Green upset with Ward fight postponement

By Jim Dower: Super middleweight contender Allan Green (29-1, 20 KO’s) is less than pleased with the latest postponement by World Boxing Association super middleweight champion Andre Ward for his stage 2 Super Six bout, which was supposed to take place on April 24th in Oakland, California. Ward had to pull out of the fight due to swelling of his right leg. Ward’s doctor said that he will need four to six weeks to rehabilitate and rest his leg.

In the meantime, Green, 30, isn’t happy about it, saying “I fight through bumps, bruises and injuries, and we go through that. I fought Tarvis Simms with a bad right shoulder. If your knee keeps getting hurt, it could be something chronic and you’re probably not going to be ready in six weeks. If your knee is swollen, just take a cortisone shot.” Ward reportedly wants to take the fight with Green, but is hesitant to fight unless he’s 100%.

Ward won his first fight of the tournament with an 11 round technical decision over Mikkel Kessler last year. Ward, a 2004 Olympic Gold Medalist for the United States, showed remarkable skills in that fight, not only beating Kessler but dominating for the full 11 rounds of the fight. The win was so impressive that some boxing experts immediately made Ward the favorite to win the entire Super Six tournament.

Based on how good that Ward looked in beating Kessler and how easily he defeated knockout artist Edison Miranda last year, it’s doubtful that Ward is trying to avoid Green because he’s afraid of him. Green is a good fighter, but he’s not unbeatable. As we saw in his 10 round decision loss to Miranda in 2007, Green can be hurt in a fight if he gets hit with something big.

He also looked timid in the Miranda fight, and spent much of the bout fighting as if he was walking on egg shells. It’s somewhat understandable Green being cautious against Miranda, because Edison is after all a big puncher. However, Green wasted the entire fight playing it safe and not letting his hands go. In the 10th round, Miranda hurt Green and knocked him down twice before the time ran out.

For Green, it might be a good thing that Ward has taken time to rest and rehabilitate his right knee, because this will also give Green more time to prepare for Ward. That’s a good thing. Green is coming into the Ward fight with zero points and he needs to win this fight if he has any prayer of getting to the semi finals in the Super Six tournament.

14 Responses to “Green upset with Ward fight postponement”