By Allan Fox: #11 WBO, #12 WBA contender Isaac Chilemba (24-3-2, 10 KOs) isn’t too pleased with him being overlooked and seen as the sacrificial lamb to be beaten by IBF/WBA/WBO light heavyweight champion Sergey “Krusher” Kovalev (29-0-1, 26 KOs) in their fight next Monday on July 11 at the DIVS in Ekaterinburg, Russia.
Kovalev, 33, is using Chilemba as a tune-up opponent only in order to get ready for his fight against unbeaten former super middleweight champion Andre Ward on November 19. Chilemba isn’t accustomed to being over-looked in his fights, and that’s why it doesn’t sit right with him that he’s already being counted out by many boxing fans as another knockout victim for Kovalev.
It doesn’t help the 29-year-old Chilemba’s case that he’s been beaten by arguably lesser fighters than Kovalev in Tony Bellew, Eleider Alvarez and Willbeforce Shihepo in the past. Kovalev would very likely KO all three of those guys if given the chance to fight them. Chilemba was beaten by Alvarez by a 12 round majority decision just last November.
“Clearly they [Team-Kovalev] see me as a stepping stone; total disrespect,” Chilemba said to Sowetan Live. “They are looking past me when we have not even fought which means they see me as just a sparring partner. I am going to teach him some manners and in the process make history by becoming the first African fighter to win three titles in one night. I am now going out with more reason to beat this guy.”
If Chilemba had more offensive skills, then he wouldn’t be overlooked for this fight. His lack of punching power puts him in a real bind against a guy like the 33-year-old Kovalev. Chilemba only has one way of beating Kovalev and that’s by out-boxing him over 12 rounds.
That’s probably not going to work though, because Kovalev is a pretty good boxer himself with a great jab. If the judges have to choose between close rounds in the fight, they’re probably going to be giving the rounds to Kovalev because he’ll be landing the harder blows.
Chilemba has come up short in his fights against Bellew and Eleider Alvarez. Kovalev will likely have more than enough to give Chilemba another defeat. It would be nice if Chilemba can force Kovalev to go the full 12 round distance, because he’s not had to go the full 12 rounds since his win over Bernard Hopkins in November 2014.
Hopkins fought to survive rather than to try and win the fight. Before his fight with Hopkins, the last guy to go the distance with Kovalev was a fighter named Karen Avetisyan in 2010. It’s not going to be easy for Chilemba to keep from getting knocked out by Kovalev unless he plays it safe and just looks to keep from getting hit rather than trying to win. However, Chilemba took the big punches from his last opponent Eleider Alvarez last November without getting hurt by him.
Back to office with 1️⃣ week left till fight 👊🏼 #KRUSHER pic.twitter.com/JnZoVYPw0X
— Sergey Kovalev (@KrusherKovalev) July 4, 2016
That was pretty impressive for Chilemba to make it the full 12 rounds without getting knocked out by Alvarez. It’ll be more of a big deal if Chilemba can go the distance with Kovalev. That’s not what Chilemba has in mind though. He wants the victory, but he’s really over-matched by Kovalev in the power department in this fight.
Kovalev vs. Chilemba will be televised on HBO Championship Boxing. Kovalev will be looking to put in an impressive performance because it’s his last fight before he faces Andre Ward on HBO pay-per-view next November. The better the performance by Kovalev, the more boxing fans that will be interested in purchasing his fight against Ward on HBO PPV. Chilemba is the unlucky guy that he’s the one that Kovalev will be using as the sacrificial lamb. If Chilemba doesn’t like the idea of being overlooked by Kovalev and the boxing fans, then he can try and do something about it by looking to pull off an upset on July 11. It’s going to be difficult for him to do that though, because Kovalev is considered by many to be the best fighter in the 175lb division. If he’s not the best, then he’s definitely in the top three along with Ward and Adonis Stevenson. Chilemba’s job is for him to show the world that he belongs with the same bunch.