Chad Dawson regrets dropping to 168 for Andre Ward. We break down the technical chess match that could have been had the fight happened at his natural light heavyweight home.
In the end Andre Ward got the victory on the night in the bout that pitted the American boxers against one another back in 2012.
Dawson had hit the canvas three times in the fight even. Andre scoring the TKO victory in round 10.
Chad Dawson appeared on the Andre Ward podcast this week and expressed his regret to Andre in person at the fight taking place at 168 pounds to being with.
Maybe the best or one of them, of his career, some things to note on the division regret by Chad;
- Cutting to 168 drained Dawson’s power and stamina, at 175 he’d be stronger in the clinch
- Ward’s footwork to the power side would still trouble the southpaw at any weight
- A heavier Dawson may have absorbed Ward’s left hook better and avoided early knockdowns
- Dawson likely fights with more confidence at 175, sticking to his outside game plan
- At his natural weight, Dawson might sustain a higher work rate against Ward’s volume
- Ward’s precision and timing, not raw power, would still land clean shots at 175
- Ward’s elite defense would still out-land Dawson significantly in power exchanges
- Oakland hometown crowd gave Ward a major psychological edge Dawson lacked
- Dawson’s mental surrender was cut-related, a healthy weight cut may keep him fighting
- Ward’s inside-fighting and smothering style would still frustrate Dawson’s offense
It had been in the advantage completely of Andre SOG Ward in that division at the end of the day.
Chad boxed at 175 pounds for a long time and if the fight had been there, it might have been a different story.
That division did not suit Chad at all.
Andre Ward retired not long after, in 2017, undefeated from boxing, holding a professional record of 32-0-16 KO.
Check out our latest boxing news.