FRISCO, Texas (Jan 30, 2019) — Their first fight ended with a dramatic knockout that shook up the Atlantic City Boardwalk. The rematch between Eleider “Storm” Alvarez (24-0, 12 KOs) and Sergey “Krusher” Kovalev (32-3-1, 28 KOs) will bring two of the light heavyweight division’s biggest names to The Star.
Alvarez will defend his WBO light heavyweight world title against former unified light heavyweight world champion Kovalev on Saturday, Feb. 2 at Ford Center at The Star in Frisco, Texas, home of the Dallas Cowboys practice facility.
Krusher and his trainer Buddy McGrit had this to say today, Wednesday, January 30 in Frisco:
SERGEY KOVALEV
First, I am very excited to get the opportunity to get back my belt. Thanks to God for this opportunity and thanks to my promoter and my manager to make this fight happen. Right now I must prove that I am the best in this division by this victory on Saturday night
I didn’t have enough gas, enough power. You saw my condition. I was lazy it was like something was wrong with my body.
Proving again that I always push myself more than needed and that was my biggest mistake in my boxing career. Always push further than needed. Right now Buddy has taught me a lot – saving energy for the fight and I listen to him 100% on his recommendations and I follow his instructions. I like this training camp but we’ll see Saturday what the boxing side will show.
Right now at this time before the fight I am used to dieting. This time I wanted to be better for everything – in life and in the boxing gym and in life and my team change. I am happy working with Teddy Cruz my strength coach and Buddy McGirt my boxing coach. They are really a great team and they are great persons. We have a great understanding with each other and I like the team very much.
When I became pro I got three belts just by using my amateur experience be cause my fights went often my first two years as a pro I fought 5 or 6 times a year. Then later I fought two or three times a year and one year I fought only once. That’s crazy. Between the fight it was long rest and I didn’t work out. I was busy with my life. I was famous in my small group, in my circle. I was busy with my family and with my friends. Every fight I started my training from zero. No one was there to work on or remind me of my style. I fought every fight just on my memory from the amateurs. I had coaches but they didn’t help me bith my boxing or my conditioning or anything. Everything I did myself. Everybody has seen the result. I am happy that I started working with Buddy and he has reminded me of my amateur style and using a lot of boxing – not the goal to knock somebody out, but boxing. It’s a good idea to not have to win by knockout, but by boxing. The will be, at one time, a punch that will catch him. If you can punch, you will.
This time we have been working on defense too and with the shape I am in on Saturday it will be very interesting. I am excited in my last day of camp and I am excited for the fight to see what I can show. Right now I am really motivated because I know that I can beat this guy.
The last fight he got lucky. He got lucky of course. I lost concentration for just a couple of seconds – a lack of attention just for one second. Then I couldn’t get focused after the knock down.
Maybe I wasn’t ready enough. I don’t want to use it as excuses but on Saturday I will prove that I am better than Alvarez. And that is my goal to get my belts back. That’s my goal right now and it is a big motivation.
(So, you are going to be a boxer on Saturday night?)
You never know what will happen tomorrow. I don’t even know what will happen when I go around this corner of the wall when I get up. I do have motivation and I should use it to get my belt back.
I like belts. Right now I have a co-promotion with Top Rank and I am on ESPN and I can get to the highest level in boxing again. I am in Dallas, and Texas is a state that has a lot of boxing fans – a lot of Mexican fans and a lot of American fans. The site is very bog and it looks great. And I am a Cowboys fan.
My prediction is that I will get back my belt. I don’t know how, ut I will get it back at any price or any cost.
BUDDY McGIRT
No, I did not watch the first fight. The night that they fought I had a fight in New York. You want to hear something? Whenever I watched tapes of an opponent, as a fighter, I lost. When I watched tapes as a trainer, my fighter lost.
I watched tape of Meldrick Taylor, and I lost the fight.
I don’t need to watch tapes. I’m old school. I prepare for anything and everything. If you watch a tape of a guy, and you see something, then you expect it to happen and you wait all night for it, and it doesn’t.
If you get in a street fight you don’t have any tape on the guy. You have to adjust. So that’s what I go by.
I have watched quite a few Kovalev fights. I have seen enough of him. Things that he told me how he prepared for the fight and what happened during the fight – that was enough for me to understand what we have to do.
Sergey told me what went wrong in the fight and I just went from there. I had a guy fight Alvarez, Isaac Chilemba – we got jerked in the decision but it is what it is.
A lot of people told me that he was difficult to work with, but, he wasn’t. Everyone was telling me this and telling me that and I was like “OK,” and when I got with him everything was gravy.
I know that he had a strength and conditioning guy, to not only help with strength and conditioning but to help him with his diet – to eat the right foods. He told me how he ate for the last fight and I told him he was crazy. Lot of these fighters they wait till the last week to lose ten pounds – that’s not healthy.
He told me what he did wrong then we got in the gym and I said ‘OK Buddy, you can’t really make any big adjustments. He’s been doing this too long.’ So I just kept it simple. You can’t beat the basics. So you just keep it basic and simple, not complicated, and let the rest take care of itself.
He’s in shape. He’s eating the right foods. His weight is good. So now it’s all up to him.
There are days that we are in the gym and I say “That’s it.” He says ‘No, I want to do this.” I say no, that’s it. You can do that tomorrow.’ Then I have to sit there and wait for him to leave the gym so he won’t do anything. I know if I left the gym he would do extra. So I have to sit there with him and walk outside with him then he gets in his car and leave then I get in my car and leave.
It was a fun camp. Everything went good, thank God. Now it’s all up to him.
Teddy Cruz did strength and conditioning. Teddy worked on his diet and monitored his weight.
(What do you think will happen in the fight?)
I am excited about the fight just like everybody else.I know he will be champion after this fight And we take it from there.
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Oscar Valdez vs. Carmine Tommasone will headline the ESPN/ESPN Deportes world championship doubleheader (10 p.m. ET) that also features the IBF lightweight world title fight between Richard Commey and Isa Chaniev.
The action will then turn to the OTT streaming service ESPN+ at 12 a.m., as Teofimo Lopez versus Diego Magdaleno will serve as the co-feature to boxing’s most anticipated rematch — the WBO light heavyweight world title bout between champion Eleider “Storm” Alvarez and former division kingpin Sergey “Krusher” Kovalev.
Promoted by Top Rank, Main Events and Krusher Promotions, in association with Groupe Yvon Michel, tickets priced at $225, $165, $85, $55, and $25 (including facility fees) are on sale now and can be purchased at SeatGeek.com.
7 p.m. – 10 p.m. — ESPN+ — Undercard Fights
10 p.m. – 12 a.m. — ESPN / ESPN Deportes — Oscar Valdez vs. Carmine Tommasone & Richard Commey vs. Isa Chaniev
12 a.m. — ESPN+ — Eleider Alvarez vs. Sergey Kovalev 2 & Teofimo Lopez vs. Diego Magdaleno