Good bye. Tribute to Bernard Hopkins

[Cloutov]

I never been the biggest fan of B-Hop but what he accomplished threw out is career is unbelievable. Tomorrow night he ll jump in the ring for one last fight at 51 years old. We all tought he was done back 10 years ago but somehow he surprised us all by staying in the top 5 light heavy for 5+ years. He should be remembered for showing to all young boxers that training and good life habit can be miraculous and i will always talk about the phenom he was. Congrats on a amazing career. Hopefully we will see the Executionnor tomorrow for one big Au revoir.

[punchoutsb]

A really fantastic career, unmatched longevity. He wasn't always the most exciting to watch but his resume is a who's who of boxing for his era. A GREAT fighter.

I'm hoping Joe Smith smashes him tomorrow though.

[diddy]

Expecting Hopkins to win an ugly UD.

[Cloutov]

Not looking for any boring prediction for this thread but to pay a tribute to a guy who fought the best for 3 decades!!

[gilgamesh]

A lot of people have always been critics of Hopkins calling him boring and all this, but I've always been fascinated by Hopkins' career and all he's accomplished since I started following the sport. He had just achieved his biggest win when I first started watching, the Tito victory, and I got to see him break the Middleweight title defense record, and then go on to become a 3 time Light Heavyweight Champion, and break the record for the Oldest Champion of all time both with a lineal title win, and with an alphabet title win.

What a career and journey it's been.

[boxingknockout]

Glad to see the back of the boring, spoiling, racist, armed robber b@stard

[Impractical Poster]

I with those who weren't big fans of Bernard, but respect what he has done. I really admire the way he went from doing a 5 year prison term to accomplishing what he has in the boxing world. I expect a movie will be made about his life in the coming years.

[Perseus]

Hopkins is an example of "the system" actually working the way it is supposed to work.
He was a young thug who earned hard time in prison.
Upon release, he straightened up his life rather than doing things that would have got him sent back to prison and by all accounts has been a law abiding citizen from the day he got out of jail.

[Rexob]

Great fighter and a lesson to all young fighters how to live outside the ring, especially a lot of UK fighters who are done by the time there 30 years old

[caldo2025]

This Bhop ass kissing tour has been going on for 10 years now. I'm over it and been over it.

Now is Bernard Hopkins and ALL TIME GREAT boxer? No, I can't go there. The streak of title defenses and longevity gets him on the waiting list to the party but he's not getting in the door if it's my party. I'll point to his unappealing style and tactics inside the ring, the lack of opposition during his reign and the fact that he was never at or near the top P4P boxer list in any boxing year. He was a steady, gritty, win at whatever costs kind of boxer but he failed to generate fandom or the kind of interest in his craft that the truly GREAT boxers have.

I know that's not a popular opinion but i think boxing fans throw the "great" word around too easily these days. There's nothing wrong with calling him very good or excellent. Ali was great. Sugar Ray Leonard was great. Bernard Hopkins doesn't get to ride in the backseat with those kinds of guys.

[Rexob]

He deserves to be in the hof just from his middle weight reign alone.

[Cloutov]

Because the image you have of B-Hop is made on the last 10 years. Think about him back in time time he was a different fighter. Leonard retired young so you still have an image of him but can you imagine what he ll do at 50 years old against Kovalev.. he got dominated at 41 vs Camacho.

[diddy]

With the odds dropping to a playable -165 level I've placed a sizable $3500 wager on Bernard to win. I don't care if he's 60 yrs old. He's not losing to a one-dimensional, straight ahead boxing novice. Power alone has never beaten Bernard. Why would it now? Hopkins will throw 1-2 punches at a time and land almost everything he throws against this kid. Then smother Smith before he can return fire.

[gilgamesh]

With the odds dropping to a playable -165 level I've placed a sizable $3500 wager on Bernard to win. I don't care if he's 60 yrs old. He's not losing to a one-dimensional, straight ahead boxing novice. Power alone has never beaten Bernard. Why would it now? Hopkins will throw 1-2 punches at a time and land almost everything he throws against this kid. Then smother Smith before he can return fire.

You got balls placing a bet like that on a 51 year old who lost all 12 rounds in his last fight 2 years ago. Good luck

I'll actually be rooting for Hopkins tonight even though I'm not picking him to win. Unlike a lot of Boxing fans I respect Hopkins, and find him pretty interesting to watch.

[diddy]

With the odds dropping to a playable -165 level I've placed a sizable $3500 wager on Bernard to win. I don't care if he's 60 yrs old. He's not losing to a one-dimensional, straight ahead boxing novice. Power alone has never beaten Bernard. Why would it now? Hopkins will throw 1-2 punches at a time and land almost everything he throws against this kid. Then smother Smith before he can return fire.

You got balls placing a bet like that on a 51 year old who lost all 12 rounds in his last fight 2 years ago. Good luck

I'll actually be rooting for Hopkins tonight even though I'm not picking him to win. Unlike a lot of Boxing fans I respect Hopkins, and find him pretty interesting to watch.

Joe Smith can't hold Sergey Kovalev's nutsack. There is literally no comparison. Kovalev is a 2 handed killer who knows how to
cut off the ring and works behind the jab. Smith is a plodding slugger who doesn't know what a jab is.

[diddy]

The one thing Fonfara doesn't do is hold in close quarters. Ever. He likes to sit inside the pocket and exchange leather. A slugger like Smith can land a big shot against this sort of style. Hopkins does nothing but hold inside. He removes those opportunities from his opponents. Then off the break Hopkins will circle and jump in with lead straight rights. Then hold and smother. Then circle again off the break. He's been doing it successfully for years against far better opposition than Joe Smith.

[gilgamesh]

The one thing Fonfara doesn't do is hold in close quarters. Ever. He likes to sit inside the pocket and exchange leather. A slugger like Smith can land a big shot against this sort of style. Hopkins does nothing but hold inside. He removes those opportunities from his opponents. Then off the break Hopkins will circle and jump in with lead straight rights. Then hold and smother. Then circle again off the break. He's been doing it successfully for years against far better opposition than Joe Smith.

Yeah but he wasn't 1 month shy of 52 years old when he was doing it.

[diddy]

50, 51. Does it even matter? The dude has been fighting with basically no workrate for like 8 yrs.

[brilo33]

forget that, the irish bommer is gonna blow him away

[diddy]

Sure he is. We will see.

[squiggy]

This Bhop ass kissing tour has been going on for 10 years now. I'm over it and been over it.

Now is Bernard Hopkins and ALL TIME GREAT boxer? No, I can't go there. The streak of title defenses and longevity gets him on the waiting list to the party but he's not getting in the door if it's my party. I'll point to his unappealing style and tactics inside the ring, the lack of opposition during his reign

Would that be the reign when he beat de la Hoya, Trinidad and Johnson, or the other reign, when he beat jones, tarver, wright, pavlik and pascal?

[squiggy]

and the fact that he was never at or near the top P4P boxer list in any boxing year.

Top two for four years in a row on these lists http://boxrec.com/media/index.php/The_R ... und--2000s

[jezzamundo]

This Bhop ass kissing tour has been going on for 10 years now. I'm over it and been over it.

Now is Bernard Hopkins and ALL TIME GREAT boxer? No, I can't go there. The streak of title defenses and longevity gets him on the waiting list to the party but he's not getting in the door if it's my party. I'll point to his unappealing style and tactics inside the ring, the lack of opposition during his reign and the fact that he was never at or near the top P4P boxer list in any boxing year. He was a steady, gritty, win at whatever costs kind of boxer but he failed to generate fandom or the kind of interest in his craft that the truly GREAT boxers have.

I know that's not a popular opinion but i think boxing fans throw the "great" word around too easily these days. There's nothing wrong with calling him very good or excellent. Ali was great. Sugar Ray Leonard was great. Bernard Hopkins doesn't get to ride in the backseat with those kinds of guys.

It depends on how you define great, but if BHop isn't great, you're setting the bar really, really high. Too high in my opinion. For me he is the third greatest fighter of his generation, after Mayweather and Pacquiao. In terms of p4p, he was in the Ring Top 10 in the following years:

1999 - 9th
2000 - 10th
2001 - 2nd
2002 - 1st
2003 - 2nd
2004 - 1st
2006 - 5th
2007 - 4th
2008 - 4th
2009 - 4th

[Keko]

A great and long career. Very smart in the ring!

[Tanzio]

Sure he is. We will see.

Indeed we did.

All hail the GOAT and his legendary career and legendary exit from the ring