11.02.05 – By Coach Tim Walker – tpwalker@hotmail.com – From the beginning of the bout you could tell that Kenny Kost was smaller and bit slower. Andre Ward started the bout off with a blazingly clean left jab and an un-telegraphed left hook. Kost who had been verbally attacking Ward via the media and Internet was losing the round until he caught Ward with a baseball right hand-left upper hook type punch that buckled the knees of Ward.. The crowd immediately responded with cheers of amazement. Kost jumped on Ward but couldn’t finish the deal. Ward survived but lost the round.
In the second round, Ward came out the same way. Each fighter took turns leading but it was Ward who pressed the action though slightly. With about 30 seconds left in the round Ward trapped Kost in the corner and hit him with a jab that caused Kost to blink and paw at his right eye. I gave Ward the round because he pressed the action and Kost didn’t jump on him after hurting him in the first round.
The third round started with Ward again slightly pressing the action. By this stage it was obvious that both fighters are counter punchers. At 2 minutes Ward hit Kost with a combo that sent him back about 3 feet. Half way thru the round Ward seemed to get the cobwebs out and seemed much sharper. I gave this round to Ward.
Round four was more of the same with Ward slightly pressing the action. Kost’s offense slowed down considerably and with 10 seconds left Ward and Kost clashed heads, which caused a cut on Kost’s face. I gave this round to Ward.
Kost, though game, was not pressing the action. The tell-tell all of the fight up to this point was the fast jab of Ward. Ward continually switched from conventional to southpaw throughout the fight, which seemed to keep Kost off balance. By one minute of round 5 Kost was a bloodied fighter. At the end of the round Kost corner reprimanded him for toying around in the ring. Ward won this round.
In round 6, Ward was trying to finish the show. He became slightly more aggressive but was never out of control. It was all Ward. I gave this round to Ward also, which made it 5 rounds Ward, 1 round Kost.
Analysis of Ward: He is a quick young fighter who has a quick jab. He also hooks off the jab very well. He carries his hands a bit low, which is typical of fast handed fighters. However, he does not through enough body shots. Though he has good power he is going to need to mix in some bodywork to take on tougher opponents. I would assume that he is making his way down to middleweight because he doesn’t seem to have super-middleweight power. Still, he is a well-spoken fighter who has a boyish appeal and an honest approach. If he can stay on track and string together some wins he will be a superstar in the sport.
Tim Walker