Saturday
night on HBO, live from the Oracle Arena in Oakland, CA, no one can
accurately predict what will happen between two warriors, one a
168-pound champion named Andre “S.O.G” Ward, the other, a 175-pound
champion named “Bad” Chad Dawson. Ward and Dawson will square off at
super middleweight to see who is the best fighter in those particular
waters.
Beyond
multiple belts in each weight class, a lot is on the line. Depending on
how the fight plays out, a star could truly be born here. It’s a rarity
for two legit, proven champions this close to their respective primes
actually get in the ring and fight at the right time. The time could not
be more right for each man to take a fight like this.
Off
the heels of winning Showtime’s “Super Six Super Middleweight World
Classic,” Ward, America’s last Olympic gold medal winner, sometime
commentator and Bay Area draw, would appear to be on the edge of
stardom. He has looks, intelligence and hasn’t lost a fight in over a
decade.
Dawson
has beaten Bernard Hopkins once officially but fought him twice. He’s
beaten the likes of Antonio Tarver and Glen Johnson twice. And then
there is that win over Tomasz Adamek. With scalps like that, you’d think
Dawson would be a household name.
However accomplished both men are, they’re each missing the very same thing: a break-out performance.
“Guys like me and Andre Ward, we step up to the plate,” Dawson told leaveitintheringradio.com a
month out from the fight. “We’re not ducking each other. The fight got
made so easy. I think we deserve credit for taking the fight. I didn’t
have to come down to 168. I could have stayed at 175 and defended my
title up there.”
At
168 pounds, Ward’s options are a bit limited due to the fact that he
has pretty much cleaned it out. At 175, Dawson is the most attractive
offer not named Jean Pascal or Bernard Hopkins. For each man to break
through to another level, the obvious fight was with each other. For
Dawson, additionally, there was a sense of inevitability to this fight.
“I
just wanted a challenge,” said Dawson. “I always knew that Andre Ward
would be a challenge for me one day whether it was at 175 or 168. Even
after this, when I go back to 175 pounds, I am pretty sure he’ll be
coming up. And all those guys who are fighting at 168 will be coming up
soon. I think this fight with Andre Ward, whatever happens, you will see
me and Andre Ward back in the ring again.”
Dawson
is known as a mild-mannered guy. It’s just his way. He once told me
that his whole family is like that. No bragging, no trash-talking, just
straight business. In some ways, that has been reflected in his style in
recent years, leaving fans wondering if he even enjoys the game. Boxing
fans want passion from their fighters. They want them, if not angry, at
least exuberant about being in the hurt business.
Dawson’s
trainer, former light heavyweight contender “Iceman” John Scully,
understands that and explained to Dawson that “Sometimes the best people
to tell you what’s wrong are your critics. They’ll tell you exactly why
they hate you.”
In
the Hopkins fights, both in the ring and in interviews, a new side to
Dawson emerged. While the Hopkins rematch was not exactly scintillating
(what Hopkins fight is anymore?), Dawson seemed to have tapped in to a
higher passion about his job. As he discussed this fight, you could hear
in his voice how excited he is to be given an opportunity for
greatness, which a decisive win over Ward could put him on the path to.
“I
am very excited about the fight and part of the reason is because of
Chad’s attitude, his level of confidence,” Scully told
leaveitintheringradio last week. “We just finished training about 10
minutes ago and we were up in the room and he was staring at himself in
the mirror, talking about how good he feels. And he just feels so good,
so confident. It is kind of like the Hopkins fight. In a way, it is like more than the Hopkins fight. And I almost feel like telling
him, ‘Hey, we still have a tough opponent. Let’s not overlook him,’ and
he’s like, ‘No, no. I am not overlooking him. I feel really confident. I
feel really good.’ I am enthused by the level of his confidence.”
That new attitude has to come out in the fight from the word “go.” Dawson gets that.
“We’re
going to go in there and make Andre Ward deal with us,” said Dawson.
“I’m not going to go in and deal with him. He is going to have deal with
me, my height, my reach and my hand speed. If everybody thinks it’s
going to be such a Ward fight…it’s going to be fireworks. It’s going to
be a great night for boxing.”
After
two rough nights with Bernard Hopkins and 48 rounds with Glen Johnson
and Antonio Tarver, Dawson should be prepared for any “old-school”
tricks Ward may have up his sleeve.
“Dealing
with the headbutts and holding and hitting, I’ve seen it all,” said
Dawson. “I’ve been in with Bernard twice, Tarver twice, Glen Johnson
twice, Tomasz Adamek. I think people are forgetting the guys that I’ve
beaten. My track record is pretty good. People are downplaying me to the
point of ‘Ward is such a better fighter than me.’ But when you look at
who I have fought, I think I have a better track record than he has. Him
beating a bunch of Europeans doesn’t really say much.”
If Ward resembles any foe Dawson has faced, it’s Bernard Hopkins, experience that will bode well for Dawson.
“We
see a lot of similarities in Bernard and Ward because they like to get
inside and rough guys up but I am going to use my legs and my superior
boxing skills,” said Dawson. “I will use my height and my weight
advantage. I am definitely going to be the bigger fighter on the night
of the fight. I am looking to show the world something different. This
caliber of fight is only going to bring the best out of both of us. We
are both young and champions of our division and we are both looking to
go out there on the 8th and show the world who the best 168 and 175-pound champion in the world is. That’s what I am going out there to do.”
When
asked to break down Ward’s “formless” style, Dawson said, “Honestly, I
don’t see what everyone is talking about. I see the same thing in every
Ward fight: him getting inside and trying to rough guys up. I see a
transition from maybe two or three years ago when he was a different
fighter as opposed to the recent years. He’s changed his style a little
bit. He’s gotten a little more aggressive, yeah. But I mean, come the 8th, I will be prepared for everything and the world is going to be shocked to see what’s going to happen that night.”
But
what about those who say Ward’s safety-first style and Dawson’s patient
boxing will not make for an exciting fight? It says here that in order
for Dawson to win, the fight has to be exciting. The fight is in Oakland
where Ward hails from. In order for Dawson to win, he’ll have to hit
Ward early and often on the end of his five-and-a-half-inch reach
advantage and avoid the smothering tactics of Ward, who loves to work
inside at his own pace.
“For
me, first and foremost, my jab is always the number one key,” said
Dawson. “With this fight, I have the height advantage and I have the
reach advantage. If I can keep him on the outside for as long as I can
and hit him with shots and make him miss, I mean, he has to work to get
inside. People underestimate my jab. I have a very strong jab and that
is one of the things that will dictate the pace of the fight. Like I
said, we want to make Andre Ward deal with us. That’s using my height,
my reach and being a pure boxer. That’s what I am.”
If Ward is successful, we get a slow fight. If Dawson is, we get a fight where we are wondering what will happen next.
“I
hear talk that people think it is going to be a boring fight. I don’t
see it going that way,” said Dawson. “I think it is going to be an
exciting fight and regardless of what the fans say, Andre Ward still has
to go in there and fight. The winner of this fight is going to be a
superstar and I want to be that superstar. I am pretty sure Andre Ward
wants to be that superstar as well. It makes for a great fight.”
Everybody
and their brother has written about the possibility that Dawson will be
weight-drained making 168 pounds for the first time in six years.
That’s a possibility but Dawson has talked about coming down to 168 for
some time. On the night we interviewed him, he was 179 pounds and in
great spirits. For Dawson, the weight is no big deal, yet another
obstacle put in front of him as motivation. It’s yet another thing
people say he cannot do.
“It’s
going to be a great fight. I’m looking forward to it. That’s why I took
it. I didn’t cry about the weight. If we could have done it at 170, it
would have been better but [Ward] didn’t want to budge. He wanted to do
it at 168. Everyone is worrying I am going to come in dehydrated and not
able to fight. That is not going to be the case at all. I am going to
show the world that I belong at that weight,” Dawson said. He added that
on most fight weeks, he is eating steak and potatoes the week of the
fight. In this camp, he is simply having to be a little more strict in
his diet with smaller portions and no cheating to eat junk food.
“I am very disciplined,” Dawson said.
So
it comes to Saturday. Belts, fame, glory, and riches. All that is
required is excitement which comes from risk and the willingness to be
great.
“We
both have the same goals. We both want to be superstars. We both want
to be pound-for-pound champions. We both want to be up there next to
Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao. We both want it. Somebody has to go
get it. And I am pretty sure with both of us coming to get it, will
make for a great fight,” said Dawson. “Everybody is worrying about this
fight being a boring fight. It’s not going to be a boring fight. It’s
going to be fireworks,” said Dawson, his excitement palpable. “I promise
you; once I hit Andre Ward with a good shot, he will come back and hit
me with a good shot. I am definitely coming back. It’s going to be a
good fight. It’s going to be an exciting fight.”
