Cleverly vs Kovalev

[tofu1234]

Tale of the tape: Cleverly Kovalev Age 26 30 Stance O O Height 187cm 183cm Reach 74" 73" W/L/KO% 26/0/46% 21/0/86% I would like to get some views on Kovalev, who comes with a great reputation for his aggressive starts and ruthless nature when finishing of his opponents. If your a Boxing fan, you are probably already familar with 'Clev'. His level of opposition is questionable to say the least with his two best victories coming against Tony Bellew (close fight) and Karo Murat who was down for fighting Hopkins not so long ago. But you can also say the same for Kovalev. I have a feeling if Sergey was born in Britain we would be just as cynical towards him as we are towards the Welshman. Let's face it we all fall the grass is greener line some of the time and it is this attitude that is influencing the odds at the moment: Coral- Kovalev 10/11 BetFair- ' ' Evens PP- ' ' 4/5 bWIN ' ' 4/5 At the time of writing this I notice there appears to have been some significant lays on a Kovalev win on BetFair, which is my pick for this bout. The reasoning behind this decision revolves around three arguments. The first one is experience; looking at the stats you might be thinking there is very little difference between the two in terms of how many fights they both had. However when you look at rounds completed: Kovalev: 57 Cleverly: 171 And yes I am aware that power punchers will naturally fight less rounds then feather fisted types like Cleverly but again we have to take into account the level of opposition also. Earlier on I mentioned the opposition of Cleverly; Bellew and Murat are B level fighters at best. I would argue that the likes of a badly faded Campillo and a distinctly average White are C level opponents, these are the Russians two biggest wins. The second argument is styles. Take a look at the Campillo/White fights on YouTube and you will see that they both are very stationery, somewhat slow, stand up fighters. When a guy like Kovalev gets a chance to load up on his punches, he will take it. I think the problem he will have on the weekend is that Cleverly is more aggressive then the style of opponents Kovalev has been use to facing. Additionally, Cleverly has a very good chin and fantastic conditioning. If Kovalev fails with Plan A, which is essentially trying to catch the champion early then he will be in a situation he has never been in before. To summarise, the perception that it is Cleverly that is the unchallenged Boxer is false. Finally, let's consider who is making this fight. Frank Warren is a shrewd matchmaker, whatever you think of him on other issues you have to concede he very rarely gets it wrong when matching his fighters. The only mistake that comes to mind is Khan vs Prescott, although it was Khan's coach at the time that suggested Prescott as an opponent. Lay Kovalev 11/8 Betfair

[AllTorque]

Re: Cleverly vs Kovalev Cheers, fella. Followed you in on this. Seems like it's in with a good shot.

[AllTorque]

Boxing 17/18 Aug [TABLE=class: couponTable, width: 658]

[TR] [TH=class: firstColumn]Saturday 17 August 2013[/TH] [TH]Boxer 1[/TH] [TH]Draw[/TH] [TH]Boxer 2[/TH] [TH=class: bppWidth]BPP[/TH] [/TR] [TR=class: row0, bgcolor: #F0F0F0] [TD=align: center][/TD] [TD=class: firstColumn]Szpilka, A v Mollo, M (02:00 BST)[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd, align: center]2/7[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd, align: center]30[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd, align: center]10/3[/TD] [TD=class: bppWidth bpp, align: center]104.08 %[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [/TR] [TR=class: row1] [TD=align: center][/TD] [TD=class: firstColumn]Fonfara, A v Campillo, G (03:00 BST)[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd, align: center]1/2[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd, align: center]28[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd, align: center]21/10[/TD] [TD=class: bppWidth bpp, align: center]102.37 %[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [/TR] [TR=class: row0, bgcolor: #F0F0F0] [TD=align: center][/TD] [TD=class: firstColumn]Thain, J v Heffron, R (20:00 BST)[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd, align: center]15/8[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd, align: center]25[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd, align: center]1/2[/TD] [TD=class: bppWidth bpp, align: center]105.30 %[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [/TR] [TR=class: row1] [TD=align: center][/TD] [TD=class: firstColumn]McKenzie, O v Maccarinelli, E (20:30 BST)[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd, align: center]1/2[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd, align: center]35[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd, align: center]2[/TD] [TD=class: bppWidth bpp, align: center]102.23 %[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [/TR] [TR=class: row0, bgcolor: #F0F0F0] [TD=align: center][/TD] [TD=class: firstColumn]Buckland, G v Smith, S (21:20 BST)[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd, align: center]1/2[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd, align: center]29[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd, align: center]5/2[/TD] [TD=class: bppWidth bpp, align: center]98.13 %[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [/TR] [TR=class: row1] [TD=align: center][/TD] [TD=class: firstColumn]Kovalev, S v Cleverly, N (22:20 BST)[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd, align: center]1/1[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd, align: center]30[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd, align: center]8/7[/TD] [TD=class: bppWidth bpp, align: center]99.95 %[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [/TR] [TR] [TH] [/TH] [TH=class: firstColumn]Sunday 18 August 2013[/TH] [TH]Boxer 1[/TH] [TH]Draw[/TH] [TH]Boxer 2[/TH] [TH=class: bppWidth]BPP[/TH] [/TR] [TR=class: row0, bgcolor: #F0F0F0] [TD=align: center][/TD] [TD=class: firstColumn]Thompson, S v Miura, T (00:00 BST)[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd, align: center][/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd, align: center]25[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd, align: center]6/4[/TD] [TD=class: bppWidth bpp, align: center] [/TD] [/TR] [TR] [/TR] [TR=class: row1] [TD=align: center][/TD] [TD=class: firstColumn]Geale, D v Barker, D (03:00 BST)[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd, align: center]8/13[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd, align: center]25[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd, align: center]13/8[/TD] [TD=class: bppWidth bpp, align: center]103.92 %[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [/TR] [TR=class: row0, bgcolor: #F0F0F0] [TD=align: center][/TD] [TD=class: firstColumn]Romero, J v Martinez, K (03:00 BST)[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd, align: center]3/10[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd, align: center]25[/TD] [TD=class: selectionBestOdd, align: center]7/2[/TD] [TD=class: bppWidth bpp, align: center]102.05 %[/TD] [/TR] [/TABLE] 2pts G. Campillo to win the fight 21/10 ( William Hill), 1pt G. Campillo to win fight via decision/technical decision (10/3 Ladbrokes): On the face of it, these selections have barely any credibility. It's in Fonfara's backyard, and he's on a decent winning streak, against a man in Campillo who's coming into this fight having been knocked out in devastating fashion fairly recently against Nathan Cleverly's upcoming opponent, Sergei Kovalev . However, this fight does not suit Fonfara at all, in my opinion. He's a combination puncher, which there's an alarming scarcity of these days, and is overly reliant on stationary opponents. He doesn't have that in the very mobile southpaw, Campillo. Campillo has fought both more explosive punchers and more explosive fighters than Fonfara, the most prominent of which being WBA Light Heavyweight Champion Beibut Shumenov, who's one and only defeat was inflicted by Campillo (though he has gone on since to avenge that defeat). The real convincing factor for me here though is the fight between Fonfara and Karpency. After being knocked down twice in the first round, Karpency changed tact and started to move. He started to dominate the fight, neutralising Fonfara's main asset and indeed, his game plan, his hand speed and combination punches. For the reasons above, I'm playing on Campillo to win the fight, and the slightly riskier Campillo to win by decision. A word of warning: The fight is in Fonfara's home town of Chicago, so whether this could sway the judges in result of the match going the distant is justifiable to speculate on. Also, Campillo has lost controversially on points in the past, most prominently, in his title fight against Tavoris Cloud.

[kevshat]

Re: Cleverly vs Kovalev Saturday main TV fight previews: 3pts G.Buckland to win on points 7/4 Paddy Power Gary Buckland is a solid operator and while he isn’t a devastating puncher he does have a good work rate and looks a good thing to me in this fight. I wouldn’t expect him to win the fight inside the distance though as Smith can take a punch and will take a punch if he needs to in his quest to win the title. At 7/4 I like the look of Buckland on points. Full preview here: http://www.punterslounge.com/buckland-vs-smith-betting-gary-buckland-can-see-off-smith-via-a-decision-win 5pts O.McKenzie vs E.Maccarinelli - Under 7.5 rounds 8/11 Ladbrokes I think Enzo is past it now and I expect Ovill McKenzie to show that once again. He only needed 2 rounds to stop Enzo the last time they met and I wouldn’t expect him to need a lot longer here. Rather than risking any round groups I’ll play safe and take the under 7.5 rounds line here as if Enzo pulls off a shock it will be early but more likely he’ll be stopped inside 7.5 sessions. Full preview here: http://www.punterslounge.com/mckenzie-vs-maccarinelli-betting-ovill-mckenzie-can-knock-out-enzo-in-quick-fire-time-once-again 4pts N.Cleverly to beat S.Kovalev Evs Paddy Power Kovalev comes with a big hitting reputation but Cleverly’s seen that all before and I expect him to be good enough to weather any storm which comes along and then box his way to victory, whether that is by knockout or by points. Cleverly has a good defence and has been fighting at this level for a while. Kovalev is up in class here and I expect him to get found out at some point so it is Clev for me. Full preview here: http://www.punterslounge.com/cleverly-vs-kovalev-betting-nathan-cleverly-can-outclass-the-russian-in-world-title-defence 4pts D.Barker to beat D.Geale 13/8 Bet365 Everyone in the Barker camp is confident that their man is going to win this fight. I guess they would be but I think he can win the fight too. Geale isn’t a Martinez and he certainly isn’t a Golovkin so this looks like it could be the right fight at the right time for the Londoner. Barker boxes behind a tight defence and a good jab and over the 12 round distance that could well be enough to finally win that elusive world title. Full preview here: http://www.punterslounge.com/geale-vs-barker-betting-darren-barker-can-finally-land-elusive-world-title-in-atlantic-city

[AllTorque]

Re: Cleverly vs Kovalev Apologies, all. Campillo was more or less monopolising the fight, and the general consensus was that he was up six rounds to one. Then he got caught badly at the back end of the eighth round and Fonfara finished the job off in the ninth. Gutted with this result.

[Sir Puntalot]

Re: Cleverly vs Kovalev

Apologies' date=' all. Campillo was more or less monopolising the fight, and the general consensus was that he was up six rounds to one. Then he got caught badly at the back end of the eighth round and Fonfara finished the job off in the ninth. Gutted with this result.[/quote'] Never apologise for putting your neck on the line. :ok

[Aidymac]

Re: Cleverly vs Kovalev I must say I am looking forward to the Cleverly versus Kovalev fight tonight as it seems to be a toss up according to the bookmakers. Although this is a step up in class for Kovalev, this is also a big step up in quality of opponent for Cleverly so that should be taken into account. If this was not on in Wales, I would be extremely confident that Kovalev would win, he has knocked out 18 of his 22 opponents to date inside 3 rounds!!! Cleverly is certainly nowhere near as powerful a hitter as Kovalev and he is going to take a lot of serious hits tonight, so it all comes down to his defence. My one worry is that with him being at home that the judges might favour him slightly, but he has only knocked out 12 of his 26 opponents to date, which proves his lack of power in one respect. Kovalev already showed he can beat some of the best around when he beat the former WBA light heavy-weight champion Gabriel Campillo in the 3rd round and then he knocked the stuffing out of a highly thought of Cornelius White by knocking him down three times in three rounds. I really think Cleverly is going to get his head taken off tonight, this fella throws some punch. P.S. In 2011, Roman Simakov died from brain injuries caused by Kovalev's punches. Ufffff, let your guard down once Cleverly and your mince :( Sergey Kovalev - 6.27 Points @ 2.14 Betfair

[AllTorque]

Re: Cleverly vs Kovalev Well, that was a no contest.

[Aidymac]

Re: Cleverly vs Kovalev

I must say I am looking forward to the Cleverly versus Kovalev fight tonight as it seems to be a toss up according to the bookmakers. Although this is a step up in class for Kovalev, this is also a big step up in quality of opponent for Cleverly so that should be taken into account. If this was not on in Wales, I would be extremely confident that Kovalev would win, he has knocked out 18 of his 22 opponents to date inside 3 rounds!!! Cleverly is certainly nowhere near as powerful a hitter as Kovalev and he is going to take a lot of serious hits tonight, so it all comes down to his defence. My one worry is that with him being at home that the judges might favour him slightly, but he has only knocked out 12 of his 26 opponents to date, which proves his lack of power in one respect. Kovalev already showed he can beat some of the best around when he beat the former WBA light heavy-weight champion Gabriel Campillo in the 3rd round and then he knocked the stuffing out of a highly thought of Cornelius White by knocking him down three times in three rounds. I really think Cleverly is going to get his head taken off tonight, this fella throws some punch. P.S. In 2011, Roman Simakov died from brain injuries caused by Kovalev's punches. Ufffff, let your guard down once Cleverly and your mince :( Sergey Kovalev - 6.27 Points @ 2.14 Betfair

Wow! What a puncher this guy is, one of the hardest hitters you will ever see at that level. Total Bank +13.28 Points