Sergey Kovalev believes Canelo Alvarez was too "relaxed" against Dmitry Bivol
Sergey Kovalev, 39, is just days away from his highly-anticipated May 14 showdown with Tervel Pulev, 39, at Triller Verz 5. The Russian is excited about performing in cruiserweight division. He looks more motivated than ever and seeks to retire as a Cruiserweight Champion.
The last time we saw Kovalev in action, he pushed pound-for-pound superstar Canelo Alvarez deep into the fight before being stopped in the 11th round. The Russian understands the difficulty of facing Canelo and offered his opinion as to why the Mexican was unable to beat Dmitry Bivol last Saturday.
Kovalev was speaking on 'Fight Hub TV':
"Dmitry is a great boxer right now because he came for the fight in the right condition and he did a great job. I'm happy for him, he deserved the victory. My opinion is that Canelo [was too] relaxed, he thought that Bivol is another one who Canelo can beat easily but no. Believe me, if you come up against somebody in the ring, you should be ready for everything but he couldn't get completely up for the fight after round number three. He seemed tired, relaxed. Maybe training camp was a little not right."
When asked if Canelo could win the rematch, the former world champion replied:
"My opinion is that Canelo can be better than [he is] right now. ...but Bivol will be better and that's [why I think it will be the] same result."
Watch Sergey Kovalev's full interview with 'Fight Hub TV' here:
Can Sergey Kovalev reign in the cruiserweight division?
The Russian is currently 39 years old, so it's very hard to say if he will 'reign' in the division. However, he is still a former world champion whose skills won't disappear suddenly.
Kovalev's problem is that all the current cruiserweight world champions are younger than him and also comfortable at their weights. The former world champion has only just moved up to the heavier division. Yet, he is still a world class boxer and can still prove many people wrong.
To get a better perspective on the cruiserweight division, one can look at the current world champions in the division. They are: Arsen Goulamirian (WBA), Ilunga Makabu (WBC), Mairis Briedis (IBF), and Lawrence Okolie (WBO).
None of the current world champions are comfortable pound-for-pound fighters. So, Kovalev will be licking his lips at the prospect of gaining at least one cruiserweight world title.
Watch Sergey Kovalev's full fight against Canelo Alvarez here, via DAZN (YouTube):