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By Norm Frauenheim–
Adonis Stevenson
It’s the question Adonis Stevenson can’t shake. It’s there when he wakes up and sits down for breakfast. It’s there when he goes to the corner store. When he looks in the rear view mirror, there it is:

What about Sergey Kovalev?

It was asked again, again and ad nauseam Wednesday during a conference call that included Sakio Bika. At least, I think it included Bika.

Stevenson fights Bika in Quebec City on April 4 in Al Haymon’s first PBC card on CBS, yet Bika was little more than a mere prop during the telephone Q-and-A.

In fact, the Kovalev question ended the call. An exasperated Kevin Cunningham, Bika’s trainer, had heard enough.

“You guys have done it for me,’’ Cunningham said. “This is getting my fighter fired up. This call has been about Stevenson fighting Kovalev. I don’t even know if Sakio is on the call.

“Everyone keeps asking about Kovalev-Stevenson.

“What the bleep are we even doing here? Why are we here? This call is over for us.’’

Bika (32-6-3, 21 KOs) figures to be a lot tougher then a dial tone. Stevenson’s maturity will be tested in part by his ability to ignore the Kovalev buzz and focus on the challenge in front of him.

He promised to do exactly that. But, remember, this was a conference call.

“There’s so much talk about that,’’ Stevenson (25-1, 21 KOs) said. “But I’m very focused on Bika. He’s the one in my face now.’’

A grown-up evaluation of the Bika fight and its potential significance for Stevenson came from his trainer, Javan Hill, a student of the late Emanuel Steward.

“For the growth of Adonis, this very important,’’ Hill said. “It’s an opportunity for Adonis to go maybe 12 rounds or into the later rounds. This is a test, a chance for him to grow and become a superstar.’’

Hill’s comment is little bit surprising because of Stevenson’s age. He’s 37. But he’s late to the game because of a troubled youth. The light-heavyweight spent four years in prison. He didn’t make his pro debut until 2006. He might lack some of the instinct acquired by fighters who grow up within the ropes. Nevertheless, his power is almost scary. It’s what Steward noticed right away.

“Emanuel always used to say: ‘Knockouts sell, knockouts sell,’ ‘’ he said of Steward, who began to turn Stevenson into a star before he died in 2012. “I always go into the ring thinking knockout first.’’

That aggressiveness, a natural byproduct of his power, leads straight back to the question that – with apologies to Cunningham – has been around ever since it looked as if Kovalev and Stevenson would fight on HBO late last year.

Didn’t happen, of course. Stevenson jumped to Haymon and Showtime. But Kovalev continued on his relentless path, beating Bernard Hopkins in a victory that earned him pound-for pound-credentials.

All the while, Stevenson languished, scoring forgettable victories over Dmitry Sukhotsky and Andrzej Fonfara. But he and Kovalev remained on their collision course, mostly because Kovalev looks unstoppable and Stevenson has Haymon’s influence.

But is Stevenson a mature enough fighter to handle Kovalev, who is as poised as he is dangerous. Kovalev thinks through adversity, which was evident in his eighth-round TKO of Jean Pascal on March 14.

There are questions about what, if anything, Stevenson will do if somebody takes away his power. He’s gone 12 rounds twice and 10 rounds once, but not against anybody with Kovalev’s smarts.

In the tough, forward-charging Bika, Hill hopes to see some of those smarts in Stevenson. If he doesn’t, don’t be surprised if there’s another conference call a lot like the last one.

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