Comments Thread For: Bernard Hopkins Felt Undersized Against Sergey Kovalev

[Godsfly]

According to HBO, Hopkins has longer arms and is the same height.

At the weigh in, Hopkins appeared to be a slightly bigger man, as we can see in most of the photos (except the top one) shown on boxingscene.

http://www.boxingscene.com/photos-ho...gallery--83995

They both weighed in slightly under the limit of 175.

But I was expecting to see the "Kovalev is a cruiserweight doe" excuse if he won.

the stats are obviously bull****........kovalev looked massive compared to hopkins. go and look at some post fight responses on youtube. everyone is stating how shocked they were by kovalevs size compared to hopkins. to me the article is stating the obvious.

[Godsfly]

I think Hopkins did look like the physically smaller guy in the ring.

I don't see any move to cruiser but Kovalev finds it hard to make the 175lb weight.

it was obvious and here you have guys attacking posters for stating what they saw. hopkins looked like the smaller guy......

[MrRolltide91]

he did looked like the smaller man

[Bx166NY]

Well I guess now he knows how Trinidad, Delahoya & Pavlik felt. Only they really were undersized

[Real Hero]

Maybe it's time to retire, "THE ALIEN" back to reality...

[hillbilly]

No, he's saying that's how he felt compared to Kovalev because of his power, because of skills and game plan. He's saying Kovalev made him FEEL like a middleweight. Read the whole thing not just the headline he's ggiving Kovalev nothing but props:
“I really couldn’t get inside to do the work that I wanted to do,” Hopkins said. “I had some success, but not a lot. I had some success here and there, but it wasn’t enough to get some early rounds in the bank and get his respect to the point where he got off his game. He never got off his game. There was some excitement at the end, but he controlled it earlier more than I did.”

“He had a really good game plan,” Hopkins had said earlier in the evening, immediately after the bout. “When he got hit with some of my shots, he would sit back and wait, but he used his reach and his distance and that was his key. He has very good mechanics and patience, and because after I hit him he sat back, that would cause me to have to reset. It was hard that he stayed patient. He had a really good game plan. … He also countered his right hand over my jab. I give him a lot of respect.”

I agree. I don't think Hopkins is saying it was Kovalev's size that made him feels so small but his ability to control the distance by technique and strategy. Kovalev controlled the distance like you would expect a bigger guy with a long jab to do. Being controlled like that gives that impression that you are the smaller guy in the ring. Think Klitschko vs. Povetkin with his jab. All night long, Bernard was out of position to land a punch. And when he landed one, he could get no flow, he had to reset because Kovalev had managed to change the distance again. In fact, it was a reversal of what Hopkins usually does to opponents. There was no doubt that Pavlik was the "bigger guy" in the ring with Hopkins, even though he was coming up in weight. But Hopkins controlled distance and forced Pavlik, a methodical type fighter, to reset every single time he got within punching distance. In effect, he made Pavlik fight small. Kovalev did the same here.

[twosweethooks]

much respect to Bernard Hopkins !!!!!

His legacy far exceeds May jr's due to the fact of his longevity at MW and what he has done at LHW. He did all he could do and gave Kovalev all the credit for doing what he did. IF Hop would've charged Kovalev his night would have ended early. He knew the story better than anyone ! All respect to the great HOPKINS !!!!!!!! I have no doubt he will beat AD !!!!!!! Neither does Kovalev.

Kovalev proved he a serious fighter not just a KO artists. He brought the bright lights to boxing Sat nite. He will be loved and Hated. I will laugh at the haters.

[////]

it was obvious and here you have guys attacking posters for stating what they saw. hopkins looked like the smaller guy......

Yeah because we know youtube comments are always brilliant and correct

As someone else already pointed out, that isn't even what the article said. You guys are putting words in Bernard's mouth as if he said Kovalev is unfairly large.They are pretty much the same height, Kovalev maybe an inch taller in some photos. He basically said Kovalev's style of fighting made him feel small.

Part of the Russian style is fighting "big" and maximizing your geometry instead of staying curled up to deflect punches.

Anyways black power brother. Keep up the good fight.

[pesticid]

Kovalev was 188 and back in the day the cruiserweight division's limit was 190 so he was almost a cruiser. Kovalev is a big light heavy.He;s non fight weight is probably 198. I saw him sparr with Guillermo Jones.

[The Hammer]

Iirc he had trouble making weight for the Agnew (or Caparello?) fight, he was 2lbs over.

No, he's made weight on the first try for all his fights, he was never 2 lbs over.