Photo by David Spagnolo/Main Events
Jean Pascal (29-2-1, 17 KOs) will have his hands full with the “Krusher,” Sergey Kovalev on Saturday night in front of what will be a packed house at the Bell Centre in Montreal.
The bout will air live on HBO starting at 9:45 pm, EST. Pascal is coming into the championship fight as an underdog, but his aggressiveness can neutralize Kovalev’s power.
Here are three keys to victory for Pascal to pull off the upset.
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1. Use His Athleticism
Photo by Vincent Ethier
Jean Pascal is a skilled athlete and this has helped him his entire career including his win over Lucian Bute last year in Montreal. Pascal will probably be the most athletic fighter Sergey Kovalev has seen yet.
Pascal has the speed and quickness to avoid Kovalev and make him miss. Pascal must set traps for Kovalev and lure him into a technical match up. Pascal at times found himself in a slug fest with both Chad Dawson and Bernard Hopkins. He must not tempt Kovalev the same way because Pascal was hurt late in the fight against Dawson and Kovalev carries much more firepower than Dawson does.
Pascal said he doesn’t believe Kovalev can box with him the same way he did with Hopkins. Pascal has said the Hopkins that Kovalev met in November last year is not the same Hopkins he faced twice earning a draw in their fist fight and losing the second one.
Kovalev has shown in recent fights he can move well in addition to throwing serious firepower. Pascal will need to be faster to the punch and be able to move away to make Kovalev miss and ultimately frustrate him.
2. Land the Right Hand
Jean Pascal has a lunging right hand which carries explosive power when he lands it on the button as he did against Lucian Bute and Chad Dawson.
However, when Pascal fires the right hand and misses he tends to miss badly as his did in in the rematch with Bernard Hopkins. A fighter of Sergey Kovalev’s caliber will make Pascal pay if the right hand misses wildly.
Pascal can use the hard right hand to stun Kovalev and win some rounds on the judges cards.
Pascal needs to employ a similar game plan that his nemesis Hopkins used against Felix Trinidad when Hopkins used his ring savvy and technical skills to out-maneuver and take away Trinidad ‘s power. Hopkins made Trinidad look clueless at times and that is exactly what a fighter like Pascal is capable of doing too.
3. Use the Hometown Advantage
Photo by Vincent Ethier
Cold winter Saturday nights in Montreal are typically reserved for hockey games, but on March 14, an estimated 20,000 passionate boxing fans are expected to fill the Bell Centre to root on their adopted son, Jean Pascal, as he looks to stop the Sergey Kovalev train from steamrolling another victim.
There is zero doubt about Pascal being motivated for this fight. The question is how Pascal will react after feeling one of Kovalev’s left hooks. The crowd can benefit Pascal more than it can bother Koavlev. Kovalev has proven that fighting in enemy territory doesn’t phase him and he is very capable of blocking it out.
Pascal will need to feed off the crowd that inspires him. This will be Pascal’s 11th appearance at the Bell Centre and his 27th fight in Montreal overall. It is true that inside the ring it will be man versus man, but outside the ring their will be a whole lot of people that will cheer every move Pascal makes and that can give him the added boost he needs.
Header photo by Photo by Herby Whyne
