Who Wins: Hopkins vs Maskaev at HW!

[DLT]

I havent been on here for awhile so I was seeing have you guys talked about this. I see some Hopkins threads but none about this. Anyways, have you guys already talked about this and do any of you think Hopkins would have a chance?

I feel kind of dumb because I know you guys probally have talked about it but if you havent seen it then here's the article. Im sure you guys havent had a poll though, so this thread shouldnt be a waste
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Hopkins wants Maskaev!
Former middleweight/light heavyweight king eyes heavyweight division
By Wolfgang Schiffbauer
Bernard Hopkins says he's considering unretiring to face WBC heavyweight champion Oleg Maskaev next June if Maskaev is still champion by then. "The state of the heavyweight divison in America is dead. Bernard Hopkins is the only boxer who can bring it (the heavyweight title) back (to America)," said Hopkins to the New York Daily News. The Executioner retired after becoming the undisputed light heavyweight champion with a victory over Antonio Tarver last June, however Hopkins also said that he will only take the challenge for the heavyweight crown if Mackie Shilstone will help him to bulk up to 200 pounds. Shilstone is a well known fitness guru in the sport, who worked with Hopkins before the Tarver fight and also with Roy Jones Jr. when he moved up to heavyweight and won the WBA belt against John Ruiz in March 2003. According to Hopkins, he would need nine months to get ready for the fight. To make a showdown between both fighters happen, Maskaev has to beat Peter Okhello in December, and most likely mandatory challenger Samuel Peter after this, which could be cause trouble for a clash against the former middleweight king. Of course, it is also not unprecendeted that the WBC would grant Maskaev another voluntary defense against Hopkins and the winner of this bout finally has to face Peter.

[deliveryman]

The way Benard built his body to 175 and carried all that weight extremely well, I honestly think he could easily add another 25 pounds of muscle or so and UD Maskaev relatively easily.

[maxorido]

i picture hopkins moving, slipping, and ducking when oleg comes foreward with his one two combination and left hook. i think hopkins can handle him well considering maskaev is so slow. i picture hopkins firing that straight right hand down the pipe, and when oleg gets too close, hopkins will get as close to oleg as possible to off set his punches, while throwing his own bodyshots until the ref breaks it up. i think hopkins can move and counter punch with the extra weight for a whole twelve rounds because once again, maskaev is slow and his work rate isn't very high. Hopkins UD.

[DLT]

Look, Im a huge Hopkins fan but I still think that nearly everyone was blind in that Tarver fight. Hopkins was good but that was not nearly the same Tarver at all. He wasnt even close to being himself so it made Hopkins look better then what he really was.

Hopkins would have some skill at HW but he is not a freak athelete like RJ, he hasnt been big for a long time like Toney, and Maskaev is not some slow old bum. He kind of reminds me of Bladomire. Dude has some serious skill. I think he probally knocks Hopkins out.

You guys are drinking way too much Kool-Aid on that Hopkins victory. I cant believe people honestly cant see that Tarver was not anywhere close to being the guy who fought RJ. He had nothing. I dont care though because RJ was not close to being the same when he fought Tarver, so his win was false to me also. The weight killed both of them and you guys should be able to see that.

Some say that Tarver beat RJ more then once so the weight loss doesnt matter but thats false. The weight kills you for a long time and probally close to forever. Your never the same again. Why the Hell do you think RJ got KO by Glen Johnson. Thats why I said that Lacey would KO Tarver if they fought. I think a pre Hopkins Tarver would kill Lacy but he wont be the same again

[Manager]

That's just too high for hopkins to go. These Heavyweights with belts right now are just too big. Hop would have had a shot against Toney, but Toney has no belt.

[Superman RJJ]

Hopkins is a pupil of the sport and learns from every fighter he`s ever watched he as over the years incorporated the style of Archie Moore and Jersey Joe Walcott into his arsenal which can only make him a better fighter, there is no way Oleg can hit Bernard clean enough to take him out and the only result I can really see is Hopkins by Unanimous Decision

[slickwalt210]

i don't think hopkins beats oleg. oleg maybe methodical, but his power will be too much for bernard. berandar doesn't not have the blinding speed and power that roy jones did and that's what beats a heavyweight like oleg. bernard couldn't hurt a "shot" tarver, how does he expect to get respect from oleg???. oleg would make it a rough and tumble fight and not a scary fight, like ruiz did with jones.. bernard misses the limelight and is really pushing it. i hope this fight doesn't happen because hopkins legacy is secure. why tarnish your legacy with a loss to a heavyweight, then he will never be able to retire.

[jack_the_rippuh]

I have to see what Hopkins would be like at Heavyweight.

[AllEyesOpen]

i don't think hopkins beats oleg. oleg maybe methodical, but his power will be too much for bernard. berandar doesn't not have the blinding speed and power that roy jones did and that's what beats a heavyweight like oleg. bernard couldn't hurt a "shot" tarver, how does he expect to get respect from oleg???. oleg would make it a rough and tumble fight and not a scary fight, like ruiz did with jones.. bernard misses the limelight and is really pushing it. i hope this fight doesn't happen because hopkins legacy is secure. why tarnish your legacy with a loss to a heavyweight, then he will never be able to retire.

I thought he looked great against Tarver, Tarver just wasn't able to fight his fight, he had Tarver figured out from round 1. I think he is a great athlete, I mean look at how he looked at 175, not too mention on fight night I think he was 183 lbs. Personally I give him a good chance of beating Oleg simply cause he's not that great a fighter, both him & Rahman looked like **** in their last fight, & I don't see him stopping B-Hop. Still it's a fight I want to see, if B-Hop could pull it off then he'd add more to his already impressive resume, & if he loses well he just went to high up in weight & was too old, I don't think it would hurt his legacy, & remember that's exaclty what people thought before the Tarver fight.

[Mishra100]

Hopkins has proved that he can go up in weight and do a good job. Going up in weight is a lot easier than going down like Tarver did. Oleg is not dropping weight so I really don't see how you can really compare it to Tarver-Hopkins.

This one will be an interesting fight if it were to happen.