Comments Thread For: Schaefer: HBO, The Roadblock To Hopkins-Stevenson

[HAY-B]

Everyone seems to be calling for Kovalev vs. Stevenson. My question is who does the winner fight for a big payday? Hopkins, because he is the biggest draw in the division whether you like him or not, he generates the most money.
No doubt Kovalev vs. Stevenson will end in a KO but I bet neither one KO's Hopkins.
For those that feel/think Hopkins wants no part of Kovalev, I would say talk to Kathy Duva, because she choose to have Kovalev fight Cleverly instead of having Kovalev fight Hopkins when Kovalev was Hopkins mandatory challenger.
The fans think one way and the fighters promoter thinks otherwise.

[Iceta Lives]

who cares if Hopkins is the biggest name - Stevenson v Kovalev is the the fight to make at 175 - no doubt. After that, Id love to see the winner take Bhop on. BUT, HBO should press hard for Stevenson v Kovalev

HBO has done all it can do, but Stevenson wants no part of Kovalev. If we leave out the money factor and how much they would pay for the fight.

[Iceta Lives]

Plus the fight would probably be an absolute snooze fest. Hopkins only looks bearable to watch against pure come forward guys. Every one of his fights with southpaws were bore fests. Stevenson is a sorry excuse for a champ.

[King_]

Everyone seems to be calling for Kovalev vs. Stevenson. My question is who does the winner fight for a big payday? Hopkins, because he is the biggest draw in the division whether you like him or not, he generates the most money.
No doubt Kovalev vs. Stevenson will end in a KO but I bet neither one KO's Hopkins.
For those that feel/think Hopkins wants no part of Kovalev, I would say talk to Kathy Duva, because she choose to have Kovalev fight Cleverly instead of having Kovalev fight Hopkins when Kovalev was Hopkins mandatory challenger.
The fans think one way and the fighters promoter thinks otherwise.

You're just as clueless. Kathy Duva wanted Kovalev to fight Hopkins because thats the fight Kovalev wanted, he called him out after the White fight when he became mandatory..... Showtime/GoldenBoy rejected the Kovalev-Hopkins fight. Of course people can say what they want to say and Hopkins never vacated a title etc etc etc....But Showtime/GoldenBoy (not Hopkins) rejected the fight and Hopkins himself said it.

Logic says that if a guys network and promoter are not interested in his mandatory fight, you would think he would have to vacate, and what would of happened would of been Kovalev and the other top IBF fighter would fight for the vacant belt. After this Duva said that Kovalev was not interested in fighting for a vacant belt but by winning a belt from a champ and at this moment, Cleverly chose to make a voluntary defense and deserves all of the respect in the world for that.


This is all info from the promoters, networks and fighters mouths and what was on bscene and every other boxing news website around here at the time it was happening. Take that for what its worth.


Did Hopkins duck Kovalev? No. Did his promoter and network? Unless the definition of "duck" is something different now-a-days, yes

[SUBZER0ED]

Most boxing fans want to see Stevenson v Kovalev, not Hopkins.

Schaefer is talking Hopkins vs Stevenson, but does Hopkins really want that fight? He lost to Dawson, whom Stevenson destroyed inside one (47 sec!) round. Adonis is a southpaw, as Dawson is. Hopkins is a spoiler because of his old school ring savvy, but Stevenson has been training in the Kronk gym. He's learning old school tactics and can punch like a mofo. Hopkins would be unwise to take this fight and insane to fight Kovalev. I think a massive ass whipping awaits the old man in either fight.

[ShoulderRoll]

Stevenson isn't fighting Kovalev next. So why not Hopkins?

Yvon Michel is willing, so is Schaefer, and it would draw a big crowd in Canada.

[SHO_RULEZ]

During Stevenson's post fight interview, he was doing everything in his power to get out of a fight with Kovalev. His strategy will be to price himself out of the negotiations, then take a fight with the Pascal/Bute winner.

[devok088]

All belt holders should become Free Agents, thus allowing them to fight who they want to on any network. The corporate execs are already paid and don't care. This feud has cost Fighters millions of dollars and is destroying their legacies.

[Pain~Lucy]

sorry SAFER its adonis vs kovalev we want to happen

[hitking]

All belt holders should become Free Agents, thus allowing them to fight who they want to on any network. The corporate execs are already paid and don't care. This feud has cost Fighters millions of dollars and is destroying their legacies.

I agree. But I don't think it should just be beltholders. I don't see any reason why any fighter that has established himself as a world class fighter would sign a second contract with a promoter. Floyd is doing it the way you're supposed to. He basically pays GBP a flat fee to promote his fights on a signle fight basis.

The networks are ****in' again now too. I remember like in the early 2000s, Showtime stopped signing guys to multi-fight deals and for period, they were putting on great match-ups monthly. Highlighted of course by Corrales-Castillo I. And it seems as if HBO had kinda backed away from the multi-fights deals for awhile too. But the whole GBP-TR beef trickled down and split the networks and its just a big ****in' mess now.