by David P. Greisman
Given that Bernard Hopkins had just gone 12 rounds with the hard-punching Sergey Kovalev, taking heavy shots, getting knocked down once and losing a shutout decision, it was premature to ask him about returning to the ring once more.
Never mind that he’s nearly 50 years old in a sport where fighters tend to be retired at least a decade sooner.
But the question was asked, and the names of middleweight titleholder Gennady Golovkin and 168-pounder Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. were floated.
“Asking me to fight right now is just like asking a woman who was in hours of labor if she would have another baby,” Hopkins responded at the post-fight press conference.
Earlier in the evening, he had said that it was uncertain whether he would fight again.
“It’s 50-50 right now,” Hopkins said. “I don’t really want to say anything. Everyone will have a long time to talk about my career. It’s 50-50 right now. It’s been 50-50 for the last nine years.”
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