"He is so smart in the ring. His footwork is amazing and off of that long layoff, people don't understand, he fought a Cuban. Cuban's live and breathe boxing and the guy was bigger and Ward made it seem like he belonged there. He pushed this guy back at times...Andre Ward took a risk fighting an undefeated Cuban fighter that was undefeated and he was the bigger guy and he made him look like he just started boxing. He made it look so easy. I was blown away, man," stated former undisputed welterweight champion Cory Spinks, who shared his thoughts on Andre Ward's dominant victory over Sullivan Barrera. Check it out!
PC: Jinx, you have moved up in weight and competed as high as middleweight after being the undisputed welterweight champion. What did you think of Andre Ward's light heavyweight debut against Sullivan Barrera?
CS: The guy, man, I watched the fight twice last night. That's what I was telling my wife, "This guy is super amazing." He is so smart in the ring. His footwork is amazing and off of that long layoff, people don't understand, he fought a Cuban. Cubans live and breathe boxing and the guy was bigger and Ward made it seem like he belonged there. He pushed this guy back at times.
PC: I think Andre Ward took a fight that shouldn't have been an easy fight and made it easy.
CS: Very easy, man. This man got defense on the outside and the inside. That's why it looked so easy. People want to talk about he fought a nobody. These people don't know about Cubans. Really Cuban fighters have way more experience than American fighters. When they get into boxing, they push them hard because that's all they have. That's why they have so many Gold Medals. Andre Ward took a risk fighting an undefeated Cuban fighter that was undefeated and he was the bigger guy and he made him look like he just started boxing. He made it look so easy. I was blown away, man. I did see some ring rust and he admitted that at the end of the fight. He made it look so easy. To some people, it don't even look like he had ring rust. I could tell by the way he would wing some of the punches sometimes.
PC: I was going to ask you because obviously to us as fans, we can't dissect things the way a fighter could. When you say you saw ring rust, what were some of the things that you saw that you felt maybe if he had been active, you wouldn't have saw him commit those things?
CS: Well, he loaded up sometimes on punches and missed wide open shots and you don't normally see Andre Ward miss shots like that. So that's how I know he had some ring rust and his timing wasn't all the way there. It was there because he has natural ability, but his timing wasn't always there and because of that, sometimes you would see him wing a shot and miss it badly, but other than that, man, his defense and all that was tremendous, man. This guy is great. I don't see why he's not looked at as a skillful fighter. You never see him mentioned as one of the top defensive fighters, but he's just as skillful as me, Floyd, or anyone else.
PC: His boxing IQ is probably his best asset. He understands boxing and he understands situational boxing.
CS: It's through the roof; through the roof. That's why he made a hard fight seem so easy because his boxing IQ is out the roof. Look how he transitions his distance from a taller fighter and then get in on the inside well.
PC: He also throws that underused jab to the body very well.
CS: You know what? He was trying to...I can see what he was trying to do with that. He was trying to set him up with that jab and come over the top with his right hand, but it wasn't there because the guy wouldn't really fall for it, so he didn't throw it.
PC: Yeah, Barrera wouldn't lean forward and commit to block that shot.
CS: Exactly, and that's why Ward didn't let that right hand go. He really wanted to make a statement and try and knock the dude out, but the guy wouldn't fall for it. And that shows how high his IQ is as well because if it's not there, don't throw it.
PC: We usually see him switch a lot. He stayed orthodox the entire fight. Were you surprised by that or was it not that surprising given his time off, that's something you have to be comfortable and in a rhythm to do?
CS: You have to be in a rhythm to switch because you can get caught switching. He didn't want to take too many chances because he was fighting a bigger, stronger guy. I think people are underestimating that fact because of how Andre Ward made the fight look. Of course Andre Ward knew the guy was bigger and stronger, but he knew what he had to do. He's going to beat Kovalev.
PC: I was going to ask you about that fight. Why do you feel Ward can beat Kovalev if that fight happens?
CS: He's too smart. Andre Ward said he's not looking past nobody, but you seen what he said, "It's not if it's going to happen, it's when," and that's because he's confident in his ability to box this guy.
PC: You've told me in the past Andre Ward is your favorite active fighter. What is it about him that makes him your favorite?
CS: His boxing IQ and he's not scared to face nobody. He'll fight anyone. He's talking about fighting supposedly the most dangerous man in boxing. Andre Ward moved up just to fight him and that says a lot.
PC: When you see a guy like Ward moving up in weight, what are some of the things you look for that assures you that they belong in that new weight class, or at the very least, that they can compete there?
CS: I wanted to see if he could handle the power and the physical strength of the upper weight class and he handled it beautifully. It was a masterful performance. I'm telling you, when I told my wife that I looked at that fight again last night, she was like, "You really like Andre Ward," and I was like, "Yes! This dude is amazing." The things that he does in the ring is so beautiful. He graded himself a B-! That's crazy to me. To move up to light heavyweight, a bigger weight class and to put on a performance like that against a supposed-to-be puncher who is Cuban? All Cuban fighters have high boxing IQ's and he couldn't figure out what to do in there. I was amazed.
I gotta crush the naysayers that talk about him fighting a nobody. Are you crazy? This dude was undefeated. I mean, they got people out there that call Andre Ward a boring fighter. That was an exciting fight. I don't know what these people thinking, man. They criticize Floyd too and say that man boring too, but they are doing what boxing means; they sticking to the art of hitting and not getting hit. When people say that about Floyd or whatever, I say, "No man, he's doing what he's supposed to do. He's breaking his opponents down mentally because it's frustrating when you can't hit a guy, and then he breaks them down and by the time you try to change it up, the fight is over." But with Andre Ward, it's a lil' different. He's a little bit more offensive, but he uses his defense the same way.
PC: No one enters the sport of boxing to take punishment.
CS: Of course not. Every fighter's going to get hit. Andre Ward got hit Saturday night, but it's a certain mentality of knowing what he has to do and not taking flush punches. He barely got hit because his IQ is so high and he sees everything coming.
PC: I agree, man. It's not about taking two to get off one. And that's not a knock to the guys that fight like that because they probably have to fight like that, but if they could have it any other way, they would.
CS: That's right! It's about being slippery and slick; slick 'em and trick 'em and making your opponent pay when they miss. Every time you make a guy miss, the counter is not automatically going to be there, but you gotta get on up out the way.
[ Follow Percy Crawford on Twitter @MrLouis1ana ]