Andre Ward won his rematch with Sergey Kovalev on Saturday night in Las Vegas via 8th-round stoppage in what was viewed by some — including Ward himself — as a controversial finish.
Ward won the last meeting between the two by unanimous decision, but this time he received a TKO victory after referee Tony Weeks stopped the fight in the 8th. What was odd was Weeks allowed Ward to connect on multiple punches that appeared to be close to Kovalev’s groin. Ward even acknowledged in his post-fight interview that the punches were “borderline.”
Here’s video of Ward’s comments to HBO’s Max Kellerman:
He waited for his chance….and took care of business #AndreWard pic.twitter.com/VLv1DZ9H4F
— Jeff G. (@TheSportsDude) June 18, 2017
And another look at the shots:
— Streetfight Bancho (@streetfitebanch) June 18, 2017
Andre Ward "Crushes" the Krusher! #WardKovalev2 pic.twitter.com/M7bp6u9QtR
— The Sports Junky (@TheSportsJunky1) June 18, 2017
The big punch from Ward certainly came on his right hand that set up the borderline body shots, but Weeks still should have stepped in for a warning or to separate them and give Kovalev a 10-count after the first questionable punch.
Ward is now 32-0 (16 KOs) with the win, while Kovalev drops to 30-2-1, with both losses coming to Ward.
