I just watched the fight today (didnt watch the fight live because I was at a birthday party last night).
Decent fight by Ward, Ward's got toughness and great conditioning. Decent boxing ability as well. He didn't run, he stood and traded with Abraham. It wasnt a "running performance" like the Dirrell fight.
Abraham, Im a huge fan of him, and Ive followed all of his fights since about 2005. He always has a problem of not throwing enough punches. He started the fight well, but seemed to fade down the stretch. It seemed like he could not deal with the pace of the fight.
Having said that, I thought Abraham won 3 to 4 rounds in the fight. So my card is roughly 117-111 or 116-112. (I didnt have the best look, and I was judging as a fan). But I do think the fight was a bit closer than the judges scored. 118-110 is not a bad score, but Im more comfortable with 117-11. At least in my opinion.
Also this fight showed that Ward is there to be hit. I was surprised at how often and easily Abraham particularly in rounds 2, 3 and 12 was able to connect to Ward's face.
Ward/Froch is a 50-50 fight in my opinion, and I would favour Bute to beat Ward. I think Ward is there to be hit, and rest assured, Bute will hit him. Ward likes to brawl a bit, and Bute is faster. I like Bute to beat Ward.
Edited by: BoxingFanUK