Chad Dawson moving back up to 175: Will he ever be the same?

By Jason Kim: Chad Dawson (31-2, 17 KO’s) says he’s moving back up to 175 lbs to continue his reign as the WBC light heavyweight champion after failing to capture the WBA/WBC titles off of super middleweight champion Andre Ward (26-0, 14 KO’s) last Saturday night at the Oracle Arena in Oakland, California.

Dawson, 30, took a real beating in that fight and was knocked down three times before he ultimately quit in the 10th after having been badly hurt by Ward.

Dawson was dominated in every facet of the game by the 28-year-old Ward in this fight. There literally wasn’t one area where Dawson had an advantage over Ward. He couldn’t even use his five inch reach advantage to out-jab the shorter Ward, because that was taken away from Dawson early on. Ward was so much quicker, stronger and smarter than Dawson in the ring last night.

Some boxing fans think Dawson lost because he was weight drained but I think that’s a poor excuse. The way he fought wasn’t much different from how he always does. The difference here that Ward was just so much better than the guys that Dawson has fought up until now. Ward wasn’t in his 40s having lost a few steps, and he wasn’t a limited short guy. He fought at a high level and Dawson couldn’t compete. That’s all there is to it.

I think the other light heavyweight contenders are going to smell blood in the water when Dawson moves back up to 175 and I’d be surprised if he’s able to keep his WBC 175 pound title for more than one fight. Dawson’s number #1 contender is Mikkel Kessler, and I think Kessler would be able to do exactly what Ward did last night, albeit on a smaller scale. Kessler would easily get past Ward’s jab and punish him at mid-range the same way that Ward did. Even on the outside, Kessler would have a better jab and would be able to dominate Dawson.

This loss for Dawson could be the beginning of the end for him. He was exposed by a fighter that created a blueprint in how to beat him, and other fighters are going to follow that blueprint to the letter to give Dawson problems in the near future.