Former world champion Andre Ward said the winner of next week’s showdown of unbeatens between himself and world light heavyweight champion Sergey Kovalev should be seen as boxing’s pound-for-pound king.
“It would be really hard to go against that, based on both our resumes, and us stepping up and being willing to fight,” Ward said on Tuesday on an international conference call. “The winner of this fight should be pound-for-pound No. 1.”
The bout in Las Vegas on Saturday next week will see Russia’s Kovalev, 30-0 with one draw and 26 knockouts, defend the World Boxing Association, International Boxing Federation and World Boxing Organization crowns for a fifth time since beating Bernard Hopkins for them all in a unification bout.
“This fight is a great opportunity for both of us to show the boxing world who is the best pound-for-pound,” Kovalev said. “It’s going to be a war between us.”
Ward, a 32-year-old American, is 30-0 with 15 knockouts. He was the 2004 Athens Olympics light heavyweight champion, the most recent US fighter to claim Olympic gold.
“I’ve heard people say I’m not the same fighter I was in my 20s and I hope I’m not,” Ward said. “I should be getting better.”
After an 18-month layoff, Ward fights for the third time in 17 months, his most recent triumph a unanimous decision over Colombia’s Alexander Brand three months ago before a hometown crowd in Oakland, California.
“It’s surreal. Fighting as a young kid we never got too caught up in ourselves. I get a little scared to look back on what we’ve accomplished and relish it, because the clock is still ticking. I’m still going. I’ve got to show up and do what I’m still doing. When I do peek back, just for a split second, it’s overwhelming,” Ward said
Ward, who held a share of the world super middleweight crown from 2009 to 2013, said the fight would go beyond easy labels of Kovalev as a big puncher and Ward as an elusive target trying to get rivals off their game.
“If it was just about me being a neutralizer, some of these big punchers would walk right through me. There’s more to me than that,” Ward said. “He’s not a brawler. He thinks in there. We’re ready for whatever he brings. That’s the key. It’s about making constant adjustments.”
Kovalev, 33, had been in talks to fight for an undisputed title with Haitian-born Canadian southpaw Adonis Stevenson, the World Boxing Council champion who is 28-1 with 23 knockouts, but when no deal could be struck, Kovalev surrendered his mandatory challenger rights to face a fighter he said he thinks will be his toughest foe yet.
“He has never lost before, but it’s my job. Let me do it and break his zero,” Kovalev said. “I don’t have any different strategy. My strategy is just to win.”
“He’s in the way of my goals and my dreams. I can’t give this to him. I want to destroy him,” he added.
The pressure was already on Real Madrid coach Xabi Alonso before their 2-1 defeat to Manchester City on Wednesday in the UEFA Champions League raised further questions about his future. Arsenal remain perfect in this season’s competition and three points clear at the top of the standings after a 3-0 win against Club Brugge, while defending champions Paris Saint-Germain were held 0-0 at Athletic Bilbao. The clash between Madrid and City was the standout game of the round amid reports this week that Alonso had lost control of the locker room. Speculation over his position is likely to intensify after the latest
‘HIGH STANDARD’: The Thunder are on track for a Finals-Cup double after they scored 22 three-pointers in equaling the best 25-game start to a season in NBA history The Oklahoma City Thunder on Wednesday bagged a 16th straight victory, thrashing the Phoenix Suns 138-89 to romp into an NBA Cup semi-final clash with the San Antonio Spurs, who stunned the Los Angeles Lakers 132-119. NBA Most Valuable Player Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 28 points to lead the reigning NBA champions Thunder, who improved to 24-1 to equal the best 25-game start to a season in league history. They dominated from start to finish to book their place in the final four of the in-season tournament in Las Vegas, where they are tomorrow to take on the Spurs. The New York Knicks and
TOP OF THE TABLE: Evann Guessand put the visitors ahead early in the game and Flavius Daniliuc equalized before Youri Tielemans got the winner in the second half Aston Villa on Thursday extended their winning streak to eight games in all competitions with a 2-1 victory against Basel in the UEFA Europa League to secure at least a playoff spot. Villa were tied with Olympique Lyonnais, who beat Go Ahead Eagles 2-1, and Midtjylland, 1-0 winners over Genk, atop the standings of the second-tier European competition on 15 points with five wins from six games. They have bounced back from a poor start to the season and are third in the Premier League, including a 2-1 victory over leaders Arsenal on Saturday. At St Jakob-Park in Basel, summer signing Evann Guessand
Tony Jefferson intercepted a Jalen Hurts pass in overtime to give the Los Angeles Chargers a 22-19 victory over the Philadelphia Eagles on Monday in an NFL thriller between playoff contenders. Justin Herbert, playing a week after surgery on his broken left (non-throwing) hand, withstood a career-high seven sacks to throw for 139 yards and a touchdown for the Chargers. Cameron Dicker kicked five field goals, including the 54-yard game winner in overtime. The Chargers defenders forced Hurts to throw four interceptions and surrender a fumble for a career-worst five turnovers as the Eagles fell to 8-5 with a third
RSS