Andre Ward (31-0, 15 KOs) rallied from a big 2nd round knockdown to defeat Sergey Kovalev (30-1-1, 26 KOs) to become boxing’s new #1 light heavyweight, taking away Kovalev’s WBO, IBF, and WBA belts. This very closely contested and dramatic fight saw Ward win a unanimous decision, with all three judges scoring it 114-113 in his favor.
More: Andre Ward vs. Sergey Kovalev full fight video highlights
HBO’s Harold Lederman, a former boxing judge and the network’s longtime unofficial scorer, had it 116-111 in favor of the Russian powerhouse. Bloody Elbow’s Fraser Coffeen had it 115-112 for Kovalev. Bad Left Hook’s Scott Christ also scored the fight 115-112 Kovalev. Notable boxing outlets and journalists who had it 114-113 for Ward were Kevin Iole and RING Magazine.
More: Andre Ward takes unanimous decision win over Sergey Kovalev
As for how Burt Clements, John McKaie, and Glenn Trowbridge (yes, he’s a familiar judge to MMA fans) all scored it in Andre’s favor, take a look for yourself.
At the halfway point, Kovalev was up 59-54 on the scorecards of McKaie and Trowbridge, and 58-55 on Clements’. All of the judges scored rounds 7-11 for Ward, which meant that Clements had Ward up by 2 points heading into round 12, while McKaie and Trowbridge had it deadlocked. McKaie and Trowbridge gave round 12 (and the fight) to Ward, while Clements scored the 12th for Kovalev.
Here is a full breakdown of the CompuBox punch stats, which gives you an idea that screaming “robbery!” isn’t really warranted, even if you think the decision wasn’t necessarily the right call.
This will be a hotly debated fight for many weeks and months to come, and a rematch clause will be exercised by Kovalev’s team.