Former two-time light-heavyweight champion Sergey Kovalev was knocked down and comprehensively beaten on points on the undercard of Tyson Fury‘s heavyweight clash with Oleksandr Usyk.
In just his second fight since being knocked out by Canelo Alvarez in November 2019, Kovalev stepped up to cruiserweight to take on unbeaten Swede Robin Safar in Riyadh, but was unable to roll back the years.
Having fallen behind on the scorecards, Kovalev was sent to the canvas in the closing seconds of the final round after a left hook-right hand combination from Safar.
Kovalev, 41, rose to his feet to hear the final bell, but all three judges scored the fight in favour of Safar.
Across the 10-round contest, Kovalev looked a shell of his former self, and this could spell the end of his glittering career.
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Sergey Kovalev (left) suffered a heavy knockdown in his fight against Robin Safar (right)
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Kovalev was able to get back to his feet to hear the final bell but lost on points
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It was Kovalev’s first fight in two years and he was comprehensively beaten
Nicknamed the ‘Krusher’, Kovalev was widely recognised as the best light-heavyweight on the planet in his prime.
He first became champion in the 175lb division by beating Britain’s Nathan Cleverly via a fourth-round knockout back in 2013.
He would go on to collect two more belts over the next three years, before he lost a controversial decision against America’s Andre Ward in November 2016.
Ward beat Kovalev again the following year, this time stopping the Russian in the eighth round, and Kovalev lost for the third time in his professional career to Eleider Alvarez in 2018.
He gained revenge on Alvarez just six months later, though, to become a two-time champion, and saw off Britain’s Anthony Yarde in his homeland in August 2019.
But his subsequent loss to Canelo led to an extended period of inactivity where he did not fight for over two years before returning with a low-key victory.
Another two years out of the ring followed, and Kovalev was well and truly beaten on Saturday night as his overall record moved to 35 wins, five losses and one draw.
