Ward set to eat humble pie this time

Gamesmanship is a ploy that may not work Uncle Sam’s ring warrior tipped to do trick again

THERE is yet another script of the Sergey Kovalev vs Andre Ward episode. After the controversy of their first fight last November when most observers bar me had Kovalev winning the fight, the two light-heavyweights are doing it again, with Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas playing hosts this time on Sunday morning.

In the first fight Ward was moving up a division to challenge the king of the lightheavyweight division, and to these eyes he toppled Kovalev fair and square.

With the exception of the knockdown early in the fight, Kovalev was virtually outhustled for the better part of the bout and the verdict in favour of Ward was spot on.

Now they are doing it again due to a rematch clause in the first fight. I expect the outcome to be similar to the first fight but this time it will be ugly as I foresee Ward holding on the inside, working his jab more on the outside.

Kovalev will be more aggressive than he was in the first fight but I think he will be frustrated by Ward’s grappling antics, resulting in both employing roughhouse antics which will spark boos from the crowd.

Expect both boxers to have points deducted for foul play, but this situation will favour Ward, who excels at this kind of fight.

Kovalev will try to throw more uppercuts to counter Ward’s crouching style but after all is said and done, Ward’s hand will be raised again in a forgettable fight.