Vinny’s Views: Adonis Stevenson Blows Out Andrzej Fonfara In Another Cherry Picked Title Defense & A Closer Look at Andre Ward Vs Sergey Kovalev II
By Vinny “Glory Days” Lucci
Over the weekend WBC light heavyweight champion Adonis Stevenson made his eighth successful defense of his heavily cherry picked contender list with a quick disposal of Andrzej Fonfara in less than 3 and a half minutes. While the usually sturdy Fonfara was a heavy underdog he took the champion the distance back in 2014, even dropping “Superman” in the ninth round.
This time around Stevenson put heavy handed pressure on his old nemesis and caught him cold with power Jabs from the southpaw stance and several stiff left hands that buckled the usually sturdy Polish boxer and wisely elected not to let up and allow him to recover his balance and equilibrium. A left hand dropped the challenger late in the opening stanza, but he beat the count. The bell stopped the onslaught for sixty seconds before resuming in round two.
Between rounds his new trainer, the venerable Virgil Hunter must have saw more through experienced eyes than just his fighter getting shaken up before cracking a sweat. It was quite apparent at ringside he had his charge on a short leash. As the champion came forward to end his rival’s conquest, Hunter jumped up on ring buckle and waved off the contest to referee at .28 second mark.
OK, the rematch wasn’t much of a fight, but the back story to it still holds intrigue and drama. Post-fight the champion did his usual self- promotion in his thick Haitian accent adoring a plastic crown and wearing a cheesy king’s robe with dead squirrel fur collar. For a guy who has been able to make 8 handpicked title defenses and racking in plenty of retirement money one would think he could at least afford a relic of a costume from Floyd Mayweather, JR.’s closet. One again he declared himself the greatest in the division but the act has grown tired and my mind reverberated to a caricature of Eddie Murphy in Trading Places.
Adonis is a talented fellow who always makes weight and enters ring in superb condition. He packs power in either hand and now boasts a record of 29-1, 24 KO’s. A champion since 2013, when he ambushed defending champion Chad Dawson with a first round blitzkrieg, a year in which he fought four times wetting fans appetite that he would be an active champion and back up the boasts that he would take on all comers.
That same year the world witnessed Russian Sergey Kovalev win the WBO belt and hoped for a natural unification match. Both fighters at the time were aligned to HBO and had verbal commitments for the match. Stevenson’s promoter Al Haymon had Adonis jump ship and sign with rival network giant Showtime. As Kovalev’s star rose he acquired the IBF and WBA hardware as well while taking on the best contender’s available like Jean Pascal (twice), Bernard Hopkins, and Andre Ward. In the background and often ringside at his fights Adonis would enter ring after several of Sergey’s victories, but never had the balls to sign a contract. It was apparent to the media if not fans, that team Stevenson was cherry picking his defenses and talking the talk hoping that sooner or later someone would bump Kovalev off so they wouldn’t have to meet. That ugly scenario played out last November when Ward was awarded an ugly unpopular decision in a bout he clearly lost. Their rematch is set for June 17th.
Saturday night Stevenson never asked for the winner of the rematch and when questioned as to who his next opponent would be he coyly side stepped the inquiry saying whoever his promoter lined up. As I said, his act is growing old.
Just a few months ago the WBC’s number one ranked contender Columbian Eleider Alvarez was given step aside money so Stevenson could make a voluntary defense against Fonfara. It is unlikely Alvarez will step aside twice. The champion will turn forty this September and while he is still in remarkable shape from here on out he can age unseen overnight at any time while the biological clock ticks away on his career. Wisely he has acquired wealth to see him through a lifetime, but he hardly has hall of fame credentials regardless of number of defenses.
The Vinny Factor:
Thinking outside the box, or ring apron to be exact the media has been understandingly compassionate to Fonfara’s plight and Virgil Hunter’s decision to TKO the bout so early. Hunter’s instructions between rounds was to not fight back at all, but uphold a tight defense until the boxer cleared his head. By not fighting back in theory he would not leave an opening where he could be countered surrendering real estate and gravity. The fast thinking almost panicky instructions backfired as the champion came forward with no threat of reprisal and unloaded with both hands.
In two weeks Hunter takes center stage in one of the biggest fights of the year when his protégé Andre Ward placates his rematch clause against former champion Kovalev. Virgil never appeared between rounds in the first bout that fight was in the bag. Recently he publicly challenged anyone from the media to sit down with him and review fight round by round and not agree his fighter won. I scored only rounds 7, 8, 9, and 11 for Ward. Of note, Ward was knocked down in round two, surrendering a two point round.
Last year we did an interview on RSR with Sergey two weeks before that title fight and he gave viewers an inside look into the champion’s fight plan. He said he would not be looking for the knockout, but was planning to win round by round. Now, mad, irritated and hateful for the disdain and disrespect Andre has shown him that he is training for a knockout and promising fans he will take him out this time.
Off the heels of the Fonfara fight will Hunter once again be gun shy if Kovalev comes out like the “Crusher” his name implies or allow Ward to survive scary moments to bolster his claim that he is boxing’s best fighter pound for pound? Fans have speculated that the challenger must win by knockout giving rise to a bull at a rodeo’s first bell. Virgil has been guiding Andre since he was nine years old and has a much more emotional attachment and bond playing a surrogate father role as well as trainer.
Stay tuned…
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