I said if Andre could keep improving like he did against Miranda and box for twelve rounds he would be a problem. Although I picked Mikkel Kessler to win this fight and the whole tournament I also said the winner of this fight would be the favorite to win the whole tournament. We knew Kessler started slow and Ward had to stay away from his power while putting early rounds in the bank. He did that and he never looked back frustrating the champ from Denmark and not ever allowing him into the fight. I thought it was a mistake that Ward was moving to Kessler's right but he was too quick and it didn't matter. Kessler looked afraid to throw his world-class jab because he was worrying about getting caught. This made it almost impossible for him to land his powerful right hand. Andre Ward's speed was too much for Kessler to deal with but this alone wasn't the deciding factor in the fight. There were two other elements that made the fight easy for the young American and hey were inside fighting and the accidental headbutts. Every time Kessler got in rang to throw his power and close to Ward, Ward clinched and held, but only after he unleashed his own lighting fast arsenal. This disrupted Kessler's rhythm and timing all night long and because of this he was unable to sustain his own attack. The clashing of heads was really caused by a clash of styles and Andre Ward leading with his head. Although they were unintentional they caused cuts and made Andre's punches that much more annoying. Kessler was buzzed a couple of times but he was never truly hurt badly in the fight. The bottom line is Kessler was beat to the punch all night long and couldn't get into the fight and that is what lost him the fight.
Nick Thomas deathwish72@gmail.com
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