Andre Ward and Sergey Kovalev meet Saturday night in Las Vegas in a rematch of their controversial fight last November where Ward won a unanimous decision to capture the light heavyweight championship.
Ward won the first fight between the two by a 114-113 margin on all three judges' scorecards, earning the USA boxer the IBF, WBA, and WBO championships.
The reactions naturally ranged from "Ward cheated, Kovalev got screwed" to "There were no low blows, Kovalev is a pussy", because not many people in boxing are game for considering a world that's less than black and white.
"I think it was plain to see that I broke him mentally and physically", Ward (32-0, 16 KOs) said afterward. It doesn't mean you stop a fight every time somebody gets hurt.
"He was reacting to my body shots and I knew I had him".
The pound-for-pound elite fighters met again in a rematch before a crowd of 10,592 at the Mandalay Bay Events Center, and Ward left no doubt this time, knocking Kovalev out in the eighth round, much to the delight of the pro-Ward crowd. Kovalev sat on the ring rope, and the referee signaled an end to the bout at 2:29 of the eighth round.
Kovalev (30-2-1, 26 knockouts) sent Ward to the canvas in the first fight, and while he landed several big shots in the rematch, once again he failed to close the deal and appeared to tire after the sixth round. But there were a couple of times when I was crying, because I thought we'd have to postpone the fight. He just happened to be so good that he could fight in an entirely different style and not just defeat, but stop the second best fighter in the world-a full-blown, big light heavyweight.
The 33-year-old American extended his flawless career record to 32 wins from 32 in an impressive performance, albeit with a controversial ending, at the Mandalay Bay Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas. In that fight Ward came back from a second round knockdown to win a decision by one point on all three ringside scorecards.
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But a brilliant sand shot put the ball to about four feet for birdie. "And I just couldn't stand the fact that I'd only won once". The margin of victory was four strokes and the winning total was 16 under, equaling the lowest score in relation to par in U.S.
Rigondeaux improved to 18-0 with 12 knockouts, while Flores, of Mexico, dropped to 25-1, with 17 KOs. To Ward's credit, he bounced back in the seventh and, in a precursor to how the fight would end, went for the body. "I hope the whole world sees what it's like to get in the ring with me".
'I thought the stoppage was awful, ' said Malignaggi. "After this, we don't want to hear any excuses", Ward said (via ESPN). "I don't feel like it affects me". But the shots forced Kovalev to bend over, and he looked spent.
"He's getting paid by one guy, who for some reason is willing to put out extraordinary amounts of money to watch him fight", Kovalev's promoter, Kathy Duva, said.
"I really don't have a lot to say about whatever they said", Ward said. "It's insane. I want to get again a fight with him". That's the kind of stuff that I've been dealing with since I've been a kid.
"I've never been the best, but I've always worked the hardest", Ward said.
Kovalev seemed to get the early advantage with his aggressiveness as he pressed forward with his punches while backing Ward up with a straight jab. At the time of the stoppage Ward led on two of the three judges' cards. Ward right to the body. I don't know if he had the right answers tonight.
Ward received a guaranteed $6.5 million payday for the fight.
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