Andre Ward is a hall-of-famer and one of the most well-respected fighters of his era.
Ward, who broadcast Efe Ajagba’s recent unanimous decision win over Stephan Shaw weighed in on his take of what he saw, a tactical but not all that thrilling ESPN’s main event from Turning Stone Resort Casino in Verona, New York.
“I think he’s gonna have to step it up,” Ward explained during ESPN’s post-fight coverage which was broadcast on ESPN+ after the fight. “He’s gonna have to be more creative with his offense and his defense. And that comes from being in a gym, not just going through the same repetitions. Go hit the bag for three, four rounds. Go hit the mitts for three, four rounds, where nobody’s really drilling you.
Though Ajagba nearly landed 2-1 in terms of jabs compared to Shaw, it was very much more of the same round after round.
“I loved the fact that he stopped loading up with the right hand and actually started placing the right hand, instead of loading up with it. I loved the fact that he actually showed a little bit of sense of urgency. His corner was trying to get him revved up and get him going. And when he did that, that’s what took over the fight,” fellow hall-of-famer Timothy Bradley Jr in this same telecast. “You know, tonight he was boring as heck tonight. Both of these guys were boring tonight. They didn’t give me enough sense of urgency. But I have to say that Ajagba did get better. I saw a more crisp jab. When he threw his right hand, it would land. He was patient.
