By Al Classico: Last Saturday we saw Andre ‘Son of God’ Ward (28-0) make his long awaited comeback into the ring with a dominant and clinical display against an outclassed but tough veteran in Paul ‘Real Gone Kid’ Smith (35-6).
Whilst the result was never in doubt even before the bell rang, there were many questions on how Ward would perform and whether or not he still ‘had it’ after a very lengthy absence during the prime years of his career. Ward emphatically answered those questions by putting on a clinical display which resulted in a 9th round TKO due to accumulated damage to Smith’s face, forcing his corner to throw in the towel to avoid their fighter taking any further punishment.
Ward would surely be pleased with this performance in his first outing in nearly 2 years and whilst the competition in this bout wasn’t elite, it was a good yardstick to measure what level he is at currently and what his potential might be. The answer to both is that he is in excellent shape at the moment and will only get better which could spell trouble for his potential opponents in both the super middleweight and the light heavyweight ranks.
Ward looked clinical and intent from the outset by throwing his crisp jabs to the body and the head of Smith and imposing his style of fight. He mixed it up very early by jabbing to the body and to the head and keeping Smith on the back foot and on the defense, preventing him from getting into rhythm. From the outset it was very clear that Ward is an intelligent fighter and that he had done his homework on his opponent. Smith has a solid high guard which is why Ward focused on the body jabs in the early rounds and the damage was already evident by the third round, with Smith’s torso turning a crimson-red colour. Ward continued to pepper Smith from multiple angles until he could take no more in the 9th. Many fighters, even the elite often neglect the power of the body jab, but the two fighters that do not (and not surprisingly the 2 best P4P fighters in Ward and Mayweather) often use this weapon to establish their own attacks and blunt the forward momentum of their opponents. Ward effectively established his jab early in the fight which set him up for success to the head in the mid to later rounds.
What really impressed me about Ward’s performance was that each punch (especially the jab) was thrown with intent and purpose. A lot of fighters often throw the jab just to be active, to find range or as a screen for combinations but only a few use it as a legitimate piston-like weapon and even as a power shot. The few that do are the few that are at the top of their divisions (Mayweather, Ward, Kovalev, GGG, Cotto).
Although Smith was not a stern test for Ward, it showed that he had very little ring rust and that he will be a very tough opponent to beat even by the top fighters in the Super Middle/Light Heavy Weight divisions. Like Mayweather, Ward lives in the gym and stays in shape all year round through living a clean, disciplined life and for this reason his long layoff will have little negative effect on his performances as it would do for some other fighters.
So what is next for Andre Ward?? It is probably still too early for him to jump in with the biggest fish (i.e. Kovalev, GGG, Stevenson, De Gale etc) however he is not far off, at least from a physical and mental point of view. He needs one or two more tune up fights against some better opposition than Smith to get rid of the remaining ring rust. The long layoff did more damage to his business than his in-ring ability and this will take longer to rebuild, which is why fights against the Kovalevs and GGG’ may take a year or two to make financial sense. With RocNation as his promoter now he will be better placed to become a bigger household name which would improve his financial stock.
From a boxing perspective however, I can’t see anyone in the Super Middle or Light Heavy weight divisions beating Ward when he is on his game, although Kovalev would most likely be his toughest test. Ward is too skillful, too intelligent and able to adapt that I can’t see anyone imposing their will on him. He will also be fighting in divisions which are not overly stacked with talent so he can take his time tuning up before challenging the big boys. Whatever comes next though, I am excited that he is back in the ring because from a pure boxing viewpoint, he a joy to watch!
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