Buy or Sell: Andre Ward is the dirtiest fighter of the modern era

[JayE]

Wards fight with edwin Rodriguez was also equally absurd. A totally c level fighter and he still felt the need to foul a ton

Extremely dirty fight, but it's hard to put that on Ward.

 

[JayE]

sour grapes or true? I wonder. also, he concievably could have kept the title on that, even clancy took a risk didn't he? telling him to go along with him and milk it? maybe the fact that roberto dominated him had something to do with it.

That was a massive low blow, and Buchanan was actually having some decent rounds by that point.

 

[JayE]

I gotta agree on Salido, Mares, Hopkins and Ward. Haven't seen much of Chavez but I'm glad Rios called him out on that shit. I'd add Holyfield and Golota to the list. Holy was pretty much a billygoat in some fights, Golota not only for the low blows vs Bowe, but I know he bit Pouha when he was hurt and might have bit someone else too? Felix Trinidad pulled some dirty tactics in fights too, Vargas was turning the fight around until Tito took out his nut sack with low blows.

Chaves was actually a pretty good fighter. His fight with Bradley was genuinely close (some people were pissy about the draw score, but I think he earned it) and he was giving Thurman hell before Thurman pulled out the stoppage. The ridiculous fight against Rios seems to have caused him to be black-balled in the US, though. Never got another big fight and he's recently lost to two up and comers.

 

[ironfist05]

agapito sanchez was dirty now that I think about it.

 

[Seano]

how about sugar ray's against hagler, it didn't affect hagler visibly but it bothered me that steele couldn't have missed it and said nothing, steele was either crooked or showed favoritism in many fights.

Ray was hitting on the breaks a lot too. He claimed it was part of his strategy.

 

[XThe GreatestX]

Extremely dirty fight, but it's hard to put that on Ward.

He was part of it.

The kessler one was the most egregious. Completely unnecessary

At least holyfield had mike tyson coming at him to justify the headbutts lol. And hopkins most egregious foul fest was trinidad imo ( he masked that shit so well). But still tito was very dangerous as a puncher the whole way through

Kessler was a good fighter but Ward was dominating him. Didn’t need to foul him the way he did

 

[JayE]

He was part of it.

The kessler one was the most egregious. Completely unnecessary

At least holyfield had mike tyson coming at him to justify the headbutts lol. And hopkins most egregious foul fest was trinidad imo ( he masked that shit so well). But still tito was very dangerous as a puncher the whole way through

Kessler was a good fighter but Ward was dominating him. Didn’t need to foul him the way he did

Hopkins didn't foul egregious against Trinidad. He walked the line as he always does, but what did he do that could possibly qualify as egregious against Tito?

One point I will make about Kessler/Ward was that it was the headbutts which were egregious. What Ward was doing on the inside was mostly legal, it's just that Kessler was completely out of his depth from that range (indeed, it was Kessler who was holding on and trying to prevent Ward from working on the inside).

 

[Seano]

 

[mozfonky]

don't know why a top fighter like ward would do that, accidental is inevitable but dirty fighters do their best to disquise the shit. Refs can be crooked just like anyone else, anyone not dealing with that should be run out of the sport. Holyfield was dirty as fuck and should have been called on it. It's suppossed to be a sport, not a streetfight.

 

[Kovalev's "Man Bag"]

Margarito (his magical wrap powder that hardens with sweat) and Salido.

 

[treelo]

Wards holding is fucking disgusting, it makes Wlad Klitschko look like Pernell Whittaker

Hatton was also a fan of dirty tactics, without looking, do these guys have refs who have favoured them both differently?

 

[Eric Nordvargr]

That was not a pleasant walk down memory lane. Fuck Ward.

agapito sanchez was dirty now that I think about it.

I do remember his absurd fight with Pac. Much as I disliked Ward, he as great at masking his fouls and knew how to walk the line and how to keep getting the fights in his backyard where he never got called out on it. Sanchez couldn't have fouled Pac more obviously if he'd brought a shiv. If anything he masked a foul by commiting a bigger foul straight afterwards.

Hatton was also a fan of dirty tactics, without looking, do these guys have refs who have favoured them both differently?

I remember thinking that while he did fight a very, very good fight against Tzyu, he relied heavily on holding and hitting. Hatton could work in the clinch but he didn't plan on letting Tzyu getting both hands free. Made the fight a little sour because Hatton was on point and Tzyu, while a bit rusty and on the downside, was a game fighter that still gave Hatton a lot of trouble.