By Mark Vester
Former undisputed middleweight champion Bernard Hopkins has officially put the word on the street, he is back!
Hopkins still has the same goal at the top of his list, a move up to the heavyweight division to challenge WBC champ Oleg Maskaev. Hopkins, who says that he currently weighs at 180-pounds, plans to be a full heavyweight before January. In a recent interview with Reuters, Hopkins clearly voiced his ring intentions.
"I want to win the heavyweight championship of the world. I want to bring the heavyweight championship back to the United States. I'm going to be the guy that everybody says preserved the reputation of the American fighter," Hopkins said.
Initially, Hopkins said that he would return to the ring only if he was able to land a heavyweight title shot with Maskaev. Now it appears that Hopkins would also be willing to face WBO super middleweight champion Joe Calzaghe if a Maskaev bout did not materialize.
Hopkins told Reuters that he is not going to let Calzaghe break his record of 20 successful title defenses. Should Calzaghe beat Peter Manfredo, Jr. when the two fighters clash in March, he would equal the record of Hopkins. If Maskaev does not come calling soon, Hopkins will focus his full energy on not letting Calzaghe reach the magic number of 21.
"If I can't make my history, then I can stop him making his history," said Hopkins "Anyone can beat a champion. Very few can beat a legend."