By Jim Dower: The big punching Cuban light heavyweight contender Sullivan Barrera (18-1, 13 KOs) totally destroyed a badly over-matched Vyacheslav Shabranskyy (17-1, 14 KOs) in stopping him in the 7th round on Friday night at the Fantasy Springs Casino in Indio, California. This was a very good fight for all of two rounds.
Los Angeles-based undefeated Vyacheslav “Lionheart Chingonskyy” Shabranskyy (17-0, 14 KOs) will look to continue his impressive run up the light heavyweight ladder, but standing in his way will be his toughest competition to date in the form of Cuban standout Sullivan Barrera (17-1, 12 KOs), as the two warriors go head-to-head in a 10-round bout for Shabranskyy’s WBC USNBC Light Heavyweight title on HBO Latino® Boxing on Friday, December 16 at Fantasy Springs Resort Casino.
By Allan Fox: Light heavyweight contender Sullivan Barrera (17-1, 12 KOs) says his team has been given an offer to fight unbeaten #2 IBF, #3 WBC, #3 WBA, #4 WBO Artur Beterbiev (10-0, 10 KOs) for a fight at a still to be determined date and time. Barrera, #4 WBA, #8 IBF, #12 BC, hasn’t fought since losing a one-sided 12 round unanimous decision to former super middleweight champion Andre Ward last March at the Oracle Arena in Oakland, California.
Barrera, 34, has been eager to fight since then, but he hasn’t had any fights lined up for him until this potential fight against the hard hitting Beterbiev.
By Dan Ambrose: Light heavyweight contender Andre Ward (29-0, 15 KOs) says that IBF/IBO/WBA middleweight champion Gennady Golovkin’s trainer Abel Sanchez sent his fighter Sullivan Barrera (17-1, 12 KOs) to face him rather than sending in Golovkin last Saturday night at the Oracle Arena in Oakland, California, Ward thinks that Barrera was sent in to test the waters for Golovkin to see it was safe first.
Ward ended up easily beating Barrera by a 12 round unanimous decision in their fight on HBO Boxing. After the fight, Sanchez initially complimented Ward on his performance in beating his man Barrera. However, when asked by the media whether he thought Ward could beat undefeated IBF/WBA/WBO light heavyweight champion Sergey “Krusher” Kovalev, Sanchez said this:
By Dan Ambrose: Andre Ward (29-0, 15 KOs) and previously unbeaten Sullivan Barrera (17-1, 12 KOs) brought in an average of 1.064 million viewers with a peak of 1.152 million viewers on HBO Boxing in their fight last Saturday night at the Oracle Arena in Oakland, California.
This was the first of Ward’s three-fight contract with HBO Boxing. His second fight will be taking place this summer barring any unforeseen injury on Ward’s part. If he wins that fight, then he’ll be facing IBF/WBA/WBO light heavyweight champion Sergey Kovalev in November on HBO pay-per-view.
By Jeff Aranow: IBF/WBA/WBO light heavyweight champion Sergey Kovalev (29-0-1, 26 KOs) says that he would be open to fighting #1 IBF Sullivan Barrera (17-1, 12 KOs) in his next fight in the summer. Kovalev still doesn’t have an opponent scheduled for his next fight, and he’d be willing to face Barrera if that’s a fight that could happen.
Barrera was beaten by former WBA/WBC super middleweight champion Andre Ward (29-0, 15 KOs) last Saturday night at the Oracle Arena in Oakland, California. Kovalev was in attendance at that fight, and he was impressed with what he saw from Ward.
By Allan Fox: Abel Sanchez, the trainer for Sullivan Barrera (17-1, 12 KOs), is giving former WBA/WBC super middleweight champion Andre Ward (29-0, 15 KOs) no chance whatsoever to defeat IBF/WBA/WBO light heavyweight champion Sergey Kovalev if the two fighters square off later this year in November.
Sanchez feels that the 31-year-old Ward has lost way too much from his game from six years ago, when he was clearly at his best in the Super Six tournament, for him to be able to beat a fighter that is in the zenith of his career in Kovalev.
By Rob Blakeman: Last night’s light heavyweight debut of Andre Ward spelt trouble for recognized World Champion of that weight class, Sergey Kovalev. Ward gave a textbook clinic in the art of boxing while schooling previously unbeaten Cuban Sullivan Barrera. It was a complete master class by Ward carried out in front of fans in his own back yard fighting at the Oracle Arena in Oakland, California.
The icing on the cake for Ward enthusiasts was highlighted when he decked the bigger, more natural light heavyweight in the third round and dominated him throughout the remainder despite a reach disadvantage.
By Jim Dower: Making only his fourth appearance since 2011, unbeaten former super middleweight world title holder Andre Ward (29-0, 15 KOs) took care of business tonight in beating #1 IBF light heavyweight contender Sullivan Barrera (17-1, 12 KOs) by a 12 round unanimous decision in Ward’s first fight against a true 175lb fighter at the Oracle Arena in Oakland, California.
What we learned tonight was that Ward can only win one way at light heavyweight. He can only out-box his opponents. What little power he had at 168 didn’t travel up with him to his new weight class at light heavyweight. What this means is that Ward is going to have to try and out-box the big sluggers like Sergey Kovalev, Adonis Stevenson and Artur Beterbiev. Ward won’t be able to knock them out, and it might be dangerous for him to even try. Ward will have one way of beating all of those fighters, and that’s to try and use his boxing skills to nick rounds. It’s going to be awfully hard for Ward to beat the top fighters in the division when he doesn’t have the power to match-up.
By Dan Ambrose: Andre Ward (28-0, 15 KOs) will be putting it on the line tonight against Sullivan Barrera (17-0, 12 KOs) in a warm-up fight to get ready for a big money fight against IBF/WBA/WBO light heavyweight champion Sergey Kovalev in November.
Ward, 31, is seen as a top pound-for-pound talent by many boxing fans, but the things that he accomplished during his career are in the distant past. Ward is living now on things that he accomplished five years ago in 2011 rather than on things that he’s done lately in the sport.