Ward earns light heavyweight boxing title

LAS VEGAS • Andre Ward defeated Sergey Kovalev on Saturday night to win the light heavyweight world title and make a strong case that he is the best pound-for-pound boxer in the world.

In a unanimous decision, Ward improved his perfect record to 31-0 and dealt Kovalev his first defeat in 32 fights as a professional. All three judges scored the fight 114-113. The bout represented a resounding return to prominence for Ward, who had not appeared in a marquee fight in more than four years — a period marred by injury and a dispute with his promoter.

Kovalev established control of the fight early with a powerful left jab that stunned Ward on several occasions. Ward appeared to be measuring opportunities to hit Kovalev and then get inside and smother him before he could return fire. But every time Ward ducked in, Kovalev would swat him off.

With about 40 seconds left in the second round, Kovalev’s power caught up with Ward. Ward threw a looping right hand, but before it could get to Kovalev’s chin, Kovalev answered with a short but powerful straight right hand that sent Ward to the mat. Ward stumbled around the ring for the rest of the round and was saved by the bell.

Kovalev appeared to be imposing his strategy of punishing his opponent with his heavy hands. But Ward managed to start getting in close on Kovalev in the middle of the fight. He would lunge in with a punch, and as Kovalev would try to retaliate, Ward would grab his arms and wrestle him toward the ropes. As the fighters tangled, they attempted to fling each other and poke shots into their opponent’s body at close range.

As the fight wore on, Kovalev stopped throwing the jab that was so effective early in the fight. When he did throw it, it was lazy, and Ward made him pay. In the ninth round, when Kovalev flailed his left hand, Ward easily bent out of the way and fired his own jab that landed squarely on Kovalev’s face.

Ward seemed to find a new bounce in his step and could better evade Kovalev’s punches. Kovalev would swing and Ward would duck low, leaving Kovalev looking as if he were grabbing at the air.

The fight became an actionpacked, back-and-forth affair with both fighters attacking.

In this match, both fighters surpassed milestones that were long overdue for boxers of their talent. Before Saturday night, neither man had headlined a fight card on payper-view. And this was Ward’s first time fighting in Las Vegas — home of boxing’s marquee contests — and Kovalev’s second.

The fight could not have come at a better time — boxing has been looking for a new face as its two biggest stars, Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Manny Pacquiao, begin to fade.

Kovalev, a 33-year-old from a blue-collar steel town in Russia, rose from relative obscurity to develop one of the most feared and brutal fighting styles in the sport. He is rangy, with a booming right hand.

Ward was the last American man to win a gold medal in Olympic boxing, doing so at the 2004 Games in Athens. He is crafty, with evasive defensive skills and powerful attacks when the opportunity presents.