Sergey Kovalev (Russia) vs Tervel Pulev (Bulgaria)
The Forum, Inglewood, USA
15.05.2022. 03:00
On May 15, in the United States, Sergey Kovalev, Russian boxer and former three-division champion, will make a resounding comeback in the ring. His opponent is the brother of famous fighter Tervel Pulev.
Claim Your Sign-Up Bonus!Sergey Kovalev: At a new weight for a new title
After several years of downtime, the Russian champion announced that he was going for the belt again and moved up a category (and noticeably so - he fought at 79.4, now will fight at 90.7). He says that he feels more comfortable this way, it will not be an exhausting weight race, but it is a new weight that will complicate things. In front of everyone's eyes, the defeat to Canelo that just happened was largely because he made his debut at a heavier weight.
Sergey decided to step up because it was too exhausting to put on 79.4kg. You saw it for yourself; he was leading on one of the cards in his fight with Canelo, and then suddenly - boom. That's what happens when you have no energy left. Let's see what happens. Going up a category higher can go great or end horribly. We don't know how it will. But he has to try.
Kovalev had his last fight just against Canelo in August 2019. Yes, he lost by knockout, but not in one round - the lack of camp affected him. His strength deserted him in the championship rounds.
But even if we assume that Sergey has something left, his chances of winning the fight against Pulev Jr. are not bad.
The Russian boxer reassures his fans but is still a little anxious.
Of course, I'm worried I might have rusted up. When you don't fight for a long time, you lose your boxing skills. When I started sparring in this training camp, I couldn't even touch my sparring partners for the first two weeks. And I was very heavy. My weight was about 95kg. But then my skills came back, so it's OK.
Tervel Pulev: Undefeated middleweight
Being Kubrat Pulev's brother is not the Bulgarian boxer's main achievement. He has an Olympic medal (bronze in 2012) and exactly zero defeats in the pros. But that zero should not mislead anyone - Pulev's opposition has been, to put it mildly, nil. Tervel has good strikes from both hands, and perhaps he has nothing else to boast about, especially against the background of the former champion.
Expert Betting Tips
If the fight had taken place a few years ago, Pulev's chances of winning would have revolved somewhere around zero. Nowadays, no one knows the current form of the Russian boxer. Nevertheless, if we assume that he has lost everything and has not prepared for the fight, then with the help of a dangerous jab (the punch doesn't go anywhere) and school (skill is undrinkable) he should still win one way or another. There is too big a difference in class. In addition, questions about functional readiness are partially removed - the fight will last only ten rounds.
Bookmakers' betting odds seem to be about the same.However, the bookmaker doubts whether the fight will reach a decision.
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