Comments Thread For: Kovalev Dominates Hopkins, Unifies WBA/WBO/IBF Belts

[MDPopescu]

I can't believe the disrespect Bernard gets on this board.

It was a good win for Kovalev and there's no shame losing to a guy that powerful and in his prime.

Bernard Hopkins is a legend who carried boxing on his back in the 90's along with Jones Jr and Toney and and even carried it further after the millennium.
He has defied father time again and again and proved his critics wrong for almost a decade when they said he was getting "too old".

Like a said, there's no shame in losing to a younger, hungrier and stronger fighter.
He has had an illustrious career and was already considered 'a terror' and one of the greatest fighters before he took Trinidad's crown. That was 13 years ago.

It's time for Bernard Hopkins to pass The torch. And it will be exciting to see where Kovalev goes from here.

Who showed disrespect regarding Hopkins? Maybe a few who don't subscribe to his "eulogies" (but these "eulogies" often seemed to be marketing tools only)... Even Kovalev himself showed great respect, as he didn't rush B-Hop and went for a clean boxing fight instead... Last Saturday, Bernard Hopkins gracefully passed the torch to the fighter he thinks was the most deserving to date...

Hopkins has a beautiful family, he's a successful business man in the sport and, what is most important, he managed to walk the long road from a "****** thug" to a role model in society at large!!!

Hopkins deserves a statue in Philly as the big legend that he is -- he deserves this statue right now!!!... Hopkins entered the Guinness Book of Records as the oldest world champion in pro boxing...

[MDPopescu]

I will have to watch the fight again but him not knocking out Hopkins has some to do with Bernard's chin and also the ability to slip and turn with the punches. There is a difference when a stationary fighter gets caught clean and absorbs the full power of the punch, and Hopkins who constantly is on the move in one form or another. Even when a punch land on him, he is turning with it taking some of the power away.

Kovalev early detected the tool to deck Hopkins -- namely the the looping right on top of the head. Kovalev used this punch in the first round and in the 12th round (several times, when he got pissed off by Hopkins showing him the tongue...)
Now you may speculate on why Kovalev didn't look to KO Hopkins with that punching technique...

[hitking]

obviously you've never boxed, it's actually the opposite, everyone wants to be more aggressive and hurt their opponent

but there's risk involved in aggression and you have to taper it down, be calm, cool and collected and pick your spots, some guys just take it to the extreme and choose the risk they will take will be at an absolute minimum, they "want" to stop their opponent, but it's risky and they dont trust themselves in that danger, so they miss their chance

when you are hurt in boxing, what do you do? you run, you clinch, you avoid exchanges, sound familiar?

Right which is why guys like Floyd and Rigo don't go for the kill when they have an opponent outclassed and pretty much defenseless.