Andre the Giant
By: Andrew Harrison
Category: andre dirrell, andre ward, arthur abraham, carl froch, floyd mayweather, mikkel kessler, muhammad ali, showtime tournament, sonny liston, super six world boxing classic
Wow.
Andre Ward breathed life into Showtime’s Super Six tournament last night, putting on a paint job in victory over the top ranked fighter at 168lbs, Mikkel Kessler.
Kessler was not only a prohibitive favourite in Oakland, he was the bookmaker’s favourite to win the entire tournament, however he found himself completely dominated by Ward, who produced one of the finest breakthrough performances in living memory.
In the build up to the fight, Ward summoned previous examples of US amateur starlets utilising their edge in speed to overcome experience, to illustrate why he, as the underdog, would triumph. He talked of Floyd Mayweather’s trumping of Genaro Hernandez in just his 18th fight in Vegas in ’98, Cassius Clay bamboozling the fearsome Sonny Liston back in ’64 and the wonderful Sugar Ray Leonard outfinessing the masterful Wilfredo Benitez.
For many realists, it seemed fanciful that Ward could emulate those feats, in making the giant leap from whacking out the Shelby Pudwills of this world to battling a hardy championship veteran such as Kessler.
Ward always believed though. A man of great faith, he showed scary resolve. The hullabaloo of big fight week was taken easily in his stride; he had an air of confidence about him which had an authenticity to it. Whereas the tournament’s other Andre, Mr. Dirrell, appeared to be whistling in the dark when he finally came nose to nose with the more experienced Carl Froch at their final presser, Ward looked to have total tunnel vision.
As the bell sounded for round one, we witnessed for the third weekend running just how crucial speed is to a prize fighter. I remember reading an article once, which asked a gaggle of top trainers which asset above all others they looked for in a prospect. It’s a question I’ve often pondered, what would you yourself go for: speed, power, chin, mental toughness, athleticism, ring smarts? Ward’s display had a bit of everything; however his quickness opened everything up for him.
I ruined my recent good picking record by going against Ward at the last minute, after deciding that his pawing jab would lead to his downfall, Kessler nailing him straight down the pipe when he rushed in winging hooks. In the event, Ward made this work for him. After establishing his power from the off with wicked left hooks, Kessler became hesitant to throw punches, the pawing becoming something of a feint which totally wrecked the Dane’s rhythm.
Ward had his man right where he wanted him. Kessler, waiting too long on the outside, allowed the younger man to dictate with hard jabs and thumping hooks, clueless as to what was coming his way next. It looked like a cakewalk but I can’t explain how difficult it is to control someone of Kessler’s class in this way, it was sublime boxing.
Ward’s composure was awe inspiring, boxing smoothly from the southpaw stance for the most part (which also messed Kessler about brilliantly) his versatility allowed him to switch back to orthodox as he pleased, making it appear effortlessly smooth and seamless.
From the footage I managed to grab (slightly less than HD quality), Ward at times resembled Roy Jones, his speed, athleticism and effective hooking comparable with that of the former pound for pound king in his pomp.
I’m confident that if Ward had the mindset of say a Floyd Mayweather, he’d have been content to coast home, however one had a sense that he had come to fight his heart out, and the fact that his sweet boxing allowed him complete control of the bout, wasn’t going to stop him from fighting Kessler.
Ward went inside to batter his man and in doing so, there were several head clashes which resulted in the various cuts and lesions over Kessler’s eyes and on his right cheek which eventually led to the fight’s conclusion. After a horrible gash opened up over the Dane’s right eyelid, referee Jack Reiss consulted the ringside physician who terminated proceedings, the fight then going to the judge’s cards.
All three returned Ward as the victor, however quite where Mikael Hook found three rounds for Kessler is beyond me. Ward took every session.
It was a wonderful performance, one which suggests Ward belongs alongside the very best fighters in the sport and one which Showtime’s bigwigs must be clapping their hands over. A decisive Kessler win here would have severely dented US interest and would probably have hurt the tournament overall, with the odds in all likelihood shortening on Messrs Abraham and Kessler becoming eventual finalists.
Ward’s emergence (and what an emergence) not only installs him as a likely winner, it makes a Kessler-Froch fight in the second round appear far more competitive. I’ll explore just what the first round of bouts means for the tournament in great detail in the coming days. For now Andre Ward deserves all of the limelight.
Wow.
