Has Hopkins Reached The End Of The Road?

Bernard Hopkins has built his Hall of Fame career on his ability to defy odds and accomplish goals that few have attempted. The only man in Boxing history to completely unify a weight class by unifying the world championships of the IBF, WBC, WBA, and WBO while setting the all-time record for most successful title defenses in the history of the Middleweight division compiling twenty successful title defenses from 1995-2005.

Hopkins’ historic reign atop the Middleweight division alone secured his status as a future Hall of Famer. In an era where world championships are won, lost, stripped, or relinquished for various reasons Hopkins showed, despite the various political elements that surround the sport that a fighter can not only win a world championship, but become the one and only champion. Hopkins is a true throwback to an era where fighters took on all comers and there was one recognized champion per weight class.

Although his place in the Hall of Fame was cemented with his historic reign over the Middleweight division Hopkins continued to set goals and accomplish feats. Not only would Hopkins go on to win two separate world championships in the Light-Heavyweight division, a weight class fifteen pounds above the Middleweight division, he would also make history in the process by becoming the oldest fighter in the history of the sport to win a world title at age forty-six in 2011. Hopkins would incredibly top his own historical feat after losing the WBC world title in his rematch with Chad Dawson in 2012, by defeating IBF champion Tavoris Cloud in 2013 to break his own record by becoming a world champion at age forty-eight.

A fighter who has made a career by defying the odds and by fighting well into his 40s continued to defy logic by not only continuing to compete at an age where most fighters are retired, but doing so at the sport’s elite level. It seemed as though Hopkins could well have been able to re-write Boxing’s history books by duplicating his own feat by completely unifying a second weight class. Hopkins however, may have discovered that even he could not defeat an opponent known as “Father Time.”

On November 8th at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, New Jersey Hopkins entered the ring to unify his IBF/WBA Light-Heavyweight world title against undefeated WBO champion Sergey Kovalev. Kovalev, a fighter with a career knockout percentage of nearly 89%. Kovalev would not be an easy step in Hopkins’ attempt to unify the Light-Heavyweight division.

Kovalev would drop Hopkins in the first round with a right hand. Although Hopkins was able to get up from the knockdown, it was Kovalev who would control how the fight would be fought, consistently pushing Hopkins back and outworking him in every round. Hopkins would occasionally land punches on the thirty-one year old Kovalev, but could not offer sustained offense and for the first time in his career Hopkins was dominated in losing a one-sided twelve round unanimous decision.

Hopkins was however, successful in taking Kovalev, who had only previously fought as far as eight rounds a full twelve round distance. The question coming out of this fight for Hopkins is whether or not his age has finally become an issue for him. Hopkins who landed only 65 of 195 punches during the twelve round championship bout seemed hesitant throughout much of this fight. Was Hopkins’ sporadic offense attributed to the fact that he is forty-nine years old and could not consistently let his hands go or was it more due to a respect for Kovalev’s punching power and not wanting to put himself at risk of potentially being knocked out?

One should remember that Hopkins after all, is a tactical chess player as a fighter and has always looked to capitalize on an opponent’s mistakes. The feeling that this observer had as I watched this fight was that perhaps Hopkins’ goal was to fight a more defensive fight than is his norm in trying to make the younger man, who is noted for his punching power expend more energy by looking to trap Hopkins. 

Although Kovalev clearly dominated this fight and outworked Hopkins in every round, Hopkins did make the younger man miss often as Kovalev landed 166 of 585 punches thrown. To Kovalev’s credit however, he was able to keep the pace he established as the fight progressed and did not seem to fatigue as the rounds went on. The pace of a fight was really one that seemed more suited for Hopkins, a tactical measured pace where Hopkins typically excels. In this fight Hopkins simply could not let his hands go and that was simply the story of this fight. Hopkins allowed Kovalev to walk in often unimpeded, pinning him against the ropes as he offered little resistance.

As for what is next for Sergey Kovalev, an anticipated showdown with WBC champion Adonis Stevenson may likely be a goal for 2015. Before any talk of a fight to determine an undisputed world Light-Heavyweight champion can take place, Stevenson will defend his title against Dmitry Sukhotsky on December 19th in Quebec City, Quebec, Canada.

A question however, that both Boxing fans and experts alike are likely pondering is whether or not Hopkins’ loss to Kovalev is the end of the road for a true legend of the sport. Although Hopkins had suffered six losses in sixty-five previous fights prior to facing Kovalev, there has always been some debate as to whether or not Hopkins won those fights. This time however, Hopkins clearly lost this fight and for the first time took a beating throughout.

 To his credit, Hopkins still showed the ability to take a punch and stood up to what Kovalev had to offer excluding the knockdown in the first round. Whether or not we have seen Bernard Hopkins compete for the last time is only a question that he can answer. One idea that some have suggested is that Hopkins could make another attempt at a world championship and perhaps another run at attempting to unify the Light-Heavyweight division by possibly looking for a potential fight with Adonis Stevenson. If Stevenson successfully defends his title in December and assuming that a clash between Stevenson and Kovalev is not in the immediate future, Hopkins may get the nod providing he decides to continue to fight.

Anything is possible and it would not shock me if a fight between Stevenson and Hopkins were made. In this observer’s opinion however, Bernard Hopkins’ legacy and status as a future Hall of Famer and legend of the sport is more than secure. Whether or not Hopkins decides to fight again will be up to him, but in my eyes he has nothing left to prove.

“And That’s The Boxing Truth.”  

The Boxing Truth® is a registered trademark of Beau Denison All Rights Reserved.

Follow Beau Denison on Twitter: www.twitter.com/Beau_Denison 

 

Can Kovalev Derail Hopkins’ Quest For History?

There is little doubt that the Light-Heavyweight unification bout between IBF/WBA Light-Heavyweight champion Bernard Hopkins and undefeated WBO champion Sergey Kovalev has become one of the most anticipated fights in recent years. Of course one might be tempted to say that the term “one of the most anticipated fights” is one that can at times be overused when it comes to the sport of Boxing and combat sports overall.

This fight however, the “Anticipation” is certainly warranted. A fight that is not only the next chapter in the Hall of Fame career of Bernard Hopkins, but also the continuation of Hopkins’ quest to duplicate history. Many will remember that as a Middleweight Hopkins not only dominated the division, but would become the first fighter in Boxing history to completely unify the world championships of the WBC, WBA, IBF, and WBO. An impressive feat that was part of what became a historical reign for Hopkins, who set the all-time record for most successful world title defenses in the Middleweight division defending his title an incredible twenty times. Hopkins would also go on to win two separate world titles in the Light-Heavyweight division.

What has made Hopkins’ accomplishments even more incredible is the fact that he has accomplished these feats as he has gotten older. At forty-nine years old, Hopkins is not only still active as a fighter, but he sits atop his division at an age where most fighters are retired. Hopkins has made a career of beating the odds. 

The political landscape of the sport in of itself makes the concept of attempting to completely unify a world championship a difficult task. Hopkins however, has never been one to shy away from odds that most would probably consider steep. Hopkins accomplished the first part of his goal in attempting to becoming an undisputed champion in a second weight class after his IBF world championship win over Tavoris Cloud in March of last year and a mandatory title defense over Karo Murat in October of last year, by defeating WBA champion Beibut Shumenov in April of this year.

The next step on Hopkins’ quest comes on Saturday night against the undefeated WBO champion Sergey Kovalev in Atlantic City, New Jersey. Kovalev, who has quickly emerged on the scene as one of the Light-Heavyweight division’s major players has displayed the kind of punching power that is quite similar to that of unified WBA/IBO Middleweight world champion Gennady Golovkin who has also become one of the sport’s hottest rising stars.

Much like Golovkin, Kovalev has compiled an impressive string of knockouts stopping ten of his last eleven opponents inside the distance having only his fight with Grover Young declared a tactical draw in August 2011 due to an accidental foul. Much like Golovkin, Kovalev has registered a high career knockout percentage of nearly 89% scoring knockouts in twenty-three of his twenty-six professional fights.

Kovalev won his world title by scoring a fourth round knockout over Nathan Cleverly in August of last year. Following his victory over Cleverly, Kovalev would score knockouts in title defenses over Ismayl Sillah, Cedric Agnew, and in August of this year against Blake Caparello. As is the case with Gennady Golovkin, Sergey Kovalev has a seek and destroy style that poses an interesting challenge for any would be opponent.

An argument can be made that like Golovkin, Kovalev has not been tested in his career thus far due to his ability to score so many quick knockouts. Some critics might also say that neither Golovkin nor Kovalev have faced fighters that most would consider to be on the elite level of their respective divisions.

When it comes to the elite fighters of the sport, Bernard Hopkins is as elite as they come. Although this observer has said on many occasions “Anything can happen at any given time in the sport of Boxing and that is what makes our sport great” it is logical to assume especially if one were to use history as a basis that some questions about Sergey Kovalev are likely to be answered in this fight.

One should remember after all that Kovalev is facing a fighter in Bernard Hopkins who has beaten fighters throughout his career who established the reputations as knockout artists, most notably Felix Trinidad and Kelly Pavlik. Hopkins has also never been stopped in sixty-five professional fights. As devastating as Kovalev has been in his career thus far and as intimidating as his record appears to be, Hopkins has been in this position before and is likely not intimidated by Kovalev’s statistics.

One should also remember however, that each time Bernard Hopkins enters the ring to do battle, he does so not only against the opponent standing across the ring from him, but also against an opponent few fighters have been able to defeat named “Father Time”. Although Hopkins has continued to amaze both Boxing fans and experts alike by continuing to defy father time, one does have to wonder if Hopkins’ age will begin to have an effect on his ability to use his reflexes as well as his ability to take a punch.

The key to this fight in my eyes will be whether Sergey Kovalev can accomplish the task that virtually all Bernard Hopkins opponents are charged with. Can Kovalev make Hopkins uncomfortable and unable to dictate the pace of this fight from the outset? There have been some who have been able to have success against Hopkins early in fights, most notably Jermain Taylor and Jean Pascal.

Both Taylor and Pascal however, were unable to sustain the quick pace that they were able to put forth early in their fights with Hopkins and thus allowed Hopkins to work his way into those fights as they progressed. It will also be interesting to see how Kovalev will approach Hopkins if he is able to score a knockdown early on in this fight. Hopkins has shown throughout his career that he can get up from the knockdown and turn a fight around in his favor, most notably in his first fight with Jean Pascal where despite suffering knockdowns in the first and third rounds, Hopkins turned the fight in his favor and had won the remainder of the contest in the eyes of many fans and observers in a fight that was ultimately scored a majority draw.

The question that will face Bernard Hopkins in this fight is whether he can neutralize Kovalev’s power and whether or not he can set the pace that the fight will be fought. If Kovalev does come out looking to impose his will on Hopkins from the outset, it will be interesting to see whether or not at nearly fifty years of age Hopkins can deal with a fighter of Kovalev’s strength and power.

It will be of equal interest however, to see if Kovalev will be able to adapt as this fight progresses. It is worth noting that Kovalev has only been stretched as far as eight rounds only once in his career in his first fight with Darnell Boone in 2010. As devastating as Kovalev has been, he has never faced a fighter with the craft and skill that Bernard Hopkins possesses. If Kovalev is not prepared for a long fight and is going into this fight with the mindset of ending it quickly and is not prepared to combat Hopkins’ veteran tactics, it could play right into Hopkins’ hands. Simply put, unless Sergey Kovalev can end this fight early, he is likely to be tested by one of the masters of the craft that is Boxing and if Kovalev does not have an answer for what Hopkins has in his arsenal, it could be a long evening for him.

The fight between Bernard Hopkins and Sergey Kovalev has all the ingredients of what could be a great fight. A living legend and future Hall of Famer looking to add another historical feat to an already historic career going up against an unbeaten knockout artist who is looking to prove that he is the best fighter in the Light-Heavyweight division. Can Kovalev derail Hopkins quest for history or will Hopkins continue to defy the odds?

We will find out on Saturday night.

“And That’s The Boxing Truth.”

The Boxing Truth® is a registered trademark of Beau Denison All Rights Reserved.

Follow Beau Denison on Twitter: www.twitter.com/Beau_Denison 

 

What’s Next For Andrzej Fonfara Following Decision Win Over Ngumbu

The road back to a shot at a world title for Light-Heavyweight contender Andrzej Fonfara began against Doudou Ngumbu on November 1st at the UIC Pavilion in Chicago, Illinois. Fonfara entered this fight looking to rebound after dropping a hard fought twelve round unanimous decision to current WBC Light-Heavyweight world champion Adonis Stevenson in May of this year. In facing Doudou Ngumbu Fonfara faced a fighter who was somewhat an enigma and was not well known in the United States, despite having fought thirty-eight professional fights prior to his encounter with Fonfara.

Although he was not well known prior to the fight Ngumbu, who was fighting for the first time in the United States showed that he came to fight. Ngumbu’s awkwardness in using his lateral movement and ability to throw and land punches at odd angles seemed to give Fonfara difficulty periodically throughout this fight. The first four rounds in particular were an example of “Swing Rounds” where there was likely a difference of opinion as to who won those rounds. Although Ngumbu was aggressive throughout much of this fight, Fonfara landed the cleaner more effective punches. Ngumbu’s activity however, made this fight very competitive.

What impressed me about Ngumbu was his ability to land consistently on Fonfara, despite throwing often wide punches and in particular how he was able to have success throughout this fight with his right hand. Even though Ngumbu was successful in landing looping punches and was able to periodically mix in combinations, the punches did not seem to have much an effect on Fonfara and it was clear as the fight progressed that Fonfara had the edge in punching power.

In the fifth round Fonfara connected with a left hook that staggered Ngumbu and sent him back to the ropes. Although Ngumbu appeared hurt he was able to survive the round. Fonfara’s ability to be patient and pick his spots as well as landing the cleaner, harder punches was the story of this fight as he would go on to win a hard fought ten round unanimous decision.

 Even though Ngumbu would remain aggressive throughout the contest and continue to land punches, he simply does not have the power in his punches that could have turned this fight in his favor and ultimately I believe that was what cost him the decision. It was however, an impressive performance by a fighter in Ngumbu who although not being well known prior to this fight gave a good account himself. Despite suffering a loss in this fight, the “Game” effort Ngumbu showed in defeat could lead to another opportunity for him against a top contender down the line.

As for Andrzej Fonfara, there might be some who may have believed that coming off an impressive performance against Adonis Stevenson earlier this year that he needed to look impressive in his first fight since that loss and might have needed to turn in the kind of performance that turns heads and generates interest if the goal could be a potential rematch with Stevenson down the line. This observer believes that Fonfara was impressive even though he was taken to the distance by a fighter who was not well known.

Fonfara was pushed in this fight by a fighter who was looking to establish himself and turned in a performance that was impressive. Fonfara faced a fighter  in Ngumbu who was awkward, threw punches at odd angles, and was consistently aggressive throughout. Fonfara showed his patience and was more effective with his offense, despite his opponent’s aggression. The win will certainly keep Fonfara in the discussion of the top Light-Heavyweight contenders who could be in line for a title shot in the near future.

As for what is next for Fonfara, all the attention with regard to the Light-Heavyweight division will now focus on the unification bout between IBF/WBA Light-Heavyweight world champion Bernard Hopkins and undefeated WBO champion Sergey Kovalev, which will take place on Saturday night in Atlantic City, New Jersey. It is unclear what could be in store for the winner of that fight as WBC champion Adonis Stevenson could potentially face the winner of that fight next year to determine an undisputed Light-Heavyweight world champion.

The Light-Heavyweight division however, will have a few interesting fights still to come this year in addition to the Hopkins-Kovalev unification bout. It was recently announced that former WBC Light-Heavyweight world champion Jean Pascal will face contender Donovan George on December 6th at the Bell Centre in Montreal, Canada. On the same card, former IBF Super-Middleweight champion Lucian Bute will face former world title challenger Roberto Bolonti.

 

What makes this significant is both Bute and Pascal are ranked above Fonfara currently in the World Boxing Council (WBC) rankings. Bute is rated just above the number six rated Fonfara as the WBCs number five rated contender while Pascal is currently rated the WBC number one contender in the Light-Heavyweight division. It is also worth noting that before Adonis Stevenson can set his sights on a potential undisputed championship fight with the winner of this weekend’s Hopkins- Kovalev bout, he will defend his title on December 19th against current WBC number seven rated contender Dmitry Sukhotsky.

This would appear to leave Andrzej Fonfara out of the equation of potential title shots at least in terms of the immediate future, but depending on what happens in Montreal on December 6th when Bute faces Blonti and Pascal faces George, a potential opponent could emerge out of that card for Fonfara to face while the Light-Heavyweight division appears to be moving towards full unification. For now with a victory over Doudou Ngumbu added to his record, Andrzej Fonfara will simply have to wait and see what options could be available to him as 2015 approaches.

“And That’s The Boxing Truth.”

The Boxing Truth® is a registered trademark of Beau Denison All Rights Reserved.

Follow Beau Denison on Twitter: www.twitter.com/Beau_Denison 

 

Can Fonfara Put Himself Back In Line For A Title Shot?

When top Light-Heavyweight contender Andrzej Fonfara challenged WBC Light-Heavyweight world champion Adonis Stevenson in May of this year, there may have been some who were not expecting Fonfara to have much of a chance against one of Boxing’s hottest rising stars, who entered the fight having knocked out his previous ten opponents. Fonfara however, would provide the champion with a stern test in putting forth a “Game” effort in defeat.

Despite suffering knockdowns in rounds one and five, Fonfara consistently pressed forward and would score his own knockdown of the champion in round nine in losing a hard fought twelve round unanimous decision. Although Fonfara did not come out of the fight with Stevenson as a world champion his stock definitely went up in terms of his standing as a contender in the Light-Heavyweight division.

The first step toward another world title shot for Fonfara will come when he returns to the ring on Saturday night against veteran contender Doudou Ngumbu at the UIC Pavilion in Chicago, Illinois. Ngumbu, a veteran of thirty-eight professional fights will be fighting for the first time in the United States.

Ngumbu will enter this fight having won four of his last five bouts. In his last fight in June Ngumbu scored a ten round unanimous decision over Johnny Muller. It will be interesting to see how Ngumbu will respond to not only fighting for the first time in the United States, but also fighting in Fonfara’s adopted hometown of Chicago where he has a sizable fan following. 

It will also be interesting to see if Fonfara will be able to let his hands go more regularly in this fight than he was able to in the first half of his fight with Stevenson. As I stated in covering that fight, Fonfara’s difficulty in letting his hands go in the first half of that fight could likely have been attributed to both a respect for Stevenson’s punching power as well as his elusiveness and ability to control distance.

Although Ngumbu is not well known in the United States, he does have an awkward style in which he uses lateral movement and will likely look to control distance and keep Fonfara from getting in close where he can do damage. Ngumbu however, has not fought fighters who most would consider top contenders and this should be viewed as a step up in class for him against a fighter who is coming off of challenging for a world title.

Whether or not Ngumbu can utilize some of the tactics that were successful for Adonis Stevenson in his fight with Fonfara remains to be seen. For Fonfara however, this could be a fight that could lead to another opportunity at a world championship down the line. Even though Ngumbu is somewhat an enigma as this fight approaches, if he should win this fight it could catapult him into world title contention.

With much of the attention in regard to the Light-Heavyweight division being firmly focused on both the upcoming unification bout between IBF/WBA champion Bernard Hopkins and undefeated WBO champion Sergey Kovalev on November 8th, as well as the announcement earlier this week that Adonis Stevenson will defend his WBC championship against top contender Dmitry Sukhotsky on December 19th, it will be interesting to see if the winner of Fonfara-Ngumbu will be in position for a potential challenge for the winner of either of those two upcoming championship fights. An important element to remember as well is Bernard Hopkins has set his sights on completely unifying the Light-Heavyweight division and become the undisputed champion.  It goes without saying however, that in Boxing one should expect the unexpected.

Although Andrzej Fonfara clearly established himself as a player in the Light-Heavyweight division with the spirited effort he put forth against Adonis Stevenson and might be expected by both fans and experts alike to win this fight against Ngumbu, anything can happen. If Andrzej Fonfara wins this fight it is logical to assume that he will be right back in line for a shot at a world title. It will be interesting however, to see if Doudou Ngumbu a fighter who is not well known can seize the opportunity to establish himself in his first fight in the United States. We will see who emerges victorious on Saturday night.

“And That’s The Boxing Truth.”

The Boxing Truth® is a registered trademark of Beau Denison All Rights Reserved.

Follow Beau Denison on Twitter: www.twitter.com/Beau_Denison