Sergey Kovalev vs. Jean Pascal II
Lou Catalano, Senior Writer
If you’ve read anything by me, chances are good that you know how I feel about this fight. Still, if Sergey Kovalev can’t get Adonis Stevenson into the ring, and if Andre Ward is out until the next half of 2016, this isn’t the worst option.
The first fight was a fun little scrap, and the enmity between these two has gotten to the point where I’m half expecting someone to be set on fire at the weigh in. Jean Pascal is talking a great game. He’s furious, and he certainly wants to punish “The Krusher.” Problem is, I’m not sure how he will go about doing that since Kovalev is, you know, way, way better.
Pascal’s best chance is to use every goddamn inch of that ring, and catch Kovalev with those quick hands on the way in. He has to launch the lead right hand all night long. Still, Kovalev has sick, concussive power with both hands, and he’s already proven once that he can hurt JP with every punch.
Now, he’s super fucking pissed off at him. Worse, Pascal looked god-awful this past summer, when he fought Yunieski Gonzalez. Despite winning a decision (I thought he lost), the fight raised serious questions as to how much Krusher took out of him the first time around.
Prediction 1: The HBO crew will try like hell to make it seem like Pascal is in the fight, right up until he’s stretchered out of the arena.
Prediction 2: My wife is taking the kids to Disney On Ice, so I’ll be black-out drunk while live-tweeting.
Prediction: Kovalev
Tony Calcara, Staff Writer
Jean Pascal will pack his lunch and bring everything he has. Unfortunately for him, his chin can’t hold up to a man who punches as hard as Sergey Kovalev.
The first fight between these two was entertaining. I expect this one to be as well, but it won’t last as long as their first encounter.
I like Kovalev by knockout. He will make a statement and with any luck, Adonis Stevenson will be next.
Prediction: Kovalev
Liam Brady, Graphic Designer
Have to go for Sergey Kovalev again, by TKO.
Whether Jean Pascal has a new corner or not, Kovalev has an ace up his sleeve that gives him the ability to win any fight, at any given time in the fight: the punching power. If an opponent cannot match his power, or they do not have an extraordinary chin, it is hard to pick against Kovalev.
Regardless of the opponent’s game plan, or whether they have better attributes (speed, athleticism etc.) than Kovalev, the question mark going into the fight is whether they can take Kovalev’s power. That’s the first hurdle that faces you when plotting to defeat someone like Kovalev.
And, as Kovalev-Pascal 1 showed, it is evident that the power of Kovalev severely debilitated Pascal. As a consequence, I cannot see anything else other than a Kovalev win by TKO. As usual, a brave effort by Pascal, but he will capitulate.
Prediction: Kovalev
Amber Williams, Photographer
Prediction: Kovalev
Chris Nicastro
Few announcements in the final quarter of 2015 were as odd as Main Events revealing that Sergey Kovalev’s next fight would be a rematch against Jean Pascal. “The Krusher” beat Pascal rather easily the last time around and Pascal hasn’t exactly done anything to prove he deserves a rematch.
In his last fight, a number of ringside observers actually felt that Pascal lost to Cuban prospect Yunieski Gonzalez. Pascal was sloppy, threw wide shots, and was gassed by the middle rounds of that fight.
So what makes this dance have a different rhythm? Absolutely nothing. Expect Kovalev to knock Pascal out again, perhaps even earlier.
Kovalev is something birthed out of the primordial ooze. In their last fight when Pascal was stumbling up from a knockdown, Kovalev was laughing and pointing at the fallen Canadian, and pummeled him into submission mere seconds later.
This is a man whose skill levels are above and beyond his peers’. Nothing has changed since their last fight and nothing will change between now and Saturday.
Prediction: Kovalev
Paul Johnson, Staff Writer
As much as I’d like to see Jean Pascal win this fight, I think he’s going to prove too tough for his own good when he gets absolutely shellacked and stopped in the mid-to-late rounds by Sergey Kovalev.
Prediction: Kovalev
Alex Burgos, Editor-in-Chief
I didn’t truly appreciate the first scrap between Sergey Kovalev and Jean Pascal until the end of 2015 when we were going through a ton of fights for our year-end awards.
I sat down and watched the first fight uninterrupted (which in the social media era is nearly impossible to do when watching live) and was really entertained and surprised. Perhaps I had read too many “the first fight wasn’t close” recaps, but watching the fight in December really changed my perspective. I noticed that for the first time in a long time, Kovalev was actually challenged. Pascal won rounds with his awkward, herky-jerky style and although Kovalev was up 68-64 on all card at the time of the stoppage, the fight was competitive.
Whether or not Freddie Roach will be able to build off of Marc Ramsay’s game plan from the first fight is anyone’s guess, but the clear key has to be avoiding eating flush leather from “The Krusher.” Pascal has to be awkward with his movement, fast and precise with his punching accuracy, but coming off an absolute horrid performance against Yunieski Gonzalez, I just don’t know if Pascal has what it takes to put it all together.
Although I think Pascal will have some early success, I think Kovalev and his power win again. After that, bring on another gimme in the summer before we see Andre Ward try to take down Kova at the end of the year.
Prediction: Kovalev
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All photos by Vincent Ethier/Interbox
