another fantastic matchup , no I’m not talking about Paul Smith vs Tyron Zeuge, I’m talking about Andre Ward vs Sergy Kovalev II .

Since Andre Ward’s  contriversial points win in November to take the Russians titles  , Kovalev and his team have been on the offensive in the build up to this one. When i first seen some of the comments Kovalev was making i thought “He’s trying psych Ward out” but now i genuinely believe he is out to really hurt Ward .

Sergey Kovalev “I don’t have a prediction. I just have one goal to beat Andre Ward and beat all the s— from him because he doesn’t deserve the belt and the status of a champion. I want to put him back in his place.”

Now to a mere man like myself, I would be fucking shitting myself to go in the ring with Kovalev after seeing this , but Andre Ward is no normal man. Ever since the first fight Kovalev vigorously disputed the cards, and for me he has let that turn to hate , there have even been allegations of racist comments toward Ward which i won’t go into . This hatred can go one of two ways for Kovalev, the hate might bring out a performance like Frazier/Ali I, if that hate can be focussed there is every chance he could become a killing machine when doubled with his frightening power , or we could see the hate manifest like it did when Tyson took on Holyfeild and result in Ward picking him off and humiliating the big Russian.

Andre Ward is the superstar that never was , a man who gets nowhere near the credit he is due . Ward’s life has everything a great story needs, from a very hard upbringing with drug addict parents, to Olympian ,to now one of the best P4P fighters in the world ,so why isn’t he a household name ? . Well to be fair Ward looks like a difficult person to deal with,he is also very paranoid about the media ,with good cause . This makes Ward a bit of a hit or a miss with fans . Ward again as he did in the first fight has done very little to promote this grudge match ,which leaves all the soundbites for Sergy Kovalev to fill , which in turn wins the Russian more fans but leaves Ward like a forgotten man, well until fight night at least . All Wards personality comes out in the ring, he really is a master at taking your strength away from you , for him to just pick you off . Watching Andre Ward in the ring isn’t like watching any ordinery boxer. Ward turns the fight into a game chess, where every move must be thought out well in advance .

Andre Ward on fight “I think the first fight was a great fight. I think there was a lot of drama in the first fight, more drama than I wanted,” said Ward. “I think it was a tremendous fight and I believe, round two is going to be a tremendous fight.”

Prediction :

This fight boils down to Aggression/Power vs Skill/Ringcraft , Can Kovalev set out to hurt Ward without being exploited ? , I really don’t think so . Nobody has ever solved the equation of how beat Ward but i doubt its with brute force and anger , chances are Ward will take Kovalev’s aggression and ill temper and use it against him . Kovalev has fantastic power which sent Ward to the canvas in the first fight, he has that one punch power and a fantastic jab, so he has every chance of beating Ward. Who’s my pick ? ….i will say Andre Ward on points, i just feel Ward knows what to expect this time and will look to nullify Kovalev early , i also still have doubts about Kovalev’s gas tank .

Steven Donnell