Hopkins is having a complete mental breakdown

[-EX-]

Only way Joe wins is if he is on B-Hop for 3 minutes of every round. Bernard will show him many different looks and will make him chase at times. Your crazy if you think Calzaghe is gonna school Bernard. He will make Joe miss at times and make Joe use his legs. Winky was unable to chase Bernard around and B-Hop just got him gassed and potshotted him and clinched all night. If B-Hop can find a real weakness in Calzaghe's game he will expose it.

Don't be suprised if Bernard cuts Calzaghe or uses his head ocasionally. Bernard will do whatever it takes to win.

Bernard hasn't been schooled since he fought Roy back in the early 90's. I don't think Calzaghe will be the first.

[squealpiggy]

I think when commenting on this fight you should stick to the science of boxing which includes every aspect of boxing. With that said it is no easy fight for either side. You have the busier Calzaghe, who fights well off of angles and doesn't lack in the punch selection department...not to mention a great record. On the other hand, he doesn't have much power and he has not EVER been tested by a well established champion. It is here, where unfortunately, his record is nice and padded with fluff fights.

Calzaghe doesn't have much power? Wow. Calzaghe has never been tested by an established champion? Kessler held half the belts at 168 and was on his ninth title defense when he fought Calzaghe. How much more established does he have to be? And for that matter which established champions has Hopkins beaten? Surely you're not suggesting that Antonio "Tommy Gunn" Tarver is better than Mikkel Kessler?

As for Hopkins, he has amazing footwork, great angles, decent power in both hands, and he has a good arsenal within his punch selection. Good defense, I might add. The downside is that his age has slowed him tremendously to the point that he could have a whole round of just foot work and about 10 punches land...because of this he has been very clinchy which causes him to blindly lead with his missile ass head possibly causing head butts.

He lost to Jermaine Taylor because he wasn't busy enough. His best combination in his fight with Winky was a headbutt over the eye followed by another headbutt over the other eye. And I'm absolutely stunned by the notion that you think Hopkins has "great power in both hands" while Calzaghe doesn't have much power. Since when was Hopkins a power puncher?

As they say styles make fights and both of these guys are facing their arch-nemesis, so we should expect a great fight. There are no guaranteed picks in my opinion. But! If we stick to the sweet science, then in my humble analysis, the edge would go to Hopkins because:

1. He has been tested.
2. More Championship rounds.
3. More active and stronger at weights greater than 160.
4. He has nothing to lose. If he loses this fight so what, its another loss of him at age 43, and he still possibly can pick up a rematch with Roy Jones Jr., Tarver, or go back up to 175 to challenge untested Chad Dawson (but Chad will get tested soon with Glen Johnson, he'll be test number 1) or the winner of Tarver/Woods. The guy still has plenty of options for big money fights.

Hopkins has been more active at weights greater than 160 lbs? Are you sure? Calzaghe has 44 fights at 168 lbs, Hopkins has had what, four or five? More tested? Why? Because he's been beaten four times, twice by Sugar Jermaine Taylor? More championship rounds? Hopkins has seen 34 championship rounds in his career, with six occurring in fights he lost and one in a fight he drew. Calzaghe has seen 22 in fights he won. Hardly a huge difference. And let's not forget that the reason Calzaghe has seen few championship rounds is that he otherwise stopped his opponents. I think that in terms of experience there's not much difference between them, the major difference being where they fought their careers.

Calzaghe has more to lose in my opinion because he's been flirting with retirement and surely he doesn't want to go out on a loss. If he were to lose, who would risk fighting him. He would have to re-invent himself as a challenging Light Heavyweight and fight a top contender or a champion, though winning this fight in dramatic fashion could thrust him into to a position of calling out Tarver, Woods, Dawson, or Johnson. I just seems like too much work that route. He must win this fight or he diminishes the beauty of his record.

That's the strangest bit of logic I've ever seen. Calzaghe is more likely to lose because he doesn't want to lose?

Let's face it, you want Bernard to win. You don't have any real reasons why he will, but you're trying to justify it and in doing so you're belying how little you know about his opponent.

[215Chaingang]

Hopkins/Calzaghe: Can Hopkins neutralize Calzaghe’s high punch volume?

By Geoffrey Ciani: Prior to his bout with Carlos Quintana, many observers (including me) had a very high opinion of Paul Williams. After all, what’s not to like about a freakishly tall welterweight with a piston-like jab and an obscenely high work rate? Following his impressive victory against Antonio Margarito, many felt that Williams might be the next best thing in the division. As it turns out, after his lackluster performance against Quintana, he seems much less impressive than me and many others had previously thought.

One thing that was so remarkable about Williams’s win over Margarito was the sheer volume of punches thrown. In that contest, Williams threw more than 1,200 punches (including over 600 jabs) for an average of over 100 per round—an astounding number by any measurable standard. The fact that he was able to throw so many punches against a feared puncher like Margarito was an absolute marvel, but despite being known for his ferocious power, it probably should have been noted that Margarito was a fairly easy target who is not especially known for defensive wizardry.

Against Quintana, Williams’s high punch volume was neutralized by good defensive movement and accurate counter-punching. In fact, Quintana was so successful on the defensive that Williams threw less than half as many punches (under 600) as he had against Margarito. This goes to show that there are various ways to slow down a fighter with a notoriously high work rate. As I watched Quintana’s brilliant defensive display unfold, I could not help being reminded of another fighter with an extremely high punch volume—Joe Calzaghe.

In the upcoming mega-bout between Calzaghe and Bernard Hopkins, most observers inexplicably seem to be favoring Calzaghe. Indeed, the majority of fans and writers believe Calzaghe will prevail, and even the odds-makers share this view, having made Joe the betting favorite. The most common reason cited by those who believe Calzaghe will reign supreme is punch volume. Countless observers have bellowed a similar sentiment: “‘Old Man Popkins’ will not be able to contend with Calzaghe’s exceptional work rate!” Apparently, I am amongst the minority who believes Hopkins will be triumphant.

Perhaps some observers will change their opinion in light of what happened to Paul Williams. This is not to say that Williams is deserving of a comparison with a proven commodity like Calzaghe. However, there is surely something to be said about the fact that good defense and accurate counter-punching have a way of negating high volume punching. After all, it is easy to look good against someone who is not especially concerned with avoiding punches, as Williams proved against Margarito.

Calzaghe has long been celebrated for his tremendous stamina and his ability to throw punches and bunches throughout the entire duration of a twelve round contest. In his most recent high profile match-ups, Calzaghe landed 351 of 952 punches against Jeff Lacy and 285 of 1,010 against Mikkel Kessler (according to compubox numbers). These are extremely impressive numbers in terms of output, but do they really spell certain doom for Hopkins, as so many members of the boxing community seem to believe? I am not convinced.

Hopkins is a crafty veteran with an uncanny ability for disrupting an opponent’s rhythm and taking him out of his game. A master of versatility, Hopkins can do this in numerous ways, often adapting different strategies to accomplish this goal. Against Felix Trinidad and Oscar De La Hoya, he utilized his ability to box from the outside behind the jab, whereas, against Keith Holmes and Winky Wright, he focused on smothering tactics and in-fighting. He can box or brawl, he can fight passively or aggressively, and he can lead or counter. Additionally, he has a tremendous knack for bending the rules in his favor without getting caught—a tactic which has successfully taken many a weary opponent by surprise, oftentimes enabling Hopkins to wear his opponent down mentally before breaking him down physically.

Few would deny the fact that Hopkins is the most technically gifted fighter Calzaghe has ever faced. In addition to his tactical prowess, he is additionally the most versatile fighter Joe was ever matched with. I, for one, am flabbergasted by this commonly held belief that Calzaghe is going to enter the ring and simply beat Hopkins by outworking him!

Calzaghe’s unorthodox style is often described as ‘awkward’ by both victims and analysts alike. As a result, he often finds himself off-balance which leaves him wide open for counters. To date, he has not faced someone capable of exploiting these weaknesses, but then again, he has never faced someone as capable as Hopkins—a fact which seems to be going unnoticed by all too many.

I believe that Hopkins defensive nature combined with impeccable counter-punching capabilities will certainly keep Joe on his toes. Calzaghe will need to be much more careful than he was against one-dimensional fighters like Lacy, and he will need to be much more tactical in his planning than he was against someone without a back-up plan like Kessler. Hopkins is a multi-dimensional fighter whose adaptability inside the ring makes him difficult to ‘figure out’. No doubt the seasoned vet will have a few tricks up his sleeve.

Paul Williams looked sensational against a defensive misfit like Margarito, but when pitted against an opponent who could move and counter, he looked mediocre. Likewise, Calzaghe also looked sensational when pitted against offensive-minded fighters like Kessler and Lacy. How will he look when he squares off against the much more defensively talented Hopkins? I cannot say for sure, but I feel we will see a greatly reduced punch output on the part of Calzaghe. I am not saying that this analogy is by any means perfect, but I certainly believe it helps highlight my point—there are ways of slowing down fighters with high work rates.

In fact, Calzaghe himself probably realizes that it will take more than work rate alone to get the best of Bernard Hopkins. Calzaghe is a very intelligent fighter who is much too smart to rely on such a poor strategy. He also probably has a better idea of what he is up against than do the majority of fans, pundits and odds-makers. Expect him to fight a much more tactical bout than we are accustomed to seeing, and expect him to pick and choose his punches much more carefully. Otherwise, we may see a one-sided exhibition from ‘Old Man Popkins’.



this is for idiots that don't understand boxing

[ИATAS]

^^Good article.

"good defense and accurate counter-punching have a way of negating high volume punching."

This is exactly what I've been trying to tell people (but not worded quite as well).

Joe being a high volume puncher and the fact that bhop is 43 seem to be the only real arguments as to why Calzaghe will win. I just don't think that's enough to beat hop

[215Chaingang]

^^Good article.

"good defense and accurate counter-punching have a way of negating high volume punching."

This is exactly what I've been trying to tell people (but not worded quite as well).

Joe being a high volume puncher and the fact that bhop is 43 seem to be the only real arguments as to why Calzaghe will win. I just don't think that's enough to beat hop

THIS WHAT I'VE BEEN TRY TO TELL THESE PEOPLE
you have to make contact with those punches and i'm sorry but joe no lick of defense. and what's even worst is that he has very bad balance same as winky

[hulme#1]

I kind of like Hopkins, he seems a decent human being at bottom.

Yeah, that's the bottom-line for me, I think Hop is a good cat. The rest doesn't really matter.
I'm pulling for Joe, I think he should win, but I'll give full deserved credit if Bernard outfoxes him and gets the decision.

[Knicksman20]

Hopkins/Calzaghe: Can Hopkins neutralize Calzaghe’s high punch volume?

By Geoffrey Ciani:

Paul Williams looked sensational against a defensive misfit like Margarito, but when pitted against an opponent who could move and counter, he looked mediocre. Likewise, Calzaghe also looked sensational when pitted against offensive-minded fighters like Kessler and Lacy. How will he look when he squares off against the much more defensively talented Hopkins? I cannot say for sure, but I feel we will see a greatly reduced punch output on the part of Calzaghe. I am not saying that this analogy is by any means perfect, but I certainly believe it helps highlight my point—there are ways of slowing down fighters with high work rates.

This sums up what I've been saying as well. Great post/article! I highly doubt that Cal will be able to throw 900-1000 punches in this fight because it will leave opportunities for Hopkins to counter. Again not comparing Williams to Cal or Quintana to Hopkins in the least bit but it's not far fetched to think that Hopkins will adapt to Cal & disrupt his rhythm which he does to everyone.

[Konstantin]

^^Good article.

"good defense and accurate counter-punching have a way of negating high volume punching."

This is exactly what I've been trying to tell people (but not worded quite as well).

Joe being a high volume puncher and the fact that bhop is 43 seem to be the only real arguments as to why Calzaghe will win. I just don't think that's enough to beat hop

I think Calzaghe has a better offense than BHop thats why he will win.

And since when has BHop had more power than Calzaggie? The last time Bhop knocked out a middleweight was in 2002. 6 years ago...

[Mr. Philadel]

Not that he was ever remotely intelligent or stable, but this ****er is falling apart.

If you bought the "Joe is scared because he's undefeated" bull****, don't bother replying because you're too ****** to talk to me.

The ***** nonsense he pulled was insulting and embarrassing.

The "whiteboy" comment was desperation.

He feels inferior, he is inferior.

And he's losing his mind over this. It's too much for him. He'd be better pulling out and signing a rematch with Tito

Maybe he could fight Taylor if Taylor loses again, then he could redeem himself on another "whiteboy's" leftovers

Reasons why Calzaghe is the only one with fear floating in his eyes!

he's undefeated! he's at the end of his career, so he fears a lost!
first fight ever in America! we can call it a nervous fear!
Bernard is the best he's ever faced! and he knows that! he's never faced anyone with a resume close to Bernards!
if Cal loses, he loses to an OLD man! If Bernard loses he loses to an undefeated undisputed champ at age 43, that doesnt look too bad!
Hatton just got knocked out, now he's average! Joe wants to be a LEGEND not Average! So Cal has more to fear here! talk facts!!!!

[johnm is...]

THIS WHAT I'VE BEEN TRY TO TELL THESE PEOPLE
you have to make contact with those punches and i'm sorry but joe no lick of defense. and what's even worst is that he has very bad balance same as winky

Eeek. I won't sit here and try and act like I'm a pro on things about Calzaghe. But it seems to me if he had very bad balance, he would have went down against Kessler. I'm don't think he even stumbled.