How close was Jones vs Hopkins 1?

[them_apples]

I just rewatched the fight with as unbiased eye as I could and ignored the commentating. This fight was so close it could have been ruled a draw. The score card was absurd. Jones was flashier but a great deal of his punches were grazing shots or didn't even land. Hopkins defense was great and he landed better punches when he did, but the commentators often ignored them because they were simply not as flashy.

Hopkins did a lot of waiting around himself which didn't help his case, however he was the one bringing the fight most of the time so that should be taken into account as well.

I remember the first time watching the fight years ago and it seems like Jones was winning it handily if you don't pay attention. Jones will throw flashy shots and the commentating will be following his lead and confirming to everyone he's landing. Until you realize that half the shots aren't landing at all and Hopkins' defense was great. This seems to be one of the biggest problems with boxing, is having judges and commentators in your pocket. There's been many heavily manipulated wins that were literally sold to the casuals over the years with biased commentating and corrupt judges.

What they should have done was followed the fight accurately and explained that this fight is dead even and could go either way, this would have pressured Jones into a rematch earlier. Based off the later rounds which Hopkins started winning handily, Jones to me didn't want to fight Hopkins again.

[Willie Pep 229]

For three rounds there was some excitement with Jones getting in the better punches -- then Hopkins realizing he wasn't going to win lost interest in trying to win the fight and sought only to survive - worst yet Jones then so no reason to push the action -- so for the next nine rounds they posed in front of each other. Hopkins too frightened to engage and Jones having no desire to seek a KO.

Whether the last nine rounds were close or not on the judges scorecards is a 'big who cares' it was a stinker of a fight, a dog. They both should have had to give back half their purses.

[The Old LefHook]

I will take a look at it.

[them_apples]

For three rounds there was some excitement with Jones getting in the better punches -- then Hopkins realizing he wasn't going to win lost interest in trying to win the fight and sought only to survive - worst yet Jones then so no reason to push the action -- so for the next nine rounds they posed in front of each other. Hopkins too frightened to engage and Jones having no desire to seek a KO.

Whether the last nine rounds were close or not on the judges scorecards is a 'big who cares' it was a stinker of a fight, a dog. They both should have had to give back half their purses.

I agree with most of what you are saying, in truth this fight shouldn't have a winner as they both played safety mode. I didn't see Jones getting in the better punches. He did land some good body shots in the middle rounds. Those shots in the beginning Jones wasn't really landing, they were just saying they were.

Draw rounds need to be brought back. Winning rounds based off that one grazing jab doesn't make any sense. Many fights are so close a winners hand shouldn't even be raised.

[Nash out]

Close/boring fight. Also, I thought Griffin was completely outboxing Jones before his DQ win. Whilst I think Jones was a very good boxer, I don't rank him close to as high as some people do.

[QueensburyRules]

- -OP gots the poopsie droopsies in his shorts. Popkins looked like a club fighter and one handed Roy's rapier left controlled the action. Poppy was so humiliated that when Lou Dibella signed for the rematch, poppy defaulted their contract and had to pay a $2 mil judgement. And like the OP, needed a new pair of shorts...

[JAB5239]

- -OP gots the poopsie droopsies in his shorts. Popkins looked like a club fighter and one handed Roy's rapier left controlled the action. Poppy was so humiliated that when Lou Dibella signed for the rematch, poppy defaulted their contract and had to pay a $2 mil judgement. And like the OP, needed a new pair of shorts...

You really need to get off the bottle. Hopkins lost a libel suit to DiBella. It had nothing to do with a rematch but rather Hopkins slandering DiBella's name. It was also nearly a decade after the first Jones fight, and nearly a decade before their rematch. Unlike the OP, you like to make things up to rewrite history.

[Willie Pep 229]

You really need to get off the bottle. Hopkins lost a libel suit to DiBella. It had nothing to do with a rematch but rather Hopkins slandering DiBella's name. It was also nearly a decade after the first Jones fight, and nearly a decade before their rematch. Unlike the OP, you like to make things up to rewrite history.

Motivated by your post I just read a single extended narrative of the law suit (it might be bias it was anti-Hopkins) . It looks to me it was another example of Don King using the race card to turn a fighter away from a successful white promoter. First Hopkins does great under DiBella he gets Hopkins to the top shelf and suddenly Hopkins signs with King and is calling DiBella a thief. And of course all along King fails to make good on DiBella's percentage.

It has King-Clayton-Tyson or King-Duva-Bramble written all over it.

King knew how to play the 'white devil' card with Black fighters.

[JAB5239]

Motivated by your post I just read a single extended narrative of the law suit (it might be bias it was anti-Hopkins) . It looks to me it was another example of Don King using the race card to turn a fighter away from a successful white promoter. First Hopkins does great under DiBella he gets Hopkins to the top shelf and suddenly Hopkins signs with King and is calling DiBella a thief. And of course all along King fails to make good on DiBella's percentage.

It has King-Clayton-Tyson or King-Duva-Bramble written all over it.

King knew how to play the 'white devil' card with Black fighters.

I've been convinced for a very long time that Don King is one of the best boxing promoters in history, and the most genius and manipulative person the sport has ever known. If you haven't read it, get the book "Don King: his life and crimes" by Jack Newfield. King is like a real life super villain.

[QueensburyRules]

- -Can't help jibberjabberwonkywonky if he weren't around when Poppy melted after Lou signed for two lucrative fights, the Jones rematch and SuperJoe. The fact that he eventually fights them later and soils hisself has nothing to do with Dibella 2Mil civil judgement vs Poppy.