LAS VEGAS -- Andre Ward, the new No. 1 pound-for-pound fighter in the world?He made a case -- but not a convincing one -- as he won a razor-close but controversial unanimous decision against Sergey Kovalev to claim three light heavyweight world title belts before an adoring crowd of 13,310 on Saturday night at T-Mobile Arena.All three judges scored the bout 114-113 for Ward, who survived a second-round knockdown and some shaky moments. ESPN.com scored the fight 115-112 for Kovalev, who appeared to land the much more powerful punches. HBOs unofficial scorer, Hall of Fame judge Harold Lederman, had Kovalev winning 116-111.?Many media members sitting ringside also had Kovalev winning.If judges Glenn Trowbridge and John McKaie had given Kovalev the final round, the fight would have been a split decision win for Kovalev. Judge Burt Clements gave Kovalev the 12th round but had Ward ahead going into the round.This is a beautiful thing. We did it, baby. Its a lot of hardware, Ward said as he was presented with the belts. Surreal. This is what we set out to do. Im a five-[belt] world champion in two different weight classes. Man, its amazing.This sounds good -- the new light heavyweight champ. This was my most important and satisfying win.There were many who believed that the Kovalev-Ward winner would be worthy of replacing junior bantamweight titlist Roman Chocolatito Gonzalez as the new pound-for-pound king. And some might elevate Ward into that lofty perch coming off the best victory of his career, which already includes wins against such top opponents as Carl Froch, Mikkel Kessler and Chad Dawson.Ward said he was not startled that he got the nod.I was not surprised when I heard the decision, he said. I dont know where you got that from. I know it was a close fight. The crowd, you can hear they thought I won.[Kovalev] did everything I expected him to do. He started to show up as I expected. He started to fight like I expected. My coach [Virgil Hunter] did a great job.Kovalev, who was making his ninth title defense, strongly disagreed with the scoring.Its the wrong decision. I dont want to say my opinion, he said. The witnesses are here. They saw it. Its my job. It was a fight of my life. I am disappointed in the judges decision.[Ward] got maybe a few rounds. I agree with that. I kept control. I lost maybe three rounds the whole fight. It is the USA and all the judges were from the USA. Its a sport. Dont make it politics. Its a sport, and I won the fight.Main Events promoter Kathy Duva, Kovalevs promoter, also was not happy with the decision.My impression was that was the wrong decision, she said. We thought he was clearly ahead on points. I think Ward could have a great career in the UFC. I havent seen so much wrestling since Conor McGregor in the UFC card last week.Ward did initiate many clinches, and referee Robert Byrd did little to stop it, allowing the fighters to work their way out of it.I thought for sure it was not going to be a one-way fight, but the wrestling was outrageous, Duva said. The referee didnt do anything about it, and Im really upset. [Kovalev] won the first six rounds, and he had a knockdown. How the hell did he lose a decision??Ward will likely have to face Kovalev in a rematch. Duva said her side would exercise its right to an immediate rematch.Were going to get him back in the ring as soon as we can and right this wrong, Duva said.Kovalev agreed.Of course, I want a rematch, and I will kick his ass, Kovalev said. I want to show good boxing.Michael Yormark of Roc Nation Sports, Wards promoter, said it was too soon to talk about a sequel and declined to acknowledge the rematch clause.Its too early to discuss a rematch at this point, Yormark said. Andre will enjoy the moment, spend time with his family and, obviously, embrace those three belts. Well decide where we go from here over the next weeks.Ward offered his take.Of course, I would do a rematch, Ward said. I am not going to negotiate a fight right now. I will go home and relax and see whats next.Ward, a 2004 U.S. Olympic gold medalist, got off to a very rough start, as Kovalev appeared to hurt him midway through the opening round with a stiff left jab that forced Ward to grab on to him around the waist.Ward (31-0, 15 KOs) had blood coming from his right nostril early in the second round. Then a left hand and a right drove him into the ropes. Moments later, Kovalev connected with a booming right hand to the forehead, and Ward went down to all fours. It was only the second time in Wards career he had been knocked down. Ward made it out of the round but looked a bit shaky and tried to hold Kovalev (30-1-1, 26 KOs) in the third round.When Kovalev, who earned $2 million but stands to earn much more because of his percentage of the promotion, got rough in response to Ward holding him, Byrd warned them to knock it off.I knew it was going to be a tough fight, Ward said of the knockdown. I think after the second-round knockdown, he realized I wasnt going anywhere and I was stepping on the gas. Technically, theres always stuff I can pick apart. I wasnt happy about that knockdown, but I didnt panic. I was at peace. Now its time to really get to work. I wasnt hurt by it. As a matter of fact, I wasnt hurt by anything he threw.Byrd was busy throughout the fight, breaking hard clinches -- many of which were initiated by Ward?as he tried to come inside and avoid Kovalevs big punches.The great speed and slickness of Ward was not very evident, as Kovalev popped him with jabs and right hands. Ward got off some good shots, but Kovalev walked right through them. But whatever speed and defense Ward lacked, he showed immense toughness and guile under a constant assault from Krusher Kovalev, known as one of boxings most devastating punchers.Your last fight is always the most important, but I really needed this, said Ward, who has not lost a fight since he was a 13-year-old amateur. It was about those in-the-trenches moments. Sergey has no inside game, so I focused on my midrange and my inside game, and that made all the difference.Ward, who earned a career-high $5 million, had a strong seventh round. He landed a clean stiff jab that got Kovalevs attention and excited the crowd. Moments later, both fighters were warned by Byrd for hitting behind the head while in a clinch. And even though Kovalev landed a hard left hand late in the round, Ward, 32, of Oakland, California, returned fire.There was a lot of back-and-forth action in the ninth round, but Ward had some big moments, lashing Kovalev, 33, a Russia native living in Los Angeles, with shots that sent him ducking under the top ring rope and brought the crowd to its feet.They continued to go at each other in the 10th round. Ward landed a good left hand that backed Kovalev up, and Ward stuffed a left jab down the middle that connected cleanly. It was an exciting round that was hard to score.The 11th round was another close one, with Kovalev landing a hard jab and right hand but Ward coming right back with a solid left hook. Kovalev had Ward on the run in the final seconds of the round.Sensing the decision victory might be up for grabs in the 12th round, the boxers responded with toe-to-toe action and rough stuff on the inside during clinches. They did not let up until the final bell, and then they fell into an embrace when it was over.This is a good feeling, Hunter said. We were a little careless with that knockdown in the second round, but we landed the cleaner punches. Kovalev was aggressive but not effective. Thats why we won. Im happy for Andre.According to CompuBox punch statistics, Kovalev landed 126 of 474 punches (27 percent), and while Ward threw and landed fewer punches (116 of 337) than Kovalev, Ward landed at a higher percentage (34 percent).Ward, who unified super middleweight world titles by rolling through the 2009 to 2011 Super Six World Boxing Classic, was fighting his first top opponent since a dominant 2012 knockout of then-light heavyweight champion Dawson, who dropped down in weight to challenge him. Ward had some long layoffs in the ensuing years because of injuries and a battle over his promotional contract, but he signed with Roc Nation Sports in 2015 and was fighting for the fourth time since then.But Ward, already a probable Hall of Famer even before the win against Kovalev, shied away from lauding himself.Its hard for me to call myself great, he said. At the end of the day, I am a two-weight division champion. www.cheapjerseys forsale .net . Thats about all he can do right now, so hes trying not to think about when he might be able to play again for the Los Angeles Lakers. http://www.cheapjerseysforsale.net/ .C. - The Carolina Hurricanes have placed backup goalie Anton Khudobin on injured reserve with an unspecified lower-body injury. http://www.cheapjerseysforsale.net/ . The International Olympic Committee released the official list of bid cities on Friday after the deadline for applications had passed. The candidates -- all previously announced in their own countries -- are: Almaty, Kazakhstan; Beijing; Krakow, Poland; Lviv, Ukraine; Oslo, Norway; and Stockholm. cheapjerseysforsale.net . Halifax beat the Saint John Sea Dogs 7-5 on the strength of two goals apiece from Nikolaj Ehlers, Matt Murphy and Brent Andrews. Jonathan Drouin also scored and had three assists while Zachary Fucale made 17 saves for the Mooseheads (16-8-0), who led 6-1 after two periods. cheapjerseysforsale . PETERSBURG, Fla. NEW YORK -- At 19, Jared Donaldson is the youngest American man in the U.S. Opens third round since 2007. A key part of his growth as a tennis player happened in another country, though.When he was 14, Donaldson left home to train in Argentina, so he could work on his game on clay, improve his footwork and get lessons on how to use spins on his shots.He learned more, too, during the 2 1/2 years he was there.The biggest takeaway from me in Argentina was how focused and dedicated those guys were training. They were so serious. I think it was really eye-opening for me. The fact that they work so hard, even when they were tired. Clay court is so physical, said Donaldson, who is ranked 122nd and got through qualifying to reach the main draw at Flushing Meadows. It put me in a pro mentality when I was very young.Heading into Saturdays third-round match on Court 17 against 21st-seeded Ivo Karlovic of Croatia, Donaldson already has enjoyed the best week of his nascent career. Not only did he collect the first two Grand Slam victories, but they came against a couple of established players, 12th-seeded David Goffin of Belgium in the first round and Viktor Troicki of Serbia in the second.And even if other U.S. teens have drawn more attention recently -- a pair of 18-year-olds, Taylor Fritz and Frances Tiafoe come to mind -- Donaldson has big things in mind.I want to be top 10, top 5, No. 1. Eventually, if I get to that ranking, Ill have enough attention, almost too much attention, he said. I just have to make sure that I stay focused on my game, try not to let the outside factors kind of dictate how I play or act. I just have to keep improving.To that end, he started working with former pro Taylor Dent as his coach, initially aiming to serve better. But Donaldson credits Dent -- and his father, Phil, also a former player -- with improviing other aspects of his play, also.ddddddddddddAll the kind of things Im doing out there now is a reflection of (Taylors) influence on me, coaching with me, working with me, Donaldson said. I owe a lot to him.Karlovic will present a challenge when it comes to returning serves: The 6-foot-11 Croatian, who beat American Donald Young in the second round, set a U.S. Open record with 61 aces in his first-round match Tuesday.Here is what else to watch Saturday at the U.S. Open:WILLIAMS SISTERS: Once again, both Williams sisters will be in action on the same day -- and in the same arena, Arthur Ashe Stadium. No. 1 seed Serena Williams goes first, facing 47th-ranked Johanna Larsson of Sweden in the afternoon. No. 6 Venus Williams plays at night against No. 26 Laura Siegemund of Germany. While Serena is bidding for a record 23rd Grand Slam singles title, and Venus owns seven, neither Larsson nor Siegemund ever has been as far as the fourth round at any major.KYRGIOS IN SPOTLIGHT: In the final match under the lights in Ashe, 14th-seeded Nick Kyrgios gets his chance on center stage, facing 63rd-ranked Illya Marchenko of Ukraine. Kyrgios is among the most talented -- and moody -- men on the tennis tour, as likely to hit a `tweener as fantastic as Rafael Nadals from Friday as he is to throw a racket or appear to give up mid-match.MURRAY VS. LORENZI: As 2012 U.S. Open champion Andy Murray tries to become the fourth man in the Open era, which dates to 1968, to participate in all four Grand Slam finals in one season, he takes on Italys Paolo Lorenzi, who is ranked 40th and will be playing in a third-round match at a major for the first time.---Follow Howard Fendrich on Twitter at http://twitter.com/HowardFendrich Wholesale Jerseys Wholesale Jerseys cheap jerseys Cheap Jersyes Cheap Basketball Jerseys Cheap NHL Jerseys cheap jerseys Cheap Jerseys Cheap Jerseys Cheap Jerseys From China Cheap NFL Jerseys ' ' '