TAYLOR, FROCH, DIRRELL, & ABRAHAM TO MOVE UP
Oakland, CA– With Showtime footing the bill, the super middleweight (168 lbs) division will hold a tournament that is set to commence November 7. On that evening Andre Ward, 25, 2004 Olympic gold medalist, now 19-0 (12 KOs) will meet the man considered the best in the division, WBA champ Mikkel Kessler (41-1, 31 KOs) at the Oracle Arena here in Ward’s hometown.
WATCH CLOSELY AND YOU WILL SEE GREATNESS
Ward is coming off a career high win with a UD 12 win over Colombian strongman Edison Miranda (32-4, 28 KOs) in April. Kessler, 30, last fought and beat Danilo Hausler (29-4-1, 7 KOs) with a TKO 3 October 25, 2008. The Viking Warrior has fought only twice since losing (UD 12) to then recognized world titleholder Joe Calzaghe (46-0, 32 KOs) in November 2007.
JERMAIN TAYLOR, ABRAHAM, FROCH, & ANDRE DIRRELL
The six fighters pegged for this tourney in addition to Ward & Kessler, Jermain Taylor (28-3-1, 17 KOs), ex-middleweight king and 2000 Olympic bronze medalist meets WBC champ Carl Froch (30 years of age, 25-0, 20 KOs). The third scrap matches widely ducked (ask Kelly Pavlik) middleweight titleholder Arthur Abraham (34-0, 15 KOs) and Andre Ward’s Olympic teammate Andre Dirrell (25-0, 16 KOs). AA last fought in June (TKO 10) Mahir Oral (25-2-1, 9 KOs). Dirrell, like Ward a Showtime product of sorts, is 18-0 with 13 shorts. Dirrell feasted on limited Derrick Findley (13-3, 8 KOs).
WARD IS CERTAINLY THE GUY TO BEAT HERE
Although this tourney in the minds of some might be considered a tossup, but I think that if when Ward gets by Kessler, he will then be recognized by the masses as a superstar in the making. The Europeans will back Kessler with big bucks, so the price on betting Ward should be a good one if you’re like me and think he is as special a boxer as they come.
ANDRE ON “RING TALK RADIO” NEXT SUNDAY NIGHT
Andre Ward will appear on “Ring Talk Radio” next Sunday night at 8:05 PM PT. Airing live from San Francisco on Extra Sports 860 AM, the show can heard both on the radio and live here at www.RingTalk.com Check the front page for show information.
Pedro Fernandez