Sergey Kovalev: 'My goal is to defend my titles and kick (Andre Ward's) ass'

LOS ANGELES - The big man who was once described by HBO analyst Max Kellerman as "the most sinister presence in boxing" walks into the Crowne Plaza wearing jeans, a tight shirt that highlights the muscular arms that have menaced opponents on two continents, and a penetrating stare that could easily be construed as "I will kick your ass."

So how do you disarm a guy like light heavyweight champion Sergey Kovalev, the Russian slugger whose nickname "Krusher" aptly describes his take-no-prisoners fighting style?

That's easy, said his publicist, Ellen Haley of Main Events, just ask him about his son Aleksandr.

"So, Sergey, how is Aleksandr doing these days?"

Before the sentence was even finished, the look melts into the patented Kovalev ear-to-ear smile that can be seen only outside the ring, a smile that belies his ferociousness and carefully cultivated persona inside the squared circle.

"He's great," the undefeated champ said of his 2-year-old. "We're very happy, He's growing up, you know, making us happy. And everybody around him."

Is he a good boy? "For me, yes. I don't know for everybody," he laughed.

With the ice broken, Kovalev, accompanied by his longtime manager Egis Klimas, was as relaxed and delightful throughout a 40-minute interview -in English with little translation - as a guy nicknamed "Krusher" can expect to be.

Kovalev, 33, USA TODAY Sports' No. 3 pound-for-pound fighter (30-0-1, 26 KOs), will put his three 175-pound title belts - WBA, WBO and IBF - on the line Saturday night against No. 4-ranked Andre Ward, 32, (30-0, 15 KOs) - two A-side fighters in what Kovalev's promoter Kathy Duva, of Main Events, has accurately called "the best fight that can be made in boxing." The bout at the new T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas is on HBO pay-per-view (9 p.m. ET).

Kovalev, who became the man of the house at age 12 in Kopeysk, Russia, when his father died, helped make ends meet by washing cars and selling newspapers. Though he had a 195-20 amateur record, he never got the respect he felt he deserved in Russia, and left for the U.S. in 2008 with wife Natalia, and little else. He first settled in North Carolina and now resides in Los Angeles.

"It's very good," Kovalev said of his life here. "All my dreams came here. America gave me future and opportunity to do my job, because in Russia nobody believed in me. There are lot of good fighters in Russia, and unless you have support behind you, it's almost not possible to be No. 1."

He began his pro career here, fighting almost exclusively in the states. But tragedy struck during Kovalev's second fight back home in Russia in 2011 when he beat Roman Simakov so badly that Simakov fell into a coma and died three days later.

Simakov's death took Kovalev a long time to get past, but it never affected his raw punching power.

Bernard Hopkins, now 51, who is fighting on Dec. 17 for the last time in his Hall of Fame career, found out just how hard Kovalev hits when they fought in Atlantic City in 2014. He was knocked down early but stood up to Kovalev's punishment for 12 rounds.

If he thought the first 11 rounds were brutal, he made the mistake of sticking his tongue out at Kovalev in the 12th. The Russian shifted into another, much scarier gear and went to work on Hopkins, laying a massive beating on "The Alien," but not enough to knock him down. He did not want Hopkins to escape the punishment he was inflicting.

"It's the hardest I've ever been hit in 25 years in the sport," said Hopkins, who gained great respect for Kovalev from that fight. Today they are friends.

As for Ward, the last American Olympic gold medalist in men's boxing winner (Athens, 2004), Kovalev is confident his punching power can overcome Ward's vaunted technical mastery - the classic boxer vs. puncher matchup - and his style, which is highly skillful but not necessarily fan-friendly.

"It's easy for me. I don't worry at all about his style, because this is sport," Kovalev said smiling. "God is giving me the next test, you know, to continue my career as the best boxer in the light heavyweight division and maybe in the world. I agreed to this test, and let's do it. This is like a huge kick to my ass. Wake up and go to work."

Asked if he was worried that he would have to chase Ward to get to him, Kovalev said, "I don't worry. He will be trying to get victory, not me. I am champion. He needs to prove he's better than me. He must make a fight. I will just defend my titles and kick his ass."

Kovalev even compares his opponent to Hopkins, and says he and his trainer, John David Jackson, have the gameplan necessary to emerge victorious.

"I feel (Jackson) is the best coach I worked with in America," said Kovalev, who has also worked with highly respected trainers Abel Sanchez and Don Turner. "We worked together against Bernard Hopkins, and now we must be ready for a victory against Andre Ward," said Kovalev. "He's like a young Bernard Hopkins. Very slick, sneaky, smart, fast, not taking any risks, just waiting, waiting, looking for an open target.

"Everybody wants to see how Andre Ward will kick my ass. But my goal is to defend my titles and kick his ass."

Despite the fact that Ward has fought only three times in three years, due to a contract dispute, Kovalev expects he'll face the best Ward.

"He showed in his last fight against (Alexander) Brand that he is ready," Kovalev said. "He already took off his rust And by November 19th, he will be much better. . . . He has a little bit of advantage, because he has less time between fights," said Kovalev, whose last bout in July against Isaac Chilemba in Ekaterinburg, Russia, near his hometown, was a lackluster affair that Kovalev won by decision.

Kovalev is concerned about pleasing the pay-per-view audience.

"I don't know what he will bring in the ring against me, but I must be ready for everything. To attack, and counter attack, and defense, but I will try to destroy him in the first part of our fight," Kovalev said. "I don't want anybody to say after, 'Oh, that's like Mayweather-Pacquiao fight, boring. Why did I spend the money?' "

Either way, Kovalev believes Ward, who was the 168-pound champ before moving up to 175 pounds, has seen his best days despite being a year younger and less beat up than the Russian.

"He was already No. 1 pound-for-pound. Enough. I'm next in line," Kovalev said. "It's my time now. It's my division. He is a guest right now in my division. It's like, 'OK, good boy, now go to cruiserweightThanks for the fight, now fall forward to the cruiserweight.' "

Klimas, however, sees it a bit differently, more from a manager's perspective.

"If you look at the history, if it's a good fight, like a knockout, even distance, whatever, but a good fight where fans want to see a rematch," Klimas said with a smile. "Can be Kovalev-Ward II, or Kovalev-Ward III."