From its inception, the Super Six World Boxing Classic was designed to pave the road toward naming the best super middleweight in the world. Despite some bumps, the Super Six is moving swiftly toward its destination.
The Super Six is a points-based tournament with three stages of round-robin fights. After the third stage, the top four in points advance to the second round. That round will be a single-elimination tournament with point totals being used for seeding. Two points are awarded for a win; one for a draw; zero for a loss. A bonus point is given for a knockout.
Andre Ward's leading with four points and is guaranteed a spot in the next round. His dismantling of Allan Green confirmed that Ward belongs atop the 168-pound leaderboard. He next faces fellow American Andre Dirrell. Ward's incentive now is to clinch the No. 1 overall seed for the second round.
Dirrell, on the other hand, may be fighting for his tournament life. He lost a close decision to Carl Froch, but rebounded with a DQ win over Arthur Abraham, a fight Dirrell was winning before an illegal punch ended it. Dirrell's now in a crowded group with two points. A win would secure a spot in the next round, but it won’t come easy. While four of the original Super Six entered the tournament undefeated, only Ward's remained unbeaten.
Abraham's in second with three points, scoring the only knockout in the tournament. He confirmed his knockout power, albeit in embarrassing and illegal fashion, when he decked a downed Dirrell en route to a disqualification in stage two. He'll face Froch on Saturday in what is the most intriguing stage three matchup. A win for Abraham advances him into the next round, likely as a top-two seed. King Arthur has plenty of scenarios that work out in his favor, even in defeat.
Froch has two points, and a win over Abraham would send him into the next round. A loss could make things pretty sticky. Tiebreakers are determined first by head-to-head matchups, so Froch would be favored over Dirrell, but bested by Kessler. All three sit at two points. With knockouts being at such a great value in the Super Six, expect Froch and Abraham to go all out in their bout and put on the best fight of stage three.
Kessler entered the Super Six as a favorite to win, but now sees himself a knockout loss away from possibly watching the rest of the tournament from home. He next faces Green, and if he wins, he advances. Kessler hasn't looked the part of tournament favorite, but the Viking Warrior can redeem himself with a win over Green. Points are washed away in the second round, giving Kessler a fresh start heading into single elimination.
Green, the stage two replacement for Jermain Taylor, ranks last with no points. He was obviously put into a tough position when he took over for a guy with no points and having to face the new favorite to win it all in his first contest. Still, he didn’t put up much of a fight, which has to have Kessler licking his chops. Green needs points in a hurry, and the Super Six just so happens to favor knockout artists. There's certainly power in his hands, and using it against Kessler would serve him well, but a loss or draw will send him home.
Looking ahead, Ward has a ton of momentum, and most people expect him to beat Dirrell and claim the No. 1 seed. Green showed little signs of competitiveness against Ward and unless that spark is ignited against Kessler, let’s expect Kessler to move on as well. That scenario puts Ward, Kessler, Froch and Abraham in the second round.
No matter the outcome of Abraham vs. Froch, Dirrell would be the one going home. A Froch win advances both Europeans over Dirrell on points. A win for Abraham creates a tie for fourth between Froch and Dirrell, but Dirrell misses out based on their previous head-to-head matchup.
This is boxing, however, and anything can happen.
