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View Full Version : Sakio Bika To Face Andre Ward



reflector
10/15/2010, 07:51 PM
I think the Super Six boxing tournament that Showtime has been doing is one of the coolest things that boxing has ever done. Ward is already assured a spot in the final four with his two victories so far in the tournament. I think Bika will present a good test for Ward though.




http://sports.espn.go.com/sports/boxing/news/story?id=5688853






Sakio Bika to face Andre Ward

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By Dan Rafael
ESPN.com
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Sakio Bika will step in for injured Andre Dirrell and challenge super middleweight titlist Andre Ward on Nov. 27, Showtime announced Friday. However, the fight will not be part of the network's Super Six World Boxing Classic tournament.

Ward and Bika, a former two-time title challenger and winner of "The Contender" reality series, will fight at the Oracle Arena in Ward's hometown of Oakland, Calif.

"With all the variables that have happened the last few weeks, the last few months, Andre wanted to fight Nov. 27. That was the key thing. From his perspective, he didn't care who it was," Dan Goossen, Ward's promoter, told ESPN.com. "When we got into this tournament, people thought he was crazy for taking on Mikkel Kessler right out of the box and the only ones who really had the confidence was the Ward team. So Andre wants to fight the best fights and that's what we have."

Ward and Dirrell, 2004 U.S. Olympic teammates and good friends, were scheduled to fight in a Group Stage 3 bout of the tournament, but Dirrell withdrew from the six-man modified round robin last week. He cited neurological issues stemming from his 11th-round disqualification victory against Arthur Abraham in March in their Group Stage 2 bout in March. Abraham was disqualified when he crushed Dirrell with a right hand to the temple while he was down after slipping to the canvas.

Ward had already locked up a spot in the semifinals by going 2-0 and earning four points in the tournament. Since the semifinals are supposed to be seeded 1-4 in order of points earned, Ward has been awarded a forfeit win and two points because of Dirrell's withdrawal. That means he has six points and cannot be seeded worse than second.

Abraham, who has three points, could also wind up with six points if he knocks out Carl Froch in their Group State 3 fight at the Hartwall Areena in Helsinki on Nov. 27. Their fight will air on Showtime on same-day tape delay along with the live Ward-Bika fight.

If Abraham records a knockout against Froch, he would gain the No. 1 seed in the semifinals because he would have two knockouts in his three fights while Ward has no knockouts in the tournament, and that is one of the relevant tiebreakers.

With the field down to five, Abraham and Froch have also secured semifinal berths, although their fight is still significant because they are meeting for a vacant world title as well as seeding in the semis. Also, the stakes are raised for the Group Stage 3 bout between Glen Johnson and Allan Green on Nov. 6 in Las Vegas. The winner will advance to the semifinals.

Bika (28-4-2, 19 KOs) comes into the fight with Ward with world title experience, having twice fought for titles in 2006. He boxed to a four-round technical draw with Markus Beyer in Germany and later dropped a competitive decision to Joe Calzaghe in England. Bika, known as "The Scorpion," scored an eighth-round knockout of Jaidon Codrington in a classic slugfest to win the 2007 edition of "The Contender."

"Bika is very well respected out there," Goossen said. "He's had some good showings against world champion, including Joe Calzaghe. It's another challenge for Andre to go out there and show his superiority."

On July 31, Bika, 31, a 2000 Olympian for his native Cameroon who now lives in Australia, faced Jean Paul Mendy in a title eliminator with a shot at titleholder Lucian Bute at stake. However, Bika was disqualified in the first round for flagrantly hitting Mendy after he had already been knocked down.

The decision to make Ward's fight a non-tournament bout was Showtime's call, which it was allowed to do based on the terms of the master contract for the Super Six.

Goossen said he and Showtime's Ken Hershman discussed both scenarios, "but when it's said and done, it is Showtime's final decision, but there were prior discussions on whether it should be in the tournament or not."

Dirrell was the third of the original six fighters in the tournament to withdraw. Former middleweight champ Jermain Taylor pulled out after he suffered a massive 12th-round knockout to Abraham in Group Stage 1. Kessler beat Froch in Group Stage 2 but withdrew in August, citing an eye problem. Green replaced Taylor. Johnson replaced Kessler.

Dan Rafael covers boxing for ESPN.com. Follow him on Twitter.