Ward has not made the super middleweight since the fall of 2013, when he won a twelve round decision over Edwin Rodriguez.
Advertisement
Andre Ward remained undefeated on Saturday night (Aug. 6), when he easily cruised to a unanimous decision over Alexander Brand at Oracle Arena in Oakland, CA. The fight was bad, Ward took a unanimous decision against an opponent so hopelessly overmatched that HBO openly acknowledged it during the broadcast. And how did their final preparation bouts going into the big prize fight work out for Kovalev and Ward in their respective bouts against Chilemba and Brand? While fans can be disappointed with how boring this fight was, Ward had no incentive whatsoever to open up and take the kinds of risks needed to knock out a strong-chinned (though limited) veteran like Brand. The Colombian didn’t seem inclined to go on the offensive through the first three rounds, leaving Ward content to sit back and time some crisp shots to the body.
As things stand, opinion may have shifted slightly towards Ward as favourite in the November 19th showdown, but don’t write off a man as powerful and determined as Kovalev – who has also shown excellent boxing skills in the past. But before and after the cut Brand never showed any urgency.
Andre Ward has not fought for two years from 2013, except to combat legal issues against his promoter. “We tried to press it”.
“I’ve seen her lose some of these fights”.
“People have to weigh in the amount of time I have been doing this, which is all my life”, Ward said.
Last Saturday’s premium cable sparring match between Andre Ward and Alexander Brand, dubbed “one of the absolute unnecessary fights in the history of HBO Boxing” by The Tribune’s very own Danny Howard, was a fine example of how terrible this shit has become.
“Sergey Kovalev is not on my mind at all”.
“If I’m not successful there is no fight down the road with me and Sergey Kovalev and I’m very clear about that, it’s not just a fight for me”.
Those digging for deeper meaning in Ward-Brand will find none. Ward, however, continued to go for the stoppage and was able to catch Brand with several hard right crosses. I am ready too. He didn’t have any soft touches. (Kovalev) got past his step, I need to get past mine. He wasn’t protected. And he wasn’t really pushed by the media. The same could not be said for Ward-Brand. He is a guy who should get a lot more credit than he has. He wants to make a statement ahead of the showdown with Kovalev (30-0-1, 26 KOs), the fearsome Russian puncher, = a fight that could propel the victor to the top of the pound-for-pound list. That fight has already been pencilled in for November 19 in Las Vegas.
Advertisement
According to Virgil Hunter, Andre Ward’s trainer, “Brand is a hard puncher and we don’t take him lightly because he is a risky bump on the road who could ruin Ward’s plans”.
