Paul Hodkinson

[banjo]

What has the former WBC Featherweight champion been upto since his retirement?

[kevo]

Couldn't tell you mate. You hear stories, but you should take them all with a pinch of salt.

[bennie]

Last I heard, he was working on the railways and doing OK. I would go as far as to say Hodkinson is one of the greatest fighters this country has ever produced.
Really underrated.

[Lickszz]

Agreed, he was a fantastic fighter, full of entertainment, loads of bottle, tough. His only weakness was his cuts. They say he based his style on Barry, but I think he was better.

[harrygreb]

he has to be up there in the top 20 brits i'd say.
pity about his eyes.

[Autobarn]

been watching some hoko.

definite barry mcguigan angle, with the pressure style, the quality left hook, holding a world featherweight title for a short time and i think the same manager as well. & of course stopping steve cruz, who ended mcguigan's title run (along with the vegas weather.

really good, the first fight with villasana. reminded me of the mini-classic that was azumah nelson v jim mcdonnell, in terms of hideous facial injury to brit challenger. (interestingly, villasana a nelson-victim, and the bout for nelson's old title...)

hoko's big fight was supposed to come vs colin mcmillan, in a WBC/WBO title unification, but mcmillan obviously got that shoulder injury. hoko was very hard on mcmillan, i recall. it must have been disappointing.

hoko's big UK fight ended up being a challenge to steve robinson (after hoko had lost his title to gregorio vargas), probably for a lot less money than he would have got in a mcmillan unification. this was a superb contest with many great exchanges inside. robinson seemed bigger, fitter and stronger and won britain's fight of the year 1994.

how would hoko have fared vs the current WBC featherweight champ, hozumi hasegawa?

what happened in the vargas fight - did hoko get smashed up inside vs a mexican, or was it the facial injuries that did him in?

[King Carlos]

He was a better puncher than Barry, if not quite as technically fluid. Love watching him fight, though.

[Autobarn]

someone said he was one of the greatest british boxers. i wouldn't go that far. he certainly LOOKED like a million dollars, one of the most polished pressure fighters i've seen from this country. his punches so tight and compact, good variety, smashing through the target. great to watch, even in defeat. obviously not as sharp as he could've been, vs steve robinson in that memorable clash. he his workrate and bravery contributed to a mini-classic - several times staggered, and kept rallying.

would have been interesting if he could've kept his title a little longer, and a great what if re mcmillan (if he hadn't got injured). that would have been an intriguing test for hoko, given the slickness of sweet c.

obviously the scouser was moved carefully to a world title, but i think pressure fighters often need this. best not to leave everything in the domestic fights and nothing for the world championship bouts.

so what were his best fights? vargas, robinson, villasana 1, and the mexican who almost stopped him in the WBC elim bout?

[DIRT SUGAR]

Won the European title with one of the sweetest left-hooks you'll see against Guy Bellehigue. Great little fighter, just took too many shots and marked up. Never destined for a long career but exciting while it lasted.

[Datsue]

been watching some hoko.

definite barry mcguigan angle, with the pressure style, the quality left hook, holding a world featherweight title for a short time and i think the same manager as well. & of course stopping steve cruz, who ended mcguigan's title run (along with the vegas weather.

really good, the first fight with villasana. reminded me of the mini-classic that was azumah nelson v jim mcdonnell, in terms of hideous facial injury to brit challenger. (interestingly, villasana a nelson-victim, and the bout for nelson's old title...)

hoko's big fight was supposed to come vs colin mcmillan, in a WBC/WBO title unification, but mcmillan obviously got that shoulder injury. hoko was very hard on mcmillan, i recall. it must have been disappointing.

hoko's big UK fight ended up being a challenge to steve robinson (after hoko had lost his title to gregorio vargas), probably for a lot less money than he would have got in a mcmillan unification. this was a superb contest with many great exchanges inside. robinson seemed bigger, fitter and stronger and won britain's fight of the year 1994.

how would hoko have fared vs the current WBC featherweight champ, hozumi hasegawa?

what happened in the vargas fight - did hoko get smashed up inside vs a mexican, or was it the facial injuries that did him in?

HOKO would've beaten McGuigan at Paul's peak, imo. I agree with King Carlos, that Barry was somewhat more fluid but Paul was a superior one-shot hitter & I just think

The fight with Fabrice Benichou is an absolute out & out war. Watch ASAP. Watch Villasana II, Hoko boxes beautifully off the back foot & Villasana just can't get to him.

The loss to Vargas made me cry at the time (in my defence, Hoko was my favourite fighter outside of Tommy Hearns, & I was only about eleven) but in retrospect is the start of my love affair with preternaturally well-balanced Mexican counter-punchers. So, you know. Goyo smashed the fornicate out of him that night, met him head on, took his best, outboxed him, broke him & then KTFO'd him. Astonishingly good fight. Hairs stand up on the back of my neck just thinking about it.

Hodkinson had a short prime because of the Villasana I, Benichou & Vargas fights. Everybody knew that the WBO challenge vs the Welshman was a massive step down from the sort of company he'd been keeping. Hoko's a shadow of himself vs Robinson, a fighter Hoko would've destroyed in his prime. Actually, thinking about it, I'd venture that the Vargas fight finished Hoko & probably took something permanently from Goyo, too (very good fighter but never shined again).

[Flump]

been watching some hoko.

definite barry mcguigan angle, with the pressure style, the quality left hook, holding a world featherweight title for a short time and i think the same manager as well. & of course stopping steve cruz, who ended mcguigan's title run (along with the vegas weather.

really good, the first fight with villasana. reminded me of the mini-classic that was azumah nelson v jim mcdonnell, in terms of hideous facial injury to brit challenger. (interestingly, villasana a nelson-victim, and the bout for nelson's old title...)

hoko's big fight was supposed to come vs colin mcmillan, in a WBC/WBO title unification, but mcmillan obviously got that shoulder injury. hoko was very hard on mcmillan, i recall. it must have been disappointing.

hoko's big UK fight ended up being a challenge to steve robinson (after hoko had lost his title to gregorio vargas), probably for a lot less money than he would have got in a mcmillan unification. this was a superb contest with many great exchanges inside. robinson seemed bigger, fitter and stronger and won britain's fight of the year 1994.

how would hoko have fared vs the current WBC featherweight champ, hozumi hasegawa?

what happened in the vargas fight - did hoko get smashed up inside vs a mexican, or was it the facial injuries that did him in?

HOKO would've beaten McGuigan at Paul's peak, imo. I agree with King Carlos, that Barry was somewhat more fluid but Paul was a superior one-shot hitter & I just think

The fight with Fabrice Benichou is an absolute out & out war. Watch ASAP. Watch Villasana II, Hoko boxes beautifully off the back foot & Villasana just can't get to him.

The loss to Vargas made me cry at the time (in my defence, Hoko was my favourite fighter outside of Tommy Hearns, & I was only about eleven) but in retrospect is the start of my love affair with preternaturally well-balanced Mexican counter-punchers. So, you know. Goyo smashed the eff out of him that night, met him head on, took his best, outboxed him, broke him & then KTFO'd him. Astonishingly good fight. Hairs stand up on the back of my neck just thinking about it.

Hodkinson had a short prime because of the Villasana I, Benichou & Vargas fights. Everybody knew that the WBO challenge vs the Welshman was a massive step down from the sort of company he'd been keeping. Hoko's a shadow of himself vs Robinson, a fighter Hoko would've destroyed in his prime. Actually, thinking about it, I'd venture that the Vargas fight finished Hoko & probably took something permanently from Goyo, too (very good fighter but never shined again).

Yeah I thought watching Vargas that night he was a future great, Hoko was no mug, in fact he's possibly the most underated British world champion of the era and won a genuine title in an era when average British fighters were winning highly dubious WBO straps.

[Autobarn]

been watching some hoko.

definite barry mcguigan angle, with the pressure style, the quality left hook, holding a world featherweight title for a short time and i think the same manager as well. & of course stopping steve cruz, who ended mcguigan's title run (along with the vegas weather.

really good, the first fight with villasana. reminded me of the mini-classic that was azumah nelson v jim mcdonnell, in terms of hideous facial injury to brit challenger. (interestingly, villasana a nelson-victim, and the bout for nelson's old title...)

hoko's big fight was supposed to come vs colin mcmillan, in a WBC/WBO title unification, but mcmillan obviously got that shoulder injury. hoko was very hard on mcmillan, i recall. it must have been disappointing.

hoko's big UK fight ended up being a challenge to steve robinson (after hoko had lost his title to gregorio vargas), probably for a lot less money than he would have got in a mcmillan unification. this was a superb contest with many great exchanges inside. robinson seemed bigger, fitter and stronger and won britain's fight of the year 1994.

how would hoko have fared vs the current WBC featherweight champ, hozumi hasegawa?

what happened in the vargas fight - did hoko get smashed up inside vs a mexican, or was it the facial injuries that did him in?

HOKO would've beaten McGuigan at Paul's peak, imo. I agree with King Carlos, that Barry was somewhat more fluid but Paul was a superior one-shot hitter & I just think

The fight with Fabrice Benichou is an absolute out & out war. Watch ASAP. Watch Villasana II, Hoko boxes beautifully off the back foot & Villasana just can't get to him.

The loss to Vargas made me cry at the time (in my defence, Hoko was my favourite fighter outside of Tommy Hearns, & I was only about eleven) but in retrospect is the start of my love affair with preternaturally well-balanced Mexican counter-punchers. So, you know. Goyo smashed the eff out of him that night, met him head on, took his best, outboxed him, broke him & then KTFO'd him. Astonishingly good fight. Hairs stand up on the back of my neck just thinking about it.

Hodkinson had a short prime because of the Villasana I, Benichou & Vargas fights. Everybody knew that the WBO challenge vs the Welshman was a massive step down from the sort of company he'd been keeping. Hoko's a shadow of himself vs Robinson, a fighter Hoko would've destroyed in his prime. Actually, thinking about it, I'd venture that the Vargas fight finished Hoko & probably took something permanently from Goyo, too (very good fighter but never shined again).

thanks for the info. i will definitely get hodkinson v benichou and vargas next. hoko-vargas sounds like one of my faves, robbie regan getting beaten up by alberto jiminez - the brit making it a great fight due to talent and braveness, but just not being quite hard or seasoned enough to take on teak tough mexican.

shame hoko hadn't done a couple of tune up fights before taking on steve robinson, in his prime, bigger and stronger at the weight and absolutely not willing to give up his title after lcareer as a journeyman fighter.

britain's done pretty well for quality featherweights, hasn't it? surely second only to our success in the super middleweights.

[bennie]

I think McGuigan was a better fighter than Hoko, who came along after McGuigan and had a very similar style. He is McGuigan mark II, and the original is always the best.

[Datsue]

thanks for the info. i will definitely get hodkinson v benichou and vargas next. hoko-vargas sounds like one of my faves, robbie regan getting beaten up by alberto jiminez - the brit making it a great fight due to talent and braveness, but just not being quite hard or seasoned enough to take on teak tough mexican.

Having rewatched Goyo vs Hoko (I like the sound of that: GoyoversusHoko, GoyoversusHoko...) last night it appears that it's somewhat more straightforward than it was in my memory & also I've realised that Goyo's combination punching made everyone go "Salvador Sanchez!" before they'd really thought it through. The Mexican's actually quite slow, & his defensive deficiencies mean he gets hit eleventy million times by Hoko as he swarms forward, but despite putting some serious leather on him, Paul couldn't budge him, while every time the Mexican let fly with those textbook combos it hurt Hokdinson, who couldn't get out the way either. Eventually, Paul just broke.

Not as stellar a performance as I remember from Goyo, but still a great, great action fight, seriously dramatic stuff.

[Counter-puncher]

^^^ i can remember none of this, though Hoko was a favourite at the time.

Villasana was feckin nails, i know that much. i certainly can't agree that Hoko woulda beaten McGuigan for what that's worth.

[el_grande_mauro_mina]

Goyo Vargas finishing off Paul Hodkinson was pretty brutal - in my opinion it ruined Paul Hodkinson as a boxer.

[NazNaci1]

Tough fighter, probably punched harder than Barry but Barry definately had the better chin.

Exciting, come forward fighter who liked to mix it up to head and body.

[Autobarn]

he really was class - ppl saw him as the most complete british boxer, from between the 2nd villasana and the vargas fight. shame mcmillan got injured - though i wonder if the fight ever would have happened - politics always get in the way when 2 champs are in their primes. also i bet john davison would have been a good fight. he was in some good scraps, wasn't he? i think he was peaking around the time that hoko picked up a title.

[Ketchel]

Goyo Vargas finished Hoko who was never the same after that fight.

I was at the second Villasana v Hoko fight. After a bit of blagging I actually travelled to the fight in the same 10 seater van driven by Barney Eastwoods son with Vilasanna and his corner men. Should have seen the faces of the doormen at Maysfield Leisure Centre as we walked by: Eastwood, mexican, mexican, mexican,...guy in blue denim jeans and jacket..., mexican, mexican....

Great night of boxing with some good names from the Eastwood stable. Ray Close fought well and future champ Crisanto Espana changed his shorts in the ring halfway through his fight as his cornermen held towels around him!

Hoko was fantastic that night opening up a cut over Vilasanas eye and generally frustrating him winning easily on points. I remember thinking as Hoko came past me on his way to the changing room after the fight that he was fooking tiny! What a warrior he was and I hope he his keeping well today.

[Autobarn]

good fights, hoko v vargas and benichou. the former has quality punching all the way through. hoko is an extremely polished aggressor, but i think he's just not rugged enough to go in there backing up the hard mexicans. i can see why vargas lost to kevin kelly, as he probably waits a bit too much, and although he has fine punching technique, he probably doesn't come forward enough.

i wonder if benichou was a tad shopwarn from all his EBU and world title fights, when he met hoko? another exciting fight with hard exchanges.

datsue, re mexican counter punchers - bet you wouldn't have rated hoko's chances vs the current, featherweight version of jhonny gonzalez (of the antonio davis, jackson asiku and hozumi hasegawa fights)...