https://youtu.be/esY5WwPdyZs
Saturday March 14th at the Bell Centre in Montreal, the best light heavyweight in the world puts his titles on the line against Canada’s finest, Jean Pascal. And while Adonis Stevenson, the linear champion at 175 pounds, has his own upcoming defense against the shop-worn Sakio Bika, make no mistake – Saturday’s match in Montreal is for the real light heavyweight championship of the world.
Sergey “Krusher” Kovalev
“This fight preparation was totally hard, it’s hot because it is Miami. It’s hard work in the gym and obviously it’s hot outside. Every day is good. Every fight preparation for me is very important whether it is title fight or not.
[About being favored to win] “I am not worried at all about this because if favorite or not favorite, underdog or not underdog, it doesn’t matter. I don’t care about it.
Sergey “Krusher” Kovalev (26-0-1, 23 KOs), the current WBO, WBA and IBF Light Heavyweight World Champion, and Jean Pascal (29-2-1, 17 KOs), the former WBC and Lineal Light Heavyweight Champion and Current holder of the WBC Diamond Belt, addressed the U.S. media in New York City in advance of their March 14 fight for the WBO, WBA and IBF Light Heavyweight Championships. Kovalev has been named The Fighter of the Year by the WBO, Sports Illustrated, BleacherRepor, New York Post, USA Today and many others and today received his WBA and IBF Light Heavyweight World Championship Ring from Kathy Duva, CEO of Main Events.
(Note: In the fourth installment of a week long breakdown, boxing scribe Vivek “Vito” Wallace analyzes where today’s top fighters stand, and whether or not 2015 could be the year many of them fall. This week long analysis will cover over 30 top fighters from around the world)
GUILLERMO RIGONDEAUX
For the best boxer of this era to rise from the Cuban ranks, 2014 was far from eventful. After a stunning 2013 that saw him defeat both Donaire and Agbeko, 2014 saw him destroy an unknown fighter in China, and forcibly scrape himself off the canvas twice against an unknown fighter in Japan. Definitely not the level of competition you’d like to see from a fighter none as “boring”.
Recently, ESPN named Terence Crawford as their Fighter of the Year for 2014 due to his wins over Raymundo Beltran, Yuriorkis Gamboa and Ricky Burns. However, only the Gamboa fight was truly interesting to watch, and the Burns fight really proved nothing given how poor Burns has looked since then.
Gamboa is really a pumped up featherweight who had no business fighting in the lightweight division against a fighter the size of Crawford. The Crawford-Beltran fight was not an interesting fight to watch due to Crawford’s constantly clinching each time Beltran would get in position to throw a punch. It was not great television, believe me.
IBF/WBA/WBO light heavyweight champion Sergey Kovalev (26-0-1, 23 KOs) is looking to get an exception by the International Boxing Federation in order for him to bypass #1 IBF mandatory challenger Nadjib Mohammedi so that Kovalev can defend his titles against 32-year-old former WBC 175 pound champ Jean Pascal (29-2-1, 17 KOs) on March 14th next year at a still to be determined venue.
With WBC champion Adonis Stevenson taking his time in defending his title against Pascal, Kovalev is looking to move on in and take out Pascal before Stevenson has a chance. It will then give Kovalev an opportunity to beat Pascal before facing Stevenson at some point in the future if he can get him to agree to the fight.
Main Events and InterBox are proud to announce that an agreement has been reached to present a fight between the reigning unified WBO, IBF and WBA Light Heavyweight World Champion, Sergey “Krusher” Kovalev (26-0-1, 23 KOs) and former WBC and The Ring Light Heavyweight Champion, Jean Pascal (29-2-1, 17 KOs). The fight is to take place in Montréal or Québec City on Saturday, March 14, 2015, but it is contingent on Pascal prevailing over Bolonti on December 6 and on the IBF granting Kovalev a special exception to postpone his mandatory title defense against Nadjib Mohammedi.
This mega-bout will be televised live in the United States on HBO. Further details will be announced at a later date. Pascal’s fight at the Bell Centre December 6 was already a very important one for his career, but this possibility brings it to a whole new level. Kathy Duva, CEO of Main Events, will be watching the fight with Jean Bédard, as she has accepted the invitation extended by the InterBox president to join him ringside at the gala.
Sergey “Krusher” Kovalev – WBO, WBA and IBF Light Heavyweight World Champion
“Hello everyone thank you so much for everything. I already changed diapers. I already lost track of how many diapers, maybe 15 or so. It is easy because I have experience with my nephews. My older sister has two babies so I have done this a lot. Beating Hopkins is a little bit more dangerous than changing diapers but he peed on my hand when I changed him. It is most important to be here with my family.
Sergey “Krusher” Kovalev 25-0-1(23KO) managed to bundle up three light heavyweight titles (WBA, IBF, & WBO) with his one-sided win over Bernard Hopkins at the Boardwalk Center, Atlantic City, N.J. The main point of interest, prior to the opening belt, was an expectation that sooner or later the experienced oldster Bernard “Alien” Hopkins 55-7-2 (32KO) would manage to set a trap. When the bait was taken, Hopkins would nail the Russia hard enough to start the ball rolling in his favor. After all, the Krusher, according to Hopkins, was a crude brawler, whose defense was porous, someone ready to be exploited.
The main reason or interest in the fight was Hopkins’ advanced age, and that carried through, even thought the ring action was one-sided. But, unlike other one-sided affairs, there remained the faint hope in the wily old fox. Might he once again shock the boxing world? The odds were against it. The likelihood of an upset grew even fainter when Philly’s own went down from a glancing right hand in the first round. The question of whether Krusher could hurt the veteran was answered.
The pre-fight build up and the suspense had obviously gotten to both Sergey Kovalev and Bernard Hopkins as they showed uncharacteristic body language while waiting for the opening bell on Saturday night at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, New Jersey. Kovalev was unusually restless and had an urgent expression while Hopkins’s face was hidden behind his new mask but he looked artificial and stiff walking aimlessly around the ring. Hopkins tried too hard to appear nonchalant and refused to touch gloves with Kovalev who tried to show respect to the veteran but cared little for his mind games.
Round 1- timing is of the essence. Kovalev lost all respect after the bell, he took center ring and stalked Hopkins who openly refused to engage and started trying to buy time while conserving energy. “The Krusher” did not rush forward; he gave Hopkins the courtesy of “feeling him out”, adjusting the range and testing his reflexes. Midway through the round Kovalev’s demeanor changed, he raised his head from behind the guard, his expression softened and he started “walking in the park”, it was his fight already and he knew the reason.