by Cliff Rold

There are always going to be fans that don’t get into Adonis Stevenson.

He’s got an ugly past.

He’s received more of the public blame for the failure to make a fight with Sergey Kovalev, fairly and unfairly.

But anyone who says his fights don’t make for some entertaining stuff is being dishonest. Stevenson, the lineal light heavyweight kind, is a nasty puncher. Match him with someone willing to bring the fight to him and we get what we saw Friday night.

For four rounds, we saw a war.

Let’s go the report card.

Grades

Pre-Fight: Speed – Stevenson A-; Williams B+/Post: Same

Pre-Fight: Power – Stevenson A; Williams B+/Post: Same

Pre-Fight: Defense – Stevenson B; Williams C/Post: B; B-

Pre-Fight: Intangibles – Stevenson A; Williams B/Post: A; B

Thomas Williams could have been run over.

His strategy in the first left him wide open for the left hand of Stevenson and he couldn’t hope to win a puncher’s duel. He hits well enough. Stevenson is one of the best punchers in the sport. Williams rocked Stevenson in the first. Stevenson put him down with a single shot behind the ear.

To his great credit, Williams made a nice adjustment in the second. Pulling his arms up and coming forward in almost a Winky Wright-like fashion, Williams started to land in combination and Stevenson was clearly feeling it.

In the third, both guys were letting it all hang out. There was a moment where they took turns hurting each other, both clearly hurt and fighting their way out of it. At the end of the round, they appeared almost simultaneously wobbled. Fans were getting the shoot out a lot suspected they would see heading into Friday night.

The vibe after three was the sort of battle that could rise to the level of a fight of the year. The problem is that getting into a war with a puncher like Stevenson is something only a rare chin can dare. Williams doesn’t have that chin.

If we credit Williams for his adjustment in the second, Stevenson deserves credit for his performance in the fourth. A low blow early didn’t hurt the cause of the champion but it was what he did just above the belt that turned the tide. Staying inside and working the flanks of Williams, Stevenson took the initiative back and had Williams backing up. Trapping the challenger on the ropes, it was left hand and good night.

It was thrilling stuff both ways, raising the stock of Williams as a television fighter and reminding everyone why Stevenson remains worth our attention. It’s a damn shame that a fight with Kovalev hasn’t happened yet.

It’s still a fight anyone should want to see because of the hammers both men carry. Whether Kovalev defeats or is defeated by Andre Ward later this year, the clash of these punchers still needs to happen.

And Stevenson needs to find his way to the winner of that fight. Yes, he’s the lineal king of the class. He’s also now the guy fighting on Spike TV. His historical crown is worth the price of an admission ticket to the biggest fight in the division. He has to make his claim to the crown matter and only one fight can do that.

In the meantime, Stevenson’s next foe likely comes from the undercard to Stevenson-Williams. Eleider Alvarez looms and he has a legitimate shot to win. We’ll see if Stevenson can hang on until 2017.  

Report Card and Staff Picks 2016: 30-10

Cliff Rold is the Managing Editor of BoxingScene, a founding member of the Transnational Boxing Rankings Board, and a member of the Boxing Writers Association of America.  He can be reached at roldboxing@hotmail.com