By Thomas Gerbasi

Addition by subtraction. It’s boxing’s logic, and the way the sport often levels the playing field and provides opportunities that weren’t there before.

So, as Andre Ward removed Sergey Kovalev’s aura of invincibility with a series of shots to the midsection less than a year ago, he opened up the possibility that the best is yet to come for “The Krusher” in 2018 and beyond.

Of course, getting stopped in the biggest fight of your life isn’t the way any fighter wants to learn a lesson or open up the next chapter of his career, but as Kovalev continues the rebuilding process with his second post-Ward fight against Igor Mikhalkin this Saturday in New York City, he’s understood that maybe he needed a wake-up call.

“I can say I'm back from my two losses,” Kovalev said. “I'm much stronger mentally as a result of this. Life teaches me in these situations.”

Addition by subtraction. When a fighter wins and wins and wins, and does it in the fashion Kovalev did for so many years, there is no reason to change, no reason to analyze what may need fixing under the hood. In Kovalev’s case, his rule as light heavyweight champion from his 2013 drubbing of Nathan Cleverly up until the Ward fight was a study in how to scare away opponents. Those fearless enough to face him – for glory or opportunity – met punishing defeats, and for those who looked the other way as he approached, discretion was the better part of valor.

That can produce a monster, and Kovalev fit the bill, content to use his natural power and fight IQ in the ring to defeat all comers. Drinking, frequent travel between the U.S. and his home country of Russia, and constant bickering with his longtime trainer, John David Jackson, were starting to catch up to him, and Ward was not just any opponent.

Still, many believe Kovalev won their first fight in November 2016, and he fought well in the rematch until Ward began breaking him down midway through the bout. Kovalev protested the finish, saying it was a series of low blows that defeated him, but as the result stuck, Kovalev finally had to take a hard look at himself.

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“All life is like a lesson for me,” he said before his comeback fight against Vyacheslav Shabranskyy last November. “After my last three fights, some felt that I should get more physically into my work life with my boxing again. But right now, I feel all bad things are gone from my mind. Right now I concentrate, and I focus for the future of my boxing career. I'm ready to be again a world champion and collect my belts if somebody will be ready to unify the title.”

Addition by subtraction. Jackson was gone after the Ward rematch, replaced by fellow Russian Abror Tursunpulatov, a trainer Kovalev has clicked with and who has forced him to go back to work in the gym – not just to get in shape, but to evolve his game.

"I'm under his control, 100 percent, under his plan for workouts, what time I wake up and what time I should go to sleep,” Kovalev said. “We're speaking about what I'm eating, and everything, we discuss it. It's interesting right now. It's working. It's getting me in top shape for my next fight."

Not surprisingly, Kovalev’s second-round TKO in his first fight with Tursunpulatov saw him back in “Krusher” form, largely because the tough, but defensively challenged, Shabranskyy was tailor made for him. The 21-1 Mikhalkin is a southpaw who can be tricky at times, but he doesn’t have the power to deter Kovalev, making this another opportunity for the 34-year-old to impress his fans in New York City and put another defense of the WBO title he won in the Shabranskyy fight in his back pocket.

But it’s not about last November or this weekend for Kovalev. It’s about a future where a dismal light heavyweight scene post-Ward is now more vibrant than ever. Unbeaten rising star Dmitry Bivol faces the dangerous Sullivan Barrera on Saturday’s undercard. Badou Jack and Adonis Stevenson have a May date. And Artur Beterbiev, Marcus Browne and Anthony Yarde are all viable foes that would excite the boxing public should they meet the Russian banger. And with the idea that Kovalev is unbeatable removed, the only thing keeping such fights from happening are the usual promotional entanglements. Remove them, and Kovalev may have the chance to build the Hall of Fame legacy he was soaring towards before the two Ward fights.

“I'm in the right way,” Kovalev said. “Already, all my mistakes have been deleted mentally from my head. Right now, I’ll just keep working and following my dream for my goal to make the big fights.”

Addition by subtraction.