By Geoffrey Ciani, Eastside Boxing
This week’s edition of On the Ropes Boxing Radio featured an exclusive interview with highly regarded trainer Nazim Richardson who is currently working with Sugar Shane Mosley in preparations for his May 1 clash with Floyd Mayweather Junior. Here are some excerpts from that interview:
On preparations for Mosley’s upcoming fight with Mayweather:
“Well it’s not so much about Floyd, it’s that I have to have Shane be the best Shane Mosley he can be and make Floyd Mayweather have to make the necessary adjustments. I think that’s the problem, too many people are concentrating on Floyd.”
Regarding how he sees the fight between Mosley and Mayweather:
“I see it being the kind of fight that there’s going to be a whole lot of adjustments being made during the fight and nobody is going to be able to live by one philosophy. We’re going to have to vary and change at the drop of a dime. I have to have my athlete prepared for that..”
On whether he thinks Shane will be able to prevent Floyd from making adjustments like he did in victories against Oscar De La Hoya and Zab Judah:
“Well see, I have to think from a different perspective. I can’t be to the point of arrogance where I can assume that my guy’s juts going to go and put something out and that Floyd wouldn’t be able to make an adjustment. I wouldn’t be prepared if I did that. I have to be prepared that Floyd’s going to make an adjustment to what we have to do and then we have to readjust so it’s just that kind of fight. It’s like when you play chess, you have to assume the other guy is going to move his rook and going to move his pawn through.”
On whether he believes Shane’s age and long layoff will play a major factor in the fight:
“It’s going to be something we’re going to have to deal with earlier in the first couple of rounds, but his philosophy is that he lives like a boxer so it’s a part of his lifestyle. He’s in shape and he stays in the gym so he should be able to respond pretty quickly.”
On whether he thinks Floyd is ill-prepared to face adversity given he has never faced an elite welterweight before:
“Here’s my thing, I have to cross that bridge when I get to it. I feel as though he’s going to face adversity in this fight and there’s nothing that this kid has done in the past that will make me assume that he can’t adjust. I won’t underestimate the guy like that. One of Floyd’s greatest attributes is that he talks so much stuff and everybody wants to see him punched in the mouth so bad that they just takes him for granted and they look past his actual ability. Oscar (De La Hoya) was one to say he got angry and just wanted to run in there and punch him in the mouth. That’s what threw Oscar off his game plan. I think Ricky Hatton and a few other people have done the same thing. Don’t look past his skills just because he’s running his mouth.”
His thoughts on Floyd Mayweather as a fighter:
“I think he’s very talented. I just had an argument with somebody not too long ago because they were trying to tell me they don’t think much of him as a fighter. They think he’s a runner and this, that, and the other thing and I said, you know I think it’s ignorant to look at him from that perspective. The guy’s been successful with what he does. How can you belittle what he does if he’s been that successful with it? I think one of my strengths in me being able to find success in some of my athletes is that I don’t underestimate guys. I’m not arrogant and I don’t look past a guy’s ability and a guy’s skills. I refuse to do that because I think it’s foolish. Even if I don’t like it—I may not like the way you box—but I can’t ignore that it’s been successful for you. I can’t ignore that it gets judges to vote your way, so I’ve never been like that. I knew a guy, (Joe) Calzaghe—I’ve never cared for the way Calzaghe fights but I have great respect for his achievements.”
On preparing Mosley in his upset victory against Antonio Margarito:
“People were really counting him out in the Margarito fight so when they asked my opinion on it, I felt that he could deal with Margarito. I felt he had so much ability that he could handle Margarito. It’s not so much that I had to change things in him. I’ve always given the credit in full, Jack Mosley taught him how to box and did a hell of a job teaching him how to box. You don’t overhaul an engine if the engine has been running well, you tweak and make little adjustments to have it win that particular race that you’re dealing with, and that’s my job—to find the flaws in Shane Mosley and try to strengthen those and then find the flaws in Floyd Mayweather and try to help Shane Mosley exploit them.”
On what makes him so successful at being a teacher as opposed to being just a trainer:
“Well I admit to you that even as a teacher you have to willing students. You have to have students that accept the philosophy. I think a lot of times I convince my athletes in my credibility so they accept my philosophy and it makes it easier for me to teach.”
His views on Joe Calzaghe:
“It’s hard for us over here to respect Calzaghe’s style because it’s so far different from what we allow our athletes to do here. We won’t allow our athletes to slap with punches. I tell people a lot of times, I applaud Calzaghe’s father because had you brought Joe Calzaghe over here to some of the greatest trainers that live over here, they probably wouldn’t have found the same success with him. I’m talking about some of the all time great trainers. Some of our guys like even the current guys that are out there now, like John David Jackson, Freddie Roach, and people of that nature, Emanuel Steward—they won’t let their guys out of the gym without turning those punches over. So we just wouldn’t accept that style here so it would never have been able to grow and flourish into what he became. We would have probably snuffed that fighter out a long time ago, but his dad being new to boxing he let it slide and it turned out to work. Sometimes ignorance is bliss.”
His views on Manny Pacquiao as a fighter:
“I think Pacquiao is a phenomenal athlete. I’ve said this before and you probably heard me say it before and I’ll say it again: Most great athletes mislead you. Bernard Hopkins is such a ferocious specimen in the way he attacks, in his energy and his attitude, that you forget he’s a technical fighter. He’s actually a technical fighter, he’s not just a monster that tucks his head and runs in and starts fighting, but the way he would speak you would think he just jumps in there and rips people apart, but he’s a technical fighter. He breaks you down and he gets you out of there, but he’s misleading. This kid Mayweather runs his mouth so much that you forget he can actually fight. Since where we come from, most people who run their mouth that much can’t produce like that. As soon as we hear somebody running their mouth as much as him we got to put them into a little room, but this guy can actually fight but he misleads you with that, and he trains hard so he misleads you with that. You get Manny Pacquiao. Manny Pacquiao and Freddie Roach have purely convinced the boxing world that Pacquiao is only four inches tall and weighs about forty-two ounces. All you ever hear about is how small Manny Pacquiao is. ‘Manny Pacquiao is so small!’ ‘Manny Pacquiao is the teeniest man on earth!’ That’s what you’re convinced of. Then the guy gets in there and gets hit by a shot by Manny Pacquiao and they be standing in the middle of the ring doing the lazzy jazzy. They say, ‘How does this little man do this?’ Calling Manny Pacquiao the smallest welterweight is like calling Mike Tyson a small heavyweight but that’s what great fighters do. Shane Mosley, he smiles and makes you think he’s going to sell you short. How can somebody be that pleasant and that sweet and then be that ferocious on Margarito? He jumped on Margarito that night and Margarito is looking at him like what happened to the smile? So these guys mislead you and I think Freddie does a phenomenal job with him to the point where as though you can intimidate people to think he must be using something. Like I said, if you don’t produce any proof that this guy is on something then I can’t put that out on anybody. I mean the way Michael Jordan jumps you can assume Michael Jordan was using something. There are some athletes that phenomenal, but we got to understand with the human body there are people with the human body who produce things like that, but we can’t just take things out of context. We take away from Freddie, we take away from Manny when we don’t have any proof and we just assume this guy’s doing something, this guy’s done something, this guy’s on something. I think that’s unfair man, because like I said I’ve watched Pacquiao, I’m impressed with him, I’ve watched the work Freddie’s done with him, I’m impressed with Freddie’s work.”
Regarding Bernard Hopkins’ victory in his long awaited rematch with Roy Jones Junior:
“When one guy is reluctant to fight it’s one of the hardest fights to approach especially at Bernard’s age. See when you’re young and a guy doesn’t want to fight you, everybody is screaming all about Pacquiao’s last performance. You got Joshua Clottey and he’s not living up to his 50% of the fight. The fight turns out to start stinking, but you got a younger Pacquiao who can just go ahead and just start throwing punches all over and still make it a fight. Well it’s harder for an older man when a guy doesn’t want to fight. Bernard was in the same position Pacquiao was in only he wasn’t dealing with a guy who was known once as a great talent, but Roy Jones came to that fight not to get knocked out so then he can convince his family and everybody he can move forward and that he’s okay. The Danny Green fight he had his sons and everything checking on you every five seconds in the house. I know how it was after my stroke. ‘Dad, you okay?’ Roy Jones just tripped on the carpet walking down the stairs for breakfast, ‘Oh, it’s those knockouts showing up’, so he had to go back in there with a fighter the magnitude of Bernard Hopkins and show, ‘Look, I got past the first round—erase Danny Green. I got past the second round—erase Antonio Tarver. You all considered Bernard to be the best fighter of these last couple of guys I fought and I went the distance with him.’, and that was his only goal—to go the distance or get disqualified, but not to just come out with a knockout, not to be knocked out.”
His final prediction for Mosley’s fight with Floyd Mayweather:
“I see Shane Mosley getting his hand raised in this particular fight. That’s why I signed on for the project. If I didn’t feel that way, I wouldn’t be involved in the project and I’ve turned projects down where I just didn’t feel like I could tell a guy anything that would get him past that athlete, so I see Shane Mosley having his hand raised.”
On whether he believes Mosley can knock Mayweather out:
“I think I said it earlier and people think I’m joking when I say it. They think I’m saying it to be humorous. It’s a premiere weight for him. If you put it on the scale and it weighs in at 147, I feel that Shane Mosley can knock it out. If you put it on the scale and it weighs 147, there are certain farm animal that Shane Mosley can knock out if they come in at 147. It’s a premiere weight for him. Now I don’t know, he’s won belts at 154 but I can’t say he’s that great of an athlete at 154. I know at 147 he’s something special, he’s really something special.”
***
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Source: eastsideboxing.com
Tampilkan postingan dengan label Bernard Hopkins. Tampilkan semua postingan
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Jumat, 23 April 2010
Selasa, 20 April 2010
Older fighters shouldn't necessarily be dismissed -- The Ring
By William Dettloff, The Ring
It was hard to peruse any boxing coverage at all over the last couple weeks without happening on one diatribe or another about how we all should be ashamed of the back-to-back atrocities titled Bernard Hopkins-Roy Jones and Evander Holyfield-Frans Botha.
From the hysteria, you would have thought the Nevada State Athletic Commission had sanctioned matches pitting rabid wolverines against baskets of puppies. And that the promoters put it on pay-per-view, charged $49.99 and forced everyone to watch.
And in the days since, many otherwise reasonable journalists and fans have called for - nay, all but demanded -- that all the fighters involved retire posthaste, lest we be forced ever again to witness the awful degradation and indignities that accompany aging in professional athletes.
Well, not all of them. No one cares what Botha does -- not here in the United States, anyway. He’s South African, has always seemed rather a buffoon and the platinum goatee gives him a sinister look many of us find unsettling.
So let “The White Buffalo” fight well into his dementia years. Who cares?
But the others -- Hopkins, Jones, Holyfield -- should not only be forced into retirement, but banned from any activity that doesn’t involve complaining about Democrats and watching The Price is Right. So say the majority.
The majority have forgotten that a mere two fights ago, Hopkins, already well into his 40s, took apart then-26-year-old, undefeated Kelly Pavlik.
Conveniently dismissed too is the inconvenient reality that going into the Jones fight, Hopkins was ranked in the upper Top 10 of any credible pound-for-pound list.
He beat Jones by a wide margin and his reward has been a nearly universal call to drop him entirely from all pound-for-pound rankings (a call ignored, I’m proud to note, by THE RING editor Nigel Collins) and a suggestion by his own promoter to have a serious talk with family, which is code for “stop bothering us and retire already.”
Why? Because it was an abominably ugly fight?
Can any of you name more than one fight out of Hopkins’ last eight or nine that wasn’t ugly? Does being in an awful fight mean he’s too old to compete?
“There’s no question Bernard Hopkins is still competitive,” Greg Sirb, Executive Director of the Pennsylvania State Athletic Commission told RingTV.com. Hopkins outpointed Enrique Ornelas in Philadelphia in December.
Sirb said his commission uses a four-pronged approach when it considers granting license to older fighters: Their medicals; their boxing record, particularly their most recent record; the matchup itself; and then the age of the fighter.
“If you put all those four together, a commission should be able to make a good decision,” he said. “Is he medically fit? Does his record show that he’s still competitive? Is the matchup worthy? It may not be a match between the two best guys in the world, but is the matchup, irrespective of anything else, competitive?”
With that criteria, it’s impossible to deny Hopkins a license or not sanction Hopkins-Jones, regardless of how old they are.
“You cannot make a sweeping statement, anybody over 35, anybody over 40, is not allowed to fight. That’s ridiculous,” Sirb said.
Jones’ knockout loss to Danny Green makes his a more-complicated case even though sometimes guys that are smack in the middle of their prime get hit on the sweet spot and go to sleep.
But consider this: Three out of Jones’ four losses over the last five years were to Antonio Tarver, Joe Calzaghe and now Hopkins -- an elite group. All were decision losses.
If he were a perennial contender, say a Rocky Juarez type rather than the game’s former pound-for-pound king, and in between those losses had beaten Jeff Lacy, Omar Sheika, Felix Trinidad and Anthony Hanshaw, would you still be on your soap box?
Clearly Jones isn’t what he used to be. Who is?
Keith Kizer, Executive Director of the Nevada State Athletic Commission, in whose jurisdiction the subject fights took place, told RingTV.com that decline in a fighter’s skill level is not germane to the question of license renewal.
“That’s not relevant unless the reason for that is something we need to know about,” he said. “Let’s say a guy suffered a severe shoulder injury and never got back to where he needed to be and is still being bothered by that shoulder injury. Or it might be something neurologically that caused him to slow down. And you can see this guy is really messed up. That’s one thing.
“But to say a guy shouldn’t be re-licensed just because he’s not as good as he used to be? Then every fighter should lose his license after the best fight of his career.”
Kizer said that in Nevada, every fighter born in 1974 or before is subjected to a series of medical tests in addition to the tests all fighters receive. Then he reviews three criteria: how well the fighter has done in his career, how well he’s done lately, and how many times he’s been stopped.
For Hopkins and Jones, Kizer went the additional step of reviewing recent video that showed the fighters speaking and compared it with older footage of similar content.
“I was pleased to discover that they talk just as well now as they did 10 or 15 years ago,” he said.
Lastly, there is Holyfield, who at 47 years old has been viewed for probably 10 years as the poster boy for fighters over-staying their welcome. The outcry for the permanent revocation of his license is all but universal.
Here’s the problem: In December 2008, Holyfield lost a very controversial decision to Nicolay Valuev. In November 2009, Valuev lost what some saw as a controversial decision to David Haye.
It is logical, then, to say that Holyfield did about as well or almost as well against Valuev as did Haye. And if that is so, why is no one calling for Haye to retire? Where’s the outrage?
You can say Valuev has the mobility and boxing talent of a stone gargoyle, but that’s hardly Holyfield’s fault. THE RING and everyone else rated Valuev among the Top-10 heavyweights in the world.
As for sanctioning Holyfield-Botha -- which some have suggested was a desperate measure to bring some business into Las Vegas’ flagging economy -- it’s not as though Holyfield was facing Wladimir Klitschko or some other young stud. Let’s get real: It was Frans Botha.
“This was not a mismatch for either guy,” Kizer said. “Neither guy was coming in to fight the next big thing who was 20-0 with 19 knockouts and is 25 years old. This is not a situation where there was an unfair matchup.”
Kizer’s right. And though it’s never fun watching our heroes suffer a slow death, their once glowing expertise giving way to a kind of senile incompetence, it’s their right to hold on as long as they can, to fight it until their desire for battle is exhausted.
And it’s our obligation, within reason, to let them.
Some random observations from last week:/b>
The Kelly Pavlik-Sergio Martinez fight was going pretty much the way many expected it would until Martinez opened up Pavlik’s right eye in the ninth and “The Ghost” more or less quit fighting. Bad for Pavlik, who’s a class act. Good for Martinez, who appears to be one too. …
On a related note, how many good smaller fighters have to beat good bigger fighters before people who should know better stop automatically picking the bigger guy? …
And when did Corey Hart start training Martinez?
Lucian Bute gets better all the time. He’s like Joe Calzaghe with a punch. …
Was anyone else disappointed by HBO’s “Real Sports” edition covering the deaths of Alexis Arguello, Arturo Gatti and Vernon Forrest? It felt a little dumbed-down for HBO, and not just because Frank DeFord has the most ridiculous hair in the long history of sports writers with ridiculous hair. …
How bad do you have to be to make Tony Thompson look like George Foreman? About as bad as Owen “What the Heck” Beck, who would be a lot more fun if his name were Owen Buck. Or Tuck. Or Shuck. You get the idea. …
The two most memorable lines from the latest edition of Mayweather-Mosley 24/7, both from Mosley’s camp: “I don’t bark; I bite,” from Mosley; and from the always entertaining Nazim Richardson: “No one wants to be the 21st person at the buffet.”
Bill Dettloff, THE RING magazine’s Senior Writer, is the co-author, along with Joe Frazier, of “Box Like the Pros.” He is currently working on a biography of Ezzard Charles. Bill can be contacted at dettloff@ptd.net
Source: ringtv.com
It was hard to peruse any boxing coverage at all over the last couple weeks without happening on one diatribe or another about how we all should be ashamed of the back-to-back atrocities titled Bernard Hopkins-Roy Jones and Evander Holyfield-Frans Botha.
From the hysteria, you would have thought the Nevada State Athletic Commission had sanctioned matches pitting rabid wolverines against baskets of puppies. And that the promoters put it on pay-per-view, charged $49.99 and forced everyone to watch.
And in the days since, many otherwise reasonable journalists and fans have called for - nay, all but demanded -- that all the fighters involved retire posthaste, lest we be forced ever again to witness the awful degradation and indignities that accompany aging in professional athletes.
Well, not all of them. No one cares what Botha does -- not here in the United States, anyway. He’s South African, has always seemed rather a buffoon and the platinum goatee gives him a sinister look many of us find unsettling.
So let “The White Buffalo” fight well into his dementia years. Who cares?
But the others -- Hopkins, Jones, Holyfield -- should not only be forced into retirement, but banned from any activity that doesn’t involve complaining about Democrats and watching The Price is Right. So say the majority.
The majority have forgotten that a mere two fights ago, Hopkins, already well into his 40s, took apart then-26-year-old, undefeated Kelly Pavlik.
Conveniently dismissed too is the inconvenient reality that going into the Jones fight, Hopkins was ranked in the upper Top 10 of any credible pound-for-pound list.
He beat Jones by a wide margin and his reward has been a nearly universal call to drop him entirely from all pound-for-pound rankings (a call ignored, I’m proud to note, by THE RING editor Nigel Collins) and a suggestion by his own promoter to have a serious talk with family, which is code for “stop bothering us and retire already.”
Why? Because it was an abominably ugly fight?
Can any of you name more than one fight out of Hopkins’ last eight or nine that wasn’t ugly? Does being in an awful fight mean he’s too old to compete?
“There’s no question Bernard Hopkins is still competitive,” Greg Sirb, Executive Director of the Pennsylvania State Athletic Commission told RingTV.com. Hopkins outpointed Enrique Ornelas in Philadelphia in December.
Sirb said his commission uses a four-pronged approach when it considers granting license to older fighters: Their medicals; their boxing record, particularly their most recent record; the matchup itself; and then the age of the fighter.
“If you put all those four together, a commission should be able to make a good decision,” he said. “Is he medically fit? Does his record show that he’s still competitive? Is the matchup worthy? It may not be a match between the two best guys in the world, but is the matchup, irrespective of anything else, competitive?”
With that criteria, it’s impossible to deny Hopkins a license or not sanction Hopkins-Jones, regardless of how old they are.
“You cannot make a sweeping statement, anybody over 35, anybody over 40, is not allowed to fight. That’s ridiculous,” Sirb said.
Jones’ knockout loss to Danny Green makes his a more-complicated case even though sometimes guys that are smack in the middle of their prime get hit on the sweet spot and go to sleep.
But consider this: Three out of Jones’ four losses over the last five years were to Antonio Tarver, Joe Calzaghe and now Hopkins -- an elite group. All were decision losses.
If he were a perennial contender, say a Rocky Juarez type rather than the game’s former pound-for-pound king, and in between those losses had beaten Jeff Lacy, Omar Sheika, Felix Trinidad and Anthony Hanshaw, would you still be on your soap box?
Clearly Jones isn’t what he used to be. Who is?
Keith Kizer, Executive Director of the Nevada State Athletic Commission, in whose jurisdiction the subject fights took place, told RingTV.com that decline in a fighter’s skill level is not germane to the question of license renewal.
“That’s not relevant unless the reason for that is something we need to know about,” he said. “Let’s say a guy suffered a severe shoulder injury and never got back to where he needed to be and is still being bothered by that shoulder injury. Or it might be something neurologically that caused him to slow down. And you can see this guy is really messed up. That’s one thing.
“But to say a guy shouldn’t be re-licensed just because he’s not as good as he used to be? Then every fighter should lose his license after the best fight of his career.”
Kizer said that in Nevada, every fighter born in 1974 or before is subjected to a series of medical tests in addition to the tests all fighters receive. Then he reviews three criteria: how well the fighter has done in his career, how well he’s done lately, and how many times he’s been stopped.
For Hopkins and Jones, Kizer went the additional step of reviewing recent video that showed the fighters speaking and compared it with older footage of similar content.
“I was pleased to discover that they talk just as well now as they did 10 or 15 years ago,” he said.
Lastly, there is Holyfield, who at 47 years old has been viewed for probably 10 years as the poster boy for fighters over-staying their welcome. The outcry for the permanent revocation of his license is all but universal.
Here’s the problem: In December 2008, Holyfield lost a very controversial decision to Nicolay Valuev. In November 2009, Valuev lost what some saw as a controversial decision to David Haye.
It is logical, then, to say that Holyfield did about as well or almost as well against Valuev as did Haye. And if that is so, why is no one calling for Haye to retire? Where’s the outrage?
You can say Valuev has the mobility and boxing talent of a stone gargoyle, but that’s hardly Holyfield’s fault. THE RING and everyone else rated Valuev among the Top-10 heavyweights in the world.
As for sanctioning Holyfield-Botha -- which some have suggested was a desperate measure to bring some business into Las Vegas’ flagging economy -- it’s not as though Holyfield was facing Wladimir Klitschko or some other young stud. Let’s get real: It was Frans Botha.
“This was not a mismatch for either guy,” Kizer said. “Neither guy was coming in to fight the next big thing who was 20-0 with 19 knockouts and is 25 years old. This is not a situation where there was an unfair matchup.”
Kizer’s right. And though it’s never fun watching our heroes suffer a slow death, their once glowing expertise giving way to a kind of senile incompetence, it’s their right to hold on as long as they can, to fight it until their desire for battle is exhausted.
And it’s our obligation, within reason, to let them.
Some random observations from last week:/b>
The Kelly Pavlik-Sergio Martinez fight was going pretty much the way many expected it would until Martinez opened up Pavlik’s right eye in the ninth and “The Ghost” more or less quit fighting. Bad for Pavlik, who’s a class act. Good for Martinez, who appears to be one too. …
On a related note, how many good smaller fighters have to beat good bigger fighters before people who should know better stop automatically picking the bigger guy? …
And when did Corey Hart start training Martinez?
Lucian Bute gets better all the time. He’s like Joe Calzaghe with a punch. …
Was anyone else disappointed by HBO’s “Real Sports” edition covering the deaths of Alexis Arguello, Arturo Gatti and Vernon Forrest? It felt a little dumbed-down for HBO, and not just because Frank DeFord has the most ridiculous hair in the long history of sports writers with ridiculous hair. …
How bad do you have to be to make Tony Thompson look like George Foreman? About as bad as Owen “What the Heck” Beck, who would be a lot more fun if his name were Owen Buck. Or Tuck. Or Shuck. You get the idea. …
The two most memorable lines from the latest edition of Mayweather-Mosley 24/7, both from Mosley’s camp: “I don’t bark; I bite,” from Mosley; and from the always entertaining Nazim Richardson: “No one wants to be the 21st person at the buffet.”
Bill Dettloff, THE RING magazine’s Senior Writer, is the co-author, along with Joe Frazier, of “Box Like the Pros.” He is currently working on a biography of Ezzard Charles. Bill can be contacted at dettloff@ptd.net
Source: ringtv.com
Kamis, 15 April 2010
Middleweight champion Pavlik looks to restore reputation vs. Martinez -- USA Today
By Bob Velin, USA TODAY
After Kelly Pavlik lost to aging legend Bernard Hopkins in Atlantic City in October 2008, his life began a downward spiral.
So thoroughly was the Pride of Youngstown, Ohio, beaten by Hopkins, then 44, that many, including Pavlik's fans, questioned The Ghost's rapid rise through the middleweight ranks.
Since then, Pavlik has addressed questions about excessive partying, injuries and inferior opponents. Pavlik's camp said a staph infection in his right hand in 2009 caused him to twice pull out of fights against Paul Williams, who ended up fighting, and barely beating, veteran Argentine light middleweight Sergio Martinez in December.
On Saturday, back in Atlantic City, Pavlik, 28, will get a chance to help rehabilitate his image when the middleweight champ puts his WBC and WBO belts on the line against smaller but quicker Martinez (HBO, 10 p.m. ET) at Boardwalk Hall.
Pavlik (36-1, 32 KOs) and his longtime trainer, Jack Loew, are well aware of what this fight means for his career.
"It's the most important fight of our life," Loew said Thursday. "He's taking it extremely serious. It's probably the hardest I've ever seen him work. And he knows what's at stake."
So what is at stake?
"Proving to everyone we just had a bad 2009," Loew says, "and that we're still a top-echelon fighter. We had a bad 2009 and a bad performance against Hopkins. So a lot of people have written us off. We've got a lot to prove, and we're ready to do it."
As for the excessive partying, Pavlik says, "There were hundreds of rumors going around: I was lazy; I was sick; I wanted to retire; I was broke; I lost everything. There's nothing you can do. If I go have a beer or two and people want to call me names and say I'm an alcoholic, well, that's going to happen."
Says Loew: " He's no different than any other 27-year-old kid. He likes to have fun outside of the ring and he deserves it, as hard as he works. He likes to play darts, and if they don't see him in church every day, then they feel he's doing the wrong thing.
"The outside world complaining what he's done outside of the ring, nobody's ever seen it, or witnessed it. They just assume, or they hear.
"Me knowing Kelly since he's 8-9 years old, like a father figure to him, it hurt because I know the truth. If he was out screwing around, I would've just shut my mouth. But he wasn't."
Pavlik says there was more to the Hopkins loss — a non-title bout at a catchweight of 170 pounds — than meets the eye, including an injured elbow.
"It was one of those nights I couldn't get moving," he says. "If it was a fight where I was 100% and I got beat up like that, I'd say, 'Man, we've got to change something.' But that wasn't the case."
Pavlik has fought twice since, beating little known Marco Antonio Rubio (retired in ninth round) in February 2009 and Miguel Espino (5th-round TKO) in December. Both title fights were held in his hometown.
"(People) asked, why did you take the Espino fight and not the Paul Williams fight? But you don't fight Williams at 75-80%," Loew says. "I was a lot more comfortable (fighting) Espino at 80% than with Paul Williams."
Loew and Pavlik say he is completely healed. "This is probably the best camp we've ever had, and he's completely healthy, no hand injuries or issues. There are no excuses," Loew says."It's fight time and we are 100, 120% ready to go physically."
Lou DiBella, who promotes the 35-year-old Martinez says his fighter is supremely confident
"I'd be 100% positive my guy would win if he weren't so much smaller," DiBella says. "He's a much better fighter. He's more defensive, more agile. He's faster. He can punch and he can box."
DiBella says Pavlik is a 168-pounder shrinking himself down to 160. "I don't believe Sergio's capable of a one-punch knockout against Pavlik, but Pavlik's capable of a one-punch knockout against anybody. And that's Pavlik's innate advantage in the fight. He can turn the fight on one punch," DiBella says.
"That being said, if he can't catch Sergio, he's going to be in for a very long night."
Pavlik has no plans to play cat and mouse with Martinez.
"Right now it's stick to our gameplan, using our size, speed, power," he says. "You can't go and chase Martinez around the ring. We have to stick to our gameplan and keep him busy.
"If he decides to go toe-to-toe it's, definitely my advantage. He does get hit a lot.. .. he moves a lot but as far as defense, he does get hit."
Bute hopes to defend title:
The first half of HBO's telecast Saturday is another championship fight — Canada's undefeated Lucian Bute (25-0, 20 KOs) puts his IBF super middleweight title belt on the line against Edison Miranda (33-4, 29 KOs) of Colombia.
The bout will be held at the Bell Centre in Montreal, Bute's adopted hometown. He is originally from Romania.
Miranda, meanwhile, is fighting for the first time under the direction of new trainer Joe Goossen.
"I'm really impressed by the capacity of Edison to follow my directives," says Goossen. "When I saw him lose the decision against Andre Ward in 2009, he only had a heavy right hand to rely on. I've asked him to try new things, and he did them all with extreme precision.
"I've seen see a lot of fighters in my career and Edison has the abilities and capacities of a great athlete. He's one of the best athlete I've see in my gym. If Team Bute thinks that my fighter will be tired after the sixth round, they are in for a bad surprise."
Source: usatoday.com
After Kelly Pavlik lost to aging legend Bernard Hopkins in Atlantic City in October 2008, his life began a downward spiral.
So thoroughly was the Pride of Youngstown, Ohio, beaten by Hopkins, then 44, that many, including Pavlik's fans, questioned The Ghost's rapid rise through the middleweight ranks.
Since then, Pavlik has addressed questions about excessive partying, injuries and inferior opponents. Pavlik's camp said a staph infection in his right hand in 2009 caused him to twice pull out of fights against Paul Williams, who ended up fighting, and barely beating, veteran Argentine light middleweight Sergio Martinez in December.
On Saturday, back in Atlantic City, Pavlik, 28, will get a chance to help rehabilitate his image when the middleweight champ puts his WBC and WBO belts on the line against smaller but quicker Martinez (HBO, 10 p.m. ET) at Boardwalk Hall.
Pavlik (36-1, 32 KOs) and his longtime trainer, Jack Loew, are well aware of what this fight means for his career.
"It's the most important fight of our life," Loew said Thursday. "He's taking it extremely serious. It's probably the hardest I've ever seen him work. And he knows what's at stake."
So what is at stake?
"Proving to everyone we just had a bad 2009," Loew says, "and that we're still a top-echelon fighter. We had a bad 2009 and a bad performance against Hopkins. So a lot of people have written us off. We've got a lot to prove, and we're ready to do it."
As for the excessive partying, Pavlik says, "There were hundreds of rumors going around: I was lazy; I was sick; I wanted to retire; I was broke; I lost everything. There's nothing you can do. If I go have a beer or two and people want to call me names and say I'm an alcoholic, well, that's going to happen."
Says Loew: " He's no different than any other 27-year-old kid. He likes to have fun outside of the ring and he deserves it, as hard as he works. He likes to play darts, and if they don't see him in church every day, then they feel he's doing the wrong thing.
"The outside world complaining what he's done outside of the ring, nobody's ever seen it, or witnessed it. They just assume, or they hear.
"Me knowing Kelly since he's 8-9 years old, like a father figure to him, it hurt because I know the truth. If he was out screwing around, I would've just shut my mouth. But he wasn't."
Pavlik says there was more to the Hopkins loss — a non-title bout at a catchweight of 170 pounds — than meets the eye, including an injured elbow.
"It was one of those nights I couldn't get moving," he says. "If it was a fight where I was 100% and I got beat up like that, I'd say, 'Man, we've got to change something.' But that wasn't the case."
Pavlik has fought twice since, beating little known Marco Antonio Rubio (retired in ninth round) in February 2009 and Miguel Espino (5th-round TKO) in December. Both title fights were held in his hometown.
"(People) asked, why did you take the Espino fight and not the Paul Williams fight? But you don't fight Williams at 75-80%," Loew says. "I was a lot more comfortable (fighting) Espino at 80% than with Paul Williams."
Loew and Pavlik say he is completely healed. "This is probably the best camp we've ever had, and he's completely healthy, no hand injuries or issues. There are no excuses," Loew says."It's fight time and we are 100, 120% ready to go physically."
Lou DiBella, who promotes the 35-year-old Martinez says his fighter is supremely confident
"I'd be 100% positive my guy would win if he weren't so much smaller," DiBella says. "He's a much better fighter. He's more defensive, more agile. He's faster. He can punch and he can box."
DiBella says Pavlik is a 168-pounder shrinking himself down to 160. "I don't believe Sergio's capable of a one-punch knockout against Pavlik, but Pavlik's capable of a one-punch knockout against anybody. And that's Pavlik's innate advantage in the fight. He can turn the fight on one punch," DiBella says.
"That being said, if he can't catch Sergio, he's going to be in for a very long night."
Pavlik has no plans to play cat and mouse with Martinez.
"Right now it's stick to our gameplan, using our size, speed, power," he says. "You can't go and chase Martinez around the ring. We have to stick to our gameplan and keep him busy.
"If he decides to go toe-to-toe it's, definitely my advantage. He does get hit a lot.. .. he moves a lot but as far as defense, he does get hit."
Bute hopes to defend title:
The first half of HBO's telecast Saturday is another championship fight — Canada's undefeated Lucian Bute (25-0, 20 KOs) puts his IBF super middleweight title belt on the line against Edison Miranda (33-4, 29 KOs) of Colombia.
The bout will be held at the Bell Centre in Montreal, Bute's adopted hometown. He is originally from Romania.
Miranda, meanwhile, is fighting for the first time under the direction of new trainer Joe Goossen.
"I'm really impressed by the capacity of Edison to follow my directives," says Goossen. "When I saw him lose the decision against Andre Ward in 2009, he only had a heavy right hand to rely on. I've asked him to try new things, and he did them all with extreme precision.
"I've seen see a lot of fighters in my career and Edison has the abilities and capacities of a great athlete. He's one of the best athlete I've see in my gym. If Team Bute thinks that my fighter will be tired after the sixth round, they are in for a bad surprise."
Source: usatoday.com
Selasa, 13 April 2010
Naazim Richardson: Has He Given Shane Mosley the Blueprint to Beat Floyd Mayweather? -- AllHipHop
By Ismael AbduSalaam, AllHipHop.com
40 have tried, 40 have failed. Undefeated fighter Floyd Mayweather, Jr has been found of that quote in recent weeks assessing his May 1 showdown with Shane Mosley. But Mosley trainer Naazim Richardson has spent the last several years specializing in destroying the mystique of feared and previously undefeated fighters like Kelly Pavlik and Antonio Margarito. In Mayweather, the man known in boxing circles as Brother Naazim recognizes his greatest challenge as a trainer, but also sees a delusional, arrogant man weeks away from a brutal reality check.
In this exclusive and thorough interview with AllHipHop.com, Naazim Richardson lays out his thoughts on everything: from Mayweather-Mosley, to Ray Robinson’s chances in today’s welterweight division, and whether Antonio Margarito should ever be allowed in the ring again.
AllHipHop.com: There been a lot of criticism regarding the Hopkins-Jones rematch, but more so at Hopkins’ antics. How would you rate both their performances?
Naazim Richardson: I wasn’t in favor of the fight from the beginning, because there was nothing Bernard can do to win favor. If you kill Roy they’re going to call you a bully, and if he goes the distance then they’re going to start questioning your mortality in the sport. To me it was a lose-lose situation. But I also thought he has been in the sport long enough where he’s entitled to clean up some personal residue, which is why I supported him in his effort.
I thought he dominated and initiated all the exchanges as I felt he would. Unfortunately he got hit in the back of the head, and in boxing when you’re hit there no one ever feels it’s authentic [the reaction]. They think you’re exaggerating. The trip the hospital was for observation, and luckily everything was negative and he was released.
AllHipHop.com: Based on how he’s been carrying the weight at light-heavyweight, do you think his goal to move up to heavyweight to face David Haye is realistic?
Richardson: I feel if Bernard can hold some weight on his body, then he can outbox David Haye. But I question if he can hold the weight. Bernard’s metabolism is in training he starts cutting and dropping weight immediately. And he’s not even a big light-heavyweight. I force him to keep weight on him for camp to be ready for light-heavyweight. But his boxing IQ is tremendous, and he does better with punchers than any other type of style.
But in my personal opinion, and I’ve told him this, that he’s done everything there is to do in the sport of boxing except lose badly. And I’ve told him leave the sport before you’ve done everything in it.
AllHipHop.com: There’s been a persistent rumor that Shane hasn’t looked too good in sparring. Can you verify his progress at this point?
Richardson: He’s doing fine in camp. [Pauses] I’ve never been impressed with Shane as a sparring partner. But his [great] ability is following the path we’ve worked on. Now he just has to complete the task on the night of fight.
AllHipHop.com: Was there any worry about him overtraining since he already had a full camp for the canceled Andre Berto fight, and now had to do everything over for Mayweather? Is that a real concern due to Mosley’s age?
Richardson: I know he’ll be ok because he’s been going in the sport for so long. It’s been 16 months since he last fought, and if people pay attention he was off for another year prior to the Margarito fight. So it’s been about 3 years and this guy is only having his second fight! He’ll be fine.
AllHipHop.com: Let’s run a Mayweather strategy by you. He said recently that he was going to make Mosley “think” in there, implying a criticism of many that Shane cannot adjust in the ring as the fight develops. Is that something you’ve been working on to improve with Shane as Mayweather will no doubt switch up in the fight?
Richardson: The whole thing about a fighter like Mayweather is you can’t assume there would be one mode of attack anyway. My assumption that I told Shane is I predict that he hits Floyd with a right hand, and Mayweather grows wings with fangs out his mouth like a dragon. And when he turns into a dragon I’m going to tell Shane to move laterally so that the fireballs don’t hit you, step on his tail, and drive shots to the body. Meaning even if he turns into a dragon we’re not going to surrender the fight. We’ll let the audience run out the dag on theater.
I’m going that deep as far as adaption for this fight in the ring.
AllHipHop.com: Another favorite Mayweather quote is that since he’s undefeated, there’s no blueprint to beating him and he has no weaknesses. But watching him for his whole career as a trainer, what do you feel are his weakest points?
Richardson: The thing is this, the only being that is flawless is God Allah, and any man that feels as though they are flawless thinks they are God. And any man who thinks they are God is a pure fool. And that speaks for itself.
When I was a young man, I saw Ray Robinson lose, and I saw Muhammad Ali lose. I was like yo; that was my awakening that anyone can come up short in this game. What people fail to realize is that with Shane Mosley, Mayweather goes on and on about the blueprint, but you can have a blueprint to stop a lion and that doesn’t mean you can stop one! I feel that after Shane beats him, there still won’t be a blueprint to beat Floyd, because unless you’re Shane Mosley you can’t do it.
Mayweather is verbally cute. He talks so much, that people underestimate him, because normally people who talk that much can’t fight that well. I’ve known him since the amateurs, and he’s always talked like that. I videotaped him talking like that before the Olympics, and he went in there and lost.
He’s a tremendous fighter, but he’s still a young man. Becoming educated is how you become an older man. So there’s still a lot for Floyd Mayweather to learn.
AllHipHop.com: The Olympic style drug testing is underway. Do you think this will be a major distraction for the fighters?
Richardson: Nah, it won’t be a problem. It’s more hoopla. Floyd needs as much attention as he can before a fight because he tells you he’s an entertainer. That’s why he does 24/7, because he’s more entertaining there than when he fights. You’ll pay to see Floyd hit the pads before you’ll pay to see him fight! Pad work with him and Roger is more exciting than the actual fight.
You never saw Mike Tyson put on fake armor or wearing crocodile trunks. Because in the center of the ring Mike Tyson was entertaining. He put guys on their backs and we got our entertainment out of him. Tyson’s entertainment was cracking you upside the head and laying you out. All the extra is needed for Floyd to give people and reporters something to talk about. More questions for people to ask him and he can bark more.
AllHipHop.com: Just based on what you’ve seen, do you think steroids are a big problem in boxing?
Richardson: Like most sports you see a bunch of guys around the athletes, and no one has been able to figure out why. Why you need your lawyer in the ring at fight time? But it happens. Everybody wants to be a part of the big fight.
I got reporters calling and telling me how I should fight Floyd. [chuckles] This guy’s a reporter! He’s telling me he’s studied Floyd for weeks and I should do this and that. You get people stopping me in the casinos about how I should fight Roy Jones. It gets ridiculous, but when you’re around that much energy you’ll get vibes.
After the fight if there’s a knockout there’s always some guy in the winner’s dressing room saying “I knew he would knock him out that round.” And I say well damn, we didn’t need to go to camp if you knew it would be the left hook! So you get fitness trainers that want to get involved and be the ones who made the fighter stronger and faster. They get overzealous, and the next thing you know they’re rubbing something on your ass you don’t need! Everybody is looking for that edge.
You have to recognize who is in your circle. Shane has a private gym, and you [still] got rumors about his sparring. So how does that get out? So either someone is full of s**tand just saying things or someone has a cell phone and is running their mouth after camp with their opinions. I wouldn’t believe anyone telling me what’s going on in Floyd’s camp. Fight night we’ll see who has the best game plan.
AllHipHop.com: Antonio Margarito will be fighting in boxing since he can’t get reinstated in the United States. Do you believe as many do that he should be banned permanently from the sport considering what happened with Luis Resto and Billy Collins in the 80s?
Richardson: You can’t ask me because I’m biased. If the joker tried to hit my son with a car, even though he missed, you can’t have me on that jury ‘because I know what I’m going to say. We have to ask what might have happened if he would’ve gotten through with those blocks in his hands. Shane has little kids, and how would it have looked seeing him lain out or with a hole in his head? Miguel Cotto got a hole in his head. That ain’t a cut, it’s a hole! I thought he’d do good in the Pacquiao fight, but I picked Pacquiao because of that hole in Cotto’s head.
AllHipHop.com: You’re also training cruiserweight Steve Cunningham. His scheduled fight last month was canceled due to Don King not being able to come to terms with ESPN. How has he been holding up with this layoff?
Richardson: They put it on Don [King]. He played a part in it. Main Events picked up the fight and it was going to Chicago. But then Matt Godfrey said he missed two days of training and said he wasn’t ready for the fight. I had the pleasure of working with Matt Godfrey before. So it didn’t come down to Don, it was saved by Main Events.
But Steve is a professional. He’s never been discouraged by any stops in his career. He doesn’t fall apart. Unfortunately when he was under Don he fought very little. None of these things are going to distract him. When the fight fell out we were still in the gym training and preparing for the next day. I told him to take some time off and he got a little mad at me because I didn’t want him even running. He’s driving his wife crazy now, but he’s coming back soon to help out some other guys.
AllHipHop.com: There have been Muslim boxers throughout the history of the sport. You had some who were outspoken about it like Muhammad Ali, Naseem Hamed, and Dwight Muhammad Qawi. And you have others who are more subdued about it like Amir Khan. How has Islam helped your approach to the sport of boxing?
Richardson: Islam allows me to understand my identity of whom and what I am, and not let the nonsense restructure my thoughts and ideas. When they cut the cameras on I won’t turn into a buffoon. It’s hard not to, but I won’t let boxing turn me into something I’m not. On 24/7, I saw nothing but Floyd Mayweather Sr. and Freddie Roach going back and forth. I thought they were going to pick up gloves on an episode! I told 24/7 you can keep that with me. I don’t want the camera in my face every time I’m talking to my athletes.
AllHipHop.com: Why do you think they’re trying to make celebrities out of the trainers? For the last few years this has gone on from Buddy McGirt to now Freddie Roach.
Richardson: The trainers stick around longer in the game then the boxers. If they can make them celebrities, they can run it out longer. A lot us fought before, so those who didn’t get the limelight as boxers now see their chance to get it. These guys want it! Some of them want to step out and push the fighter to the side. I don’t knock them, that’s what they do, but I’m not interested. The athlete is the prime principal, and has to carry out the game plan. It goes back even further than Buddy McGirt. They did it with Cus D’Amato.
We’re the only sport that we disrespect each other as trainers and fighters. I just read an article with James Toney attacking Bernard’s performance in the Jones rematch. He’s talking about Bernard’s mother and all kinds of stuff. I understand that Toney is trying to get back on television, I get it. But then we wonder why we can’t get respect.
You don’t hear George Karl telling Phil Jackson “you’re only winning because you got Kobe [Bryant].” You don’t hear that type of nonsense. It just embarrasses us and says you are not getting enough attention on your own and need to stand on somebody else to be seen. I don’t want that, I want to just do the work and what God has planned for me. These guys, it’s just foolishness.
When Margarito has illegal hand wraps it is a black eye on all of us. It’s not just an embarrassment to Margarito; it’s embarrassment to all of us.
You’ve been writing on boxing for awhile. I was so tired a few years back when people would say “you train boxers? I hope you’re not training them to bite ears off!” I was like oh lord, I wish I could change what happened with Tyson myself I was so sick of hearing about it. It made us all look bad. That was the position we were put in.
We don’t realize we’re all under the same umbrella. You see, Muhammad Ali did something we call now trash talking. But he had flair and was charismatic in the way he went about that. Now everybody think they can do it to sell some extra tickets. Mayweather likes to run his mouth but it’s only his opinion.
He likes to run off about PPV numbers like people pay to watch him shadowbox! Those numbers are because Oscar De La Hoya and other guys were across the ring from you! He makes it sound likes it’s just his numbers. Akh if you had clout like that you never would have gotten voted off Dancing with the Stars. You would’ve won the show with just your boxing fans and blew everyone off the show. But you got voted off quite quickly. But that’s neither here nor there.
Floyd knows his audience; he got the barbershop and Hip-Hop audience, the young boys on the corner. A lot of them don’t check things on details. If you say something they buy it as true. You’re dealing with that young media audience that doesn’t do a lot of investigating. You keep saying something loud enough people take it as true. So the IRS can be on your ass, but you get on TV and say “my stuff is paid for, how about yours,” and no one is going to look up income taxes. They’ll go to YouTube.
But this is boxing, the sport we signed up for; the good, the bad, everything rolled into one. And I’d be lying if I said I didn’t love the sport.
AllHipHop.com: Floyd is fighting the Sugar of his generation, and awhile back I asked him how he would do with the previous Sugars in Ray Robinson and Ray Leonard. He was very respectful of Robinson but laid into Leonard, claiming he lost to his lightweight challenge in Roberto Duran. At the same time, Floyd said he dominated his lightweight moving up. As a trainer who’s seen both, how do you think they’d match up with Floyd or other guys today at welterweight?
Richardson: Ray Robinson you can’t even do because that’s another generation. This is the microwave era. Ray Robinson and them came from an era that was first and second generation poor. These guys were fighting because they were hungry; these weren’t spoiled kids with $400 video games and $100 sneakers. They didn’t come from that era. Those cats would’ve blown most of these guys [today] out of the water with their desire and hunger alone.
Ray Leonard is a talent that would be a problem in any era. He could punch good, great hand speed and boxing IQ.
Floyd knows what he’s doing. Muhammad Ali called himself great before he even knew he was. How many people have we called great who didn’t call themselves that first? So Floyd is just following what history has shown. If he can protect his undefeated record, he can say “Ray Robinson was great but I am greater. How many fights did he lose?” This is his goal.
It’s not a bad plan; so far it worked out for him. I think it was genius when he retired. If he would’ve beat Cotto that would’ve said fight Margarito. If he beats Margarito they say fight Kermit Cintron. If he beats Cintron they say fight Shane Mosley. He beats Mosley they say fight Paul Williams. And that was just a little too much for him to run down. So if I retire and let these killers fight each other, I can pick up the leftovers. Because you couldn’t pull Margarito on top of this dude!
Bob Arum used to disrespect him with Margarito. He used to be like “Hey b***h you ain’t number 1, I got Margarito!” And Floyd would turn his head and start talking about basketball. Like he never heard of him, because he knew Margarito had the kind of chin where he would just walk through whatever he was doing. If he sat on the ropes Margarito would just walk through that shit. If you can’t hurt Margarito you can’t beat Margarito! And Floyd knew he couldn’t beat or hurt him.
Nobody really wanted to fight Margarito. And after Shane blew him out, nobody really wanted to fight Shane. But Mayweather’s perspective makes sense in saying “I’ll take a chance with a man that can hurt me, and I can keep myself from getting hurt, opposed to a man I cannot hurt at all.” People said Margarito was one-dimensional. We can sit on a train track and know the train is coming the same way, but stand your ass on the track and what still happens? That’s what Margarito was.
AllHipHop.com: This has been a great interview, Naazim. Any closing thoughts?
Richardson: I will say this. You have good fighters, then you have champions, then you have elite champions, and finally fighters who are special. This is the rare time we will see two fighters who are special. They got past the elites in the Margaritos and Ricky Hattons. Both have special fighters on their resume in Oscar De La Hoya. Floyd is an undefeated special fighter, which Shane has faced before.
I have a great deal of respect for both. All special guys are what I call misleading fighters. Hopkins talks so much s**tyou forget he’s more technical than gorilla. All that prison, gangsta talk misleads you. Pacquiao they call him small like he’s 4 feet tall. But when you get in the ring you realize he ain’t that small! Mayweather, all that s**ttalking you think you can hit him right in the mouth. But he isn’t that easy to hit. Mosley, he looks like he should be selling you car insurance with all that smiling, but he’s a gorilla.
Pioneers don’t need blueprints, Floyd. Muhammad Ali and Wilt Chamberlain didn’t need them. There was none on Margarito. That’s how the world works. We’re up for the task. It won’t be easy. But if it was, anyone could do it.
Writer’s Note: Mayweather-Mosley is live on HBO PPV May 1. The next 24/7 Mayweather-Mosley is this Saturday (April 17 ) at 9:30PM.
Source: allhiphop.com
40 have tried, 40 have failed. Undefeated fighter Floyd Mayweather, Jr has been found of that quote in recent weeks assessing his May 1 showdown with Shane Mosley. But Mosley trainer Naazim Richardson has spent the last several years specializing in destroying the mystique of feared and previously undefeated fighters like Kelly Pavlik and Antonio Margarito. In Mayweather, the man known in boxing circles as Brother Naazim recognizes his greatest challenge as a trainer, but also sees a delusional, arrogant man weeks away from a brutal reality check.
In this exclusive and thorough interview with AllHipHop.com, Naazim Richardson lays out his thoughts on everything: from Mayweather-Mosley, to Ray Robinson’s chances in today’s welterweight division, and whether Antonio Margarito should ever be allowed in the ring again.
AllHipHop.com: There been a lot of criticism regarding the Hopkins-Jones rematch, but more so at Hopkins’ antics. How would you rate both their performances?
Naazim Richardson: I wasn’t in favor of the fight from the beginning, because there was nothing Bernard can do to win favor. If you kill Roy they’re going to call you a bully, and if he goes the distance then they’re going to start questioning your mortality in the sport. To me it was a lose-lose situation. But I also thought he has been in the sport long enough where he’s entitled to clean up some personal residue, which is why I supported him in his effort.
I thought he dominated and initiated all the exchanges as I felt he would. Unfortunately he got hit in the back of the head, and in boxing when you’re hit there no one ever feels it’s authentic [the reaction]. They think you’re exaggerating. The trip the hospital was for observation, and luckily everything was negative and he was released.
AllHipHop.com: Based on how he’s been carrying the weight at light-heavyweight, do you think his goal to move up to heavyweight to face David Haye is realistic?
Richardson: I feel if Bernard can hold some weight on his body, then he can outbox David Haye. But I question if he can hold the weight. Bernard’s metabolism is in training he starts cutting and dropping weight immediately. And he’s not even a big light-heavyweight. I force him to keep weight on him for camp to be ready for light-heavyweight. But his boxing IQ is tremendous, and he does better with punchers than any other type of style.
But in my personal opinion, and I’ve told him this, that he’s done everything there is to do in the sport of boxing except lose badly. And I’ve told him leave the sport before you’ve done everything in it.
AllHipHop.com: There’s been a persistent rumor that Shane hasn’t looked too good in sparring. Can you verify his progress at this point?
Richardson: He’s doing fine in camp. [Pauses] I’ve never been impressed with Shane as a sparring partner. But his [great] ability is following the path we’ve worked on. Now he just has to complete the task on the night of fight.
AllHipHop.com: Was there any worry about him overtraining since he already had a full camp for the canceled Andre Berto fight, and now had to do everything over for Mayweather? Is that a real concern due to Mosley’s age?
Richardson: I know he’ll be ok because he’s been going in the sport for so long. It’s been 16 months since he last fought, and if people pay attention he was off for another year prior to the Margarito fight. So it’s been about 3 years and this guy is only having his second fight! He’ll be fine.
AllHipHop.com: Let’s run a Mayweather strategy by you. He said recently that he was going to make Mosley “think” in there, implying a criticism of many that Shane cannot adjust in the ring as the fight develops. Is that something you’ve been working on to improve with Shane as Mayweather will no doubt switch up in the fight?
Richardson: The whole thing about a fighter like Mayweather is you can’t assume there would be one mode of attack anyway. My assumption that I told Shane is I predict that he hits Floyd with a right hand, and Mayweather grows wings with fangs out his mouth like a dragon. And when he turns into a dragon I’m going to tell Shane to move laterally so that the fireballs don’t hit you, step on his tail, and drive shots to the body. Meaning even if he turns into a dragon we’re not going to surrender the fight. We’ll let the audience run out the dag on theater.
I’m going that deep as far as adaption for this fight in the ring.
AllHipHop.com: Another favorite Mayweather quote is that since he’s undefeated, there’s no blueprint to beating him and he has no weaknesses. But watching him for his whole career as a trainer, what do you feel are his weakest points?
Richardson: The thing is this, the only being that is flawless is God Allah, and any man that feels as though they are flawless thinks they are God. And any man who thinks they are God is a pure fool. And that speaks for itself.
When I was a young man, I saw Ray Robinson lose, and I saw Muhammad Ali lose. I was like yo; that was my awakening that anyone can come up short in this game. What people fail to realize is that with Shane Mosley, Mayweather goes on and on about the blueprint, but you can have a blueprint to stop a lion and that doesn’t mean you can stop one! I feel that after Shane beats him, there still won’t be a blueprint to beat Floyd, because unless you’re Shane Mosley you can’t do it.
Mayweather is verbally cute. He talks so much, that people underestimate him, because normally people who talk that much can’t fight that well. I’ve known him since the amateurs, and he’s always talked like that. I videotaped him talking like that before the Olympics, and he went in there and lost.
He’s a tremendous fighter, but he’s still a young man. Becoming educated is how you become an older man. So there’s still a lot for Floyd Mayweather to learn.
AllHipHop.com: The Olympic style drug testing is underway. Do you think this will be a major distraction for the fighters?
Richardson: Nah, it won’t be a problem. It’s more hoopla. Floyd needs as much attention as he can before a fight because he tells you he’s an entertainer. That’s why he does 24/7, because he’s more entertaining there than when he fights. You’ll pay to see Floyd hit the pads before you’ll pay to see him fight! Pad work with him and Roger is more exciting than the actual fight.
You never saw Mike Tyson put on fake armor or wearing crocodile trunks. Because in the center of the ring Mike Tyson was entertaining. He put guys on their backs and we got our entertainment out of him. Tyson’s entertainment was cracking you upside the head and laying you out. All the extra is needed for Floyd to give people and reporters something to talk about. More questions for people to ask him and he can bark more.
AllHipHop.com: Just based on what you’ve seen, do you think steroids are a big problem in boxing?
Richardson: Like most sports you see a bunch of guys around the athletes, and no one has been able to figure out why. Why you need your lawyer in the ring at fight time? But it happens. Everybody wants to be a part of the big fight.
I got reporters calling and telling me how I should fight Floyd. [chuckles] This guy’s a reporter! He’s telling me he’s studied Floyd for weeks and I should do this and that. You get people stopping me in the casinos about how I should fight Roy Jones. It gets ridiculous, but when you’re around that much energy you’ll get vibes.
After the fight if there’s a knockout there’s always some guy in the winner’s dressing room saying “I knew he would knock him out that round.” And I say well damn, we didn’t need to go to camp if you knew it would be the left hook! So you get fitness trainers that want to get involved and be the ones who made the fighter stronger and faster. They get overzealous, and the next thing you know they’re rubbing something on your ass you don’t need! Everybody is looking for that edge.
You have to recognize who is in your circle. Shane has a private gym, and you [still] got rumors about his sparring. So how does that get out? So either someone is full of s**tand just saying things or someone has a cell phone and is running their mouth after camp with their opinions. I wouldn’t believe anyone telling me what’s going on in Floyd’s camp. Fight night we’ll see who has the best game plan.
AllHipHop.com: Antonio Margarito will be fighting in boxing since he can’t get reinstated in the United States. Do you believe as many do that he should be banned permanently from the sport considering what happened with Luis Resto and Billy Collins in the 80s?
Richardson: You can’t ask me because I’m biased. If the joker tried to hit my son with a car, even though he missed, you can’t have me on that jury ‘because I know what I’m going to say. We have to ask what might have happened if he would’ve gotten through with those blocks in his hands. Shane has little kids, and how would it have looked seeing him lain out or with a hole in his head? Miguel Cotto got a hole in his head. That ain’t a cut, it’s a hole! I thought he’d do good in the Pacquiao fight, but I picked Pacquiao because of that hole in Cotto’s head.
AllHipHop.com: You’re also training cruiserweight Steve Cunningham. His scheduled fight last month was canceled due to Don King not being able to come to terms with ESPN. How has he been holding up with this layoff?
Richardson: They put it on Don [King]. He played a part in it. Main Events picked up the fight and it was going to Chicago. But then Matt Godfrey said he missed two days of training and said he wasn’t ready for the fight. I had the pleasure of working with Matt Godfrey before. So it didn’t come down to Don, it was saved by Main Events.
But Steve is a professional. He’s never been discouraged by any stops in his career. He doesn’t fall apart. Unfortunately when he was under Don he fought very little. None of these things are going to distract him. When the fight fell out we were still in the gym training and preparing for the next day. I told him to take some time off and he got a little mad at me because I didn’t want him even running. He’s driving his wife crazy now, but he’s coming back soon to help out some other guys.
AllHipHop.com: There have been Muslim boxers throughout the history of the sport. You had some who were outspoken about it like Muhammad Ali, Naseem Hamed, and Dwight Muhammad Qawi. And you have others who are more subdued about it like Amir Khan. How has Islam helped your approach to the sport of boxing?
Richardson: Islam allows me to understand my identity of whom and what I am, and not let the nonsense restructure my thoughts and ideas. When they cut the cameras on I won’t turn into a buffoon. It’s hard not to, but I won’t let boxing turn me into something I’m not. On 24/7, I saw nothing but Floyd Mayweather Sr. and Freddie Roach going back and forth. I thought they were going to pick up gloves on an episode! I told 24/7 you can keep that with me. I don’t want the camera in my face every time I’m talking to my athletes.
AllHipHop.com: Why do you think they’re trying to make celebrities out of the trainers? For the last few years this has gone on from Buddy McGirt to now Freddie Roach.
Richardson: The trainers stick around longer in the game then the boxers. If they can make them celebrities, they can run it out longer. A lot us fought before, so those who didn’t get the limelight as boxers now see their chance to get it. These guys want it! Some of them want to step out and push the fighter to the side. I don’t knock them, that’s what they do, but I’m not interested. The athlete is the prime principal, and has to carry out the game plan. It goes back even further than Buddy McGirt. They did it with Cus D’Amato.
We’re the only sport that we disrespect each other as trainers and fighters. I just read an article with James Toney attacking Bernard’s performance in the Jones rematch. He’s talking about Bernard’s mother and all kinds of stuff. I understand that Toney is trying to get back on television, I get it. But then we wonder why we can’t get respect.
You don’t hear George Karl telling Phil Jackson “you’re only winning because you got Kobe [Bryant].” You don’t hear that type of nonsense. It just embarrasses us and says you are not getting enough attention on your own and need to stand on somebody else to be seen. I don’t want that, I want to just do the work and what God has planned for me. These guys, it’s just foolishness.
When Margarito has illegal hand wraps it is a black eye on all of us. It’s not just an embarrassment to Margarito; it’s embarrassment to all of us.
You’ve been writing on boxing for awhile. I was so tired a few years back when people would say “you train boxers? I hope you’re not training them to bite ears off!” I was like oh lord, I wish I could change what happened with Tyson myself I was so sick of hearing about it. It made us all look bad. That was the position we were put in.
We don’t realize we’re all under the same umbrella. You see, Muhammad Ali did something we call now trash talking. But he had flair and was charismatic in the way he went about that. Now everybody think they can do it to sell some extra tickets. Mayweather likes to run his mouth but it’s only his opinion.
He likes to run off about PPV numbers like people pay to watch him shadowbox! Those numbers are because Oscar De La Hoya and other guys were across the ring from you! He makes it sound likes it’s just his numbers. Akh if you had clout like that you never would have gotten voted off Dancing with the Stars. You would’ve won the show with just your boxing fans and blew everyone off the show. But you got voted off quite quickly. But that’s neither here nor there.
Floyd knows his audience; he got the barbershop and Hip-Hop audience, the young boys on the corner. A lot of them don’t check things on details. If you say something they buy it as true. You’re dealing with that young media audience that doesn’t do a lot of investigating. You keep saying something loud enough people take it as true. So the IRS can be on your ass, but you get on TV and say “my stuff is paid for, how about yours,” and no one is going to look up income taxes. They’ll go to YouTube.
But this is boxing, the sport we signed up for; the good, the bad, everything rolled into one. And I’d be lying if I said I didn’t love the sport.
AllHipHop.com: Floyd is fighting the Sugar of his generation, and awhile back I asked him how he would do with the previous Sugars in Ray Robinson and Ray Leonard. He was very respectful of Robinson but laid into Leonard, claiming he lost to his lightweight challenge in Roberto Duran. At the same time, Floyd said he dominated his lightweight moving up. As a trainer who’s seen both, how do you think they’d match up with Floyd or other guys today at welterweight?
Richardson: Ray Robinson you can’t even do because that’s another generation. This is the microwave era. Ray Robinson and them came from an era that was first and second generation poor. These guys were fighting because they were hungry; these weren’t spoiled kids with $400 video games and $100 sneakers. They didn’t come from that era. Those cats would’ve blown most of these guys [today] out of the water with their desire and hunger alone.
Ray Leonard is a talent that would be a problem in any era. He could punch good, great hand speed and boxing IQ.
Floyd knows what he’s doing. Muhammad Ali called himself great before he even knew he was. How many people have we called great who didn’t call themselves that first? So Floyd is just following what history has shown. If he can protect his undefeated record, he can say “Ray Robinson was great but I am greater. How many fights did he lose?” This is his goal.
It’s not a bad plan; so far it worked out for him. I think it was genius when he retired. If he would’ve beat Cotto that would’ve said fight Margarito. If he beats Margarito they say fight Kermit Cintron. If he beats Cintron they say fight Shane Mosley. He beats Mosley they say fight Paul Williams. And that was just a little too much for him to run down. So if I retire and let these killers fight each other, I can pick up the leftovers. Because you couldn’t pull Margarito on top of this dude!
Bob Arum used to disrespect him with Margarito. He used to be like “Hey b***h you ain’t number 1, I got Margarito!” And Floyd would turn his head and start talking about basketball. Like he never heard of him, because he knew Margarito had the kind of chin where he would just walk through whatever he was doing. If he sat on the ropes Margarito would just walk through that shit. If you can’t hurt Margarito you can’t beat Margarito! And Floyd knew he couldn’t beat or hurt him.
Nobody really wanted to fight Margarito. And after Shane blew him out, nobody really wanted to fight Shane. But Mayweather’s perspective makes sense in saying “I’ll take a chance with a man that can hurt me, and I can keep myself from getting hurt, opposed to a man I cannot hurt at all.” People said Margarito was one-dimensional. We can sit on a train track and know the train is coming the same way, but stand your ass on the track and what still happens? That’s what Margarito was.
AllHipHop.com: This has been a great interview, Naazim. Any closing thoughts?
Richardson: I will say this. You have good fighters, then you have champions, then you have elite champions, and finally fighters who are special. This is the rare time we will see two fighters who are special. They got past the elites in the Margaritos and Ricky Hattons. Both have special fighters on their resume in Oscar De La Hoya. Floyd is an undefeated special fighter, which Shane has faced before.
I have a great deal of respect for both. All special guys are what I call misleading fighters. Hopkins talks so much s**tyou forget he’s more technical than gorilla. All that prison, gangsta talk misleads you. Pacquiao they call him small like he’s 4 feet tall. But when you get in the ring you realize he ain’t that small! Mayweather, all that s**ttalking you think you can hit him right in the mouth. But he isn’t that easy to hit. Mosley, he looks like he should be selling you car insurance with all that smiling, but he’s a gorilla.
Pioneers don’t need blueprints, Floyd. Muhammad Ali and Wilt Chamberlain didn’t need them. There was none on Margarito. That’s how the world works. We’re up for the task. It won’t be easy. But if it was, anyone could do it.
Writer’s Note: Mayweather-Mosley is live on HBO PPV May 1. The next 24/7 Mayweather-Mosley is this Saturday (April 17 ) at 9:30PM.
Source: allhiphop.com
Sabtu, 10 April 2010
Bernard Hopkins and Roy Jones Jnr should bow out now -- Liverpool Echo
By Nick Peet, Liverpool Echo
WHILE David Haye was single-handedly changing the face of boxing in Manchester on Saturday night, across the pond fight fans could only glance in envy from ringside in Las Vegas as two dinosaurs of the ring fouled their way through 12 disastrous rounds.
Bernard Hopkins’ win over Roy Jones Jnr would have been the biggest fight of this era had it happened 10 years ago, but 17 years late it was an absolute stinker.
Filled with low blows, rabbit punches and butts and elbows, the slug-fest was a major turn-off in the States and all but ended both of their drawn out careers – finally!
Not surprisingly Haye quashed any talk of a scrap with old man Hopkins, who must be 60 if he’s a day, while Jones has only himself to blame for destroying his legacy – he’s gone from Superman to journeyman in one long sweeping uppercut.
Thankfully, credibility will be restored to the US scene at the end of the month when another ageing former champion steps back into the ring for one last crack at top.
Sugar Shane Mosley may be in the twilight of his career, like the two previous practitioners, but he’s at least enjoying an Indian summer right now with some big wins in the tank and he’ll be a game match for Floyd Mayweather in three weeks.
Mayweather, of course, is marking time before reconvening for talks ahead of his mega-fight with Manny Pacquiao which, hopefully, will finally come off later this year.
But make no mistake Mosley is nobody’s fool and certainly won’t be training to get paid.
The former lightweight great has got a similar free-spirited style to Floyd and, while he may not be as sharp as he used to be, he’s got good power in either fist and seems to be something of a party spoiler these days, having won seven of his last eight against world class opposition.
Whether that will be enough to see him become the first man in 41 tries to defeat ‘Pretty Boy’ Floyd is yet to be seen. But, with a ringside ticket in hand, I can’t wait to find out.
Source: liverpoolecho.co.uk
WHILE David Haye was single-handedly changing the face of boxing in Manchester on Saturday night, across the pond fight fans could only glance in envy from ringside in Las Vegas as two dinosaurs of the ring fouled their way through 12 disastrous rounds.
Bernard Hopkins’ win over Roy Jones Jnr would have been the biggest fight of this era had it happened 10 years ago, but 17 years late it was an absolute stinker.
Filled with low blows, rabbit punches and butts and elbows, the slug-fest was a major turn-off in the States and all but ended both of their drawn out careers – finally!Undoubtedly two of the greatest champions of the last 20 years sure, but it’s high time both of them walked away with what’s left of their dignity and credibility.
Not surprisingly Haye quashed any talk of a scrap with old man Hopkins, who must be 60 if he’s a day, while Jones has only himself to blame for destroying his legacy – he’s gone from Superman to journeyman in one long sweeping uppercut.Thankfully, credibility will be restored to the US scene at the end of the month when another ageing former champion steps back into the ring for one last crack at top.
Sugar Shane Mosley may be in the twilight of his career, like the two previous practitioners, but he’s at least enjoying an Indian summer right now with some big wins in the tank and he’ll be a game match for Floyd Mayweather in three weeks.
Mayweather, of course, is marking time before reconvening for talks ahead of his mega-fight with Manny Pacquiao which, hopefully, will finally come off later this year.
But make no mistake Mosley is nobody’s fool and certainly won’t be training to get paid.
The former lightweight great has got a similar free-spirited style to Floyd and, while he may not be as sharp as he used to be, he’s got good power in either fist and seems to be something of a party spoiler these days, having won seven of his last eight against world class opposition.
Whether that will be enough to see him become the first man in 41 tries to defeat ‘Pretty Boy’ Floyd is yet to be seen. But, with a ringside ticket in hand, I can’t wait to find out.
Source: liverpoolecho.co.uk
Jumat, 09 April 2010
The jury’s still out on Haye -- The Sun
By FRANK WARREN, The Sun
DAVID HAYE stopped John Ruiz last week to remain WBA heavyweight champ.
But until I see him in with a 'live heavyweight', the jury is still out.
Haye did as expected - you can only defeat what's put in front of you.
But let's not get carried away - Ruiz had effectively lost four of his previous seven fights and, at 38, had seen better days.
Haye has been in the right place at the right time in fighting Nikolay Valuev and Ruiz, because the pair are probably the worst two heavyweight world champions of all time.
After the fight, Haye, 29, said he was glad he had won because he didn't want to be like Frank Bruno and lose his title in his first defence.
That is unfair on Bruno. Other than the Klitschkos, the heavyweights of his generation were far superior to today's.
Haye says the Klitschko brothers are next on the agenda but Vitali and Wladimir are very different prospects to Ruiz.
On Saturday, Haye took more shots than he needed to. If either of the Klitschkos connect, they are going to have Haye in big trouble.
Bernard can't Hop to heavy
BERNARD HOPKINS finally avenged his loss to Roy Jones at the weekend, defeating his nemesis on points.
Hopkins immediately called out David Haye - but there's no way he's going to heavyweight.
The most likely scenario is a showdown with light-heavyweight No 1 Chad Dawson - or retirement.
I expected Hopkins to stop Jones but he opted for a safety-first approach to get the win.
Despite being 45, Hopkins has managed to fight on because he knows how to look after himself.
Jones, on the other hand, has now lost six of his last 11 fights and has ruined what was once an impressive legacy. He should call it a day. To me he just about won a round.
Hopkins hit the canvas a couple of times after being caught with rabbit punches, which led to one observer saying: "Hopkins has a glass back of the head."
That's kids' stuff
SCHOOLS from the North-West took part in a competition last week.
Hundreds of spectators watched the kids' boxing skills in 22 contests. Points were awarded in a new form of boxing for skills, self-discipline and scoring on the target area.
Pupils with disabilities acted as officials - good to see boxing having a positive impact on kids and communities.
Ali film is all gold
FACING ALI is the latest US documentary on Muhammad Ali.
There are interviews with Joe Frazier, George Chuvalo, Larry Holmes, George Foreman and Ken Norton. It also touches on Ali's connection with Malcolm X and Louis Farrakhan including tapes of Farrakhan's death threats against Washington Post writer Milton Coleman.
Can't wait to see it.
Calzaghe comeback?
THE only man to have beaten both Roy Jones and Bernard Hopkins was at a Press conference held by Golden Boy last week.
Could Joe Calzaghe really come out of retirement for a rematch with Hopkins?
He shouldn't come back but it's not impossible.
Source: thesun.co.uk
DAVID HAYE stopped John Ruiz last week to remain WBA heavyweight champ.
But until I see him in with a 'live heavyweight', the jury is still out.
Haye did as expected - you can only defeat what's put in front of you.
But let's not get carried away - Ruiz had effectively lost four of his previous seven fights and, at 38, had seen better days.
Haye has been in the right place at the right time in fighting Nikolay Valuev and Ruiz, because the pair are probably the worst two heavyweight world champions of all time. After the fight, Haye, 29, said he was glad he had won because he didn't want to be like Frank Bruno and lose his title in his first defence.
That is unfair on Bruno. Other than the Klitschkos, the heavyweights of his generation were far superior to today's.
Haye says the Klitschko brothers are next on the agenda but Vitali and Wladimir are very different prospects to Ruiz.
On Saturday, Haye took more shots than he needed to. If either of the Klitschkos connect, they are going to have Haye in big trouble.
Bernard can't Hop to heavy
BERNARD HOPKINS finally avenged his loss to Roy Jones at the weekend, defeating his nemesis on points.
Hopkins immediately called out David Haye - but there's no way he's going to heavyweight.
The most likely scenario is a showdown with light-heavyweight No 1 Chad Dawson - or retirement.
I expected Hopkins to stop Jones but he opted for a safety-first approach to get the win.
Despite being 45, Hopkins has managed to fight on because he knows how to look after himself.
Jones, on the other hand, has now lost six of his last 11 fights and has ruined what was once an impressive legacy. He should call it a day. To me he just about won a round.
Hopkins hit the canvas a couple of times after being caught with rabbit punches, which led to one observer saying: "Hopkins has a glass back of the head."
That's kids' stuff
SCHOOLS from the North-West took part in a competition last week.
Hundreds of spectators watched the kids' boxing skills in 22 contests. Points were awarded in a new form of boxing for skills, self-discipline and scoring on the target area.
Pupils with disabilities acted as officials - good to see boxing having a positive impact on kids and communities.
Ali film is all gold
FACING ALI is the latest US documentary on Muhammad Ali.
There are interviews with Joe Frazier, George Chuvalo, Larry Holmes, George Foreman and Ken Norton. It also touches on Ali's connection with Malcolm X and Louis Farrakhan including tapes of Farrakhan's death threats against Washington Post writer Milton Coleman.
Can't wait to see it.
Calzaghe comeback?
THE only man to have beaten both Roy Jones and Bernard Hopkins was at a Press conference held by Golden Boy last week.
Could Joe Calzaghe really come out of retirement for a rematch with Hopkins?
He shouldn't come back but it's not impossible.
Source: thesun.co.uk
Kamis, 08 April 2010
Middleweight champ Pavlik says his troubles are finally in past -- USA Today
By Dave Skretta, Associated Press
Since rocketing to stardom with a knockout of Jermain Taylor almost three years ago, Pavlik has defeated a trio of overmatched challengers, lost to Bernard Hopkins when he was ill, and was sidelined for several months because of a persistent staph infection on his hand.
The rough run has turned many fans against him, and Pavlik said during a conference call on Thursday that the reason he's taking a risk by fighting Martinez — considered one of the top junior middleweights in the world — to prove he's not afraid to face anybody.
"The flack is going to be there, there's nothing I could do," Pavlik said. "This was my way of going out there and showing people I will take dangerous fights, against a very good fighter, when I'm healthy and 100% ready to go."
Pavlik will defend his WBC and minor WBO versions of the title on April 17 at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, New Jersey, the same seaside arena where he stunned Taylor in September 2007 and defended his championships nine month later against fringe contender Gary Lockett.
Along the way, Pavlik defeated Taylor in a catch-weight rematch that many people seem to have forgotten. Instead, they point to the Hopkins loss at light heavyweight and a pair of wins last year against Marco Antonio Rubio and Miguel Angel Espino as evidence that Pavlik is unwilling to defend his title trinkets against the best in the sport.
"I probably have never seen Kelly look so good," said his trainer, Jack Loew. "This is a very serious fight for us, and I think everybody is going to finally be able to see the best Kelly Pavlik they've seen in a long time."
Martinez (44-2-2, 24 KOs) is far more than simply the B-side to the fight.
He's an exciting puncher with plenty of power, and his only losses have come against former champions Antonio Margarito and Paul Williams.
Many believe that Martinez defeated Williams in December, when they traded knockdowns in the first round at Boardwalk Hall, then proceeded to trade punches the rest of the fight. Williams earned the mixed decision, but Martinez earned plenty of praise.
And now, a shot at the reigning middleweight king.
"People saw his last fight against Paul Williams, and a lot of people thought Martinez won the fight, but in any event he gave a hell of an account of himself," Arum said. "Kelly has his hands full with Martinez, but it should be a tremendous, tremendous fight."
Copyright 2010 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Source: usatoday.com
NEW YORK — Kelly Pavlik
believes he finally has his injuries behind him, and he's ready to face Sergio Martinez in what amounts to a comeback fight for the WBC middleweight champ.
believes he finally has his injuries behind him, and he's ready to face Sergio Martinez in what amounts to a comeback fight for the WBC middleweight champ.Since rocketing to stardom with a knockout of Jermain Taylor almost three years ago, Pavlik has defeated a trio of overmatched challengers, lost to Bernard Hopkins when he was ill, and was sidelined for several months because of a persistent staph infection on his hand.
The rough run has turned many fans against him, and Pavlik said during a conference call on Thursday that the reason he's taking a risk by fighting Martinez — considered one of the top junior middleweights in the world — to prove he's not afraid to face anybody."The flack is going to be there, there's nothing I could do," Pavlik said. "This was my way of going out there and showing people I will take dangerous fights, against a very good fighter, when I'm healthy and 100% ready to go."
Pavlik will defend his WBC and minor WBO versions of the title on April 17 at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, New Jersey, the same seaside arena where he stunned Taylor in September 2007 and defended his championships nine month later against fringe contender Gary Lockett.
Along the way, Pavlik defeated Taylor in a catch-weight rematch that many people seem to have forgotten. Instead, they point to the Hopkins loss at light heavyweight and a pair of wins last year against Marco Antonio Rubio and Miguel Angel Espino as evidence that Pavlik is unwilling to defend his title trinkets against the best in the sport.
"I probably have never seen Kelly look so good," said his trainer, Jack Loew. "This is a very serious fight for us, and I think everybody is going to finally be able to see the best Kelly Pavlik they've seen in a long time."
Martinez (44-2-2, 24 KOs) is far more than simply the B-side to the fight.
He's an exciting puncher with plenty of power, and his only losses have come against former champions Antonio Margarito and Paul Williams.
Many believe that Martinez defeated Williams in December, when they traded knockdowns in the first round at Boardwalk Hall, then proceeded to trade punches the rest of the fight. Williams earned the mixed decision, but Martinez earned plenty of praise.
And now, a shot at the reigning middleweight king.
"People saw his last fight against Paul Williams, and a lot of people thought Martinez won the fight, but in any event he gave a hell of an account of himself," Arum said. "Kelly has his hands full with Martinez, but it should be a tremendous, tremendous fight."
Copyright 2010 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Source: usatoday.com
Hopkins would leave Golden Boy to fight again -- ESPN
By Don Steinberg, ESPN.com
Bernard Hopkins is content with his ugly revenge over Roy Jones Jr. on Saturday night -- "a win is a win is a win," he says -- but the aftermath of the fight has him questioning the loyalty of his own promoter, Golden Boy, and contemplating a walk to another promoter if that's what it takes for him to keep fighting at age 45.
Hopkins believes pretty much the entire boxing industry is seizing upon the lackluster Jones rematch as a lever to drive him and his nonconformist attitude out of the sport, "to wrap me up in Roy Jones' grave and throw me in, and kill two birds with one stone," he told ESPN.com on Thursday from his house in Delaware. "I'm not going to let them do that to me."
Many in the media have urged both Jones, 41, and Hopkins to hang up the gloves before someone really gets hurt. Those doubters aren't new to The Executioner, but he seems especially hurt by comments that Golden Boy CEO Richard Schaefer made to the media. Schaeffer nudged Hopkins toward retirement, saying it "could be something which, as a friend, I might advise him to consider. I think it's time for his friends and family to have a serious talk with him."
Denying Hopkins a chance to earn a living in the ring doesn't sit well with the fighter.
"Maybe the money's not being made off me like it's being made off somebody else," Hopkins said. "If that's the problem, then fine. I've got a lot of other promoters calling me as of today … It's gonna look strange to y'all when I'm moving in with [Bob] Arum or [Don] King. I don't blame anybody for being a businessman. Just tell me, so I can do what's right for my family, so you can't blame me for going across the street. That's all I'm saying.
"It needs to come out now, because at the end of the day, Bernard Hopkins [has] always been his own man, and if the industry thought that I was gonna be a controlled puppet because I'm in with a big company, they're in for a rude awakening. Because Bernard Hopkins is not going to become part of the industry. Maybe I won't survive as a Golden Boy promoter. "
One thing Hopkins is sure of is he's not saying goodbye to the ring just yet.
"The thing is coming to a head based on my next move. Because my next move isn't retirement. I have no reason to retire," he said.
Hopkins has spent nearly a year telling people he'd like to challenge for David Haye's heavyweight title. Now he suggests even his own company (Hopkins has a small equity stake in Golden Boy), which also promotes Haye, is walking away from the idea.
"Don't tell me that he's bigger, he's stronger," Hopkins said, seemingly aiming his comments at his own business partners. "They told [Evander] Holyfield that. You're telling me that [he can't fight Haye] because of the Roy Jones fight? So, let's play Devil's Advocate, Richard … Now you try to use the illegal hit on the back of the head to say that you won't be a part of that [a Haye fight]?"
Even Haye said he'd rather fight Wladimir Klitschko than give Hopkins a shot, and that scenario seems increasingly unlikely.
So what's next? Hopkins says he's "in talks now." Only time will tell.
Source: espn.go.com
Bernard Hopkins is content with his ugly revenge over Roy Jones Jr. on Saturday night -- "a win is a win is a win," he says -- but the aftermath of the fight has him questioning the loyalty of his own promoter, Golden Boy, and contemplating a walk to another promoter if that's what it takes for him to keep fighting at age 45.
Hopkins believes pretty much the entire boxing industry is seizing upon the lackluster Jones rematch as a lever to drive him and his nonconformist attitude out of the sport, "to wrap me up in Roy Jones' grave and throw me in, and kill two birds with one stone," he told ESPN.com on Thursday from his house in Delaware. "I'm not going to let them do that to me."
Many in the media have urged both Jones, 41, and Hopkins to hang up the gloves before someone really gets hurt. Those doubters aren't new to The Executioner, but he seems especially hurt by comments that Golden Boy CEO Richard Schaefer made to the media. Schaeffer nudged Hopkins toward retirement, saying it "could be something which, as a friend, I might advise him to consider. I think it's time for his friends and family to have a serious talk with him."Denying Hopkins a chance to earn a living in the ring doesn't sit well with the fighter.
"Maybe the money's not being made off me like it's being made off somebody else," Hopkins said. "If that's the problem, then fine. I've got a lot of other promoters calling me as of today … It's gonna look strange to y'all when I'm moving in with [Bob] Arum or [Don] King. I don't blame anybody for being a businessman. Just tell me, so I can do what's right for my family, so you can't blame me for going across the street. That's all I'm saying.
"It needs to come out now, because at the end of the day, Bernard Hopkins [has] always been his own man, and if the industry thought that I was gonna be a controlled puppet because I'm in with a big company, they're in for a rude awakening. Because Bernard Hopkins is not going to become part of the industry. Maybe I won't survive as a Golden Boy promoter. "
One thing Hopkins is sure of is he's not saying goodbye to the ring just yet.
"The thing is coming to a head based on my next move. Because my next move isn't retirement. I have no reason to retire," he said.
Hopkins has spent nearly a year telling people he'd like to challenge for David Haye's heavyweight title. Now he suggests even his own company (Hopkins has a small equity stake in Golden Boy), which also promotes Haye, is walking away from the idea.
"Don't tell me that he's bigger, he's stronger," Hopkins said, seemingly aiming his comments at his own business partners. "They told [Evander] Holyfield that. You're telling me that [he can't fight Haye] because of the Roy Jones fight? So, let's play Devil's Advocate, Richard … Now you try to use the illegal hit on the back of the head to say that you won't be a part of that [a Haye fight]?"
Even Haye said he'd rather fight Wladimir Klitschko than give Hopkins a shot, and that scenario seems increasingly unlikely.
So what's next? Hopkins says he's "in talks now." Only time will tell.
Source: espn.go.com
If Hopkins Beat Haye It'd Be The Greatest Accomplishment In Boxing History -- The Sweet Science
By Frank Lotierzo, The Sweet Science
Immediately after Hopkins was declared the winner of his rematch with Jones, he said he wanted to be the heavyweight champ and fight WBA title-holder David Haye 24-1 (22), who stopped John Ruiz in the ninth round earlier that day. Most probably think Hopkins spoke a little too soon about wanting the Haye fight. And it's easy to see why. Haye looked terrific in becoming just the second fighter to stop the durable Ruiz. Obviously Haye would be a decisive favorite over the 45-year old Hopkins if they signed to meet. But after the way Haye looked against Ruiz, the risk/reward would be so out of balance in Hopkins' favor, how could he not take the shot? And if you're Haye - a fight with Hopkins has to look like shooting fish in a barrel, and the money would be Fort Knox, especially if the fight were to take place in England, something Hopkins would no doubt be willing to do for the right money. Not to mention he'd relish being the biggest underdog he possibly could be on fight night.
If Haye had been the dud that some including myself thought, it wouldn't have been out of the question for Bernard to have lived with him and possibly scored the upset. But Haye is more formidable than Hopkins thought he was before the night of April 3rd. It's Haye's chin that's going to let him down when he loses, which means that Hopkins won't be the guy to do it. However, Hopkins moving away from Haye is a lot different than Ruiz continually pressing forward into his gun-fire. Bernard would present a smaller target and Haye would most likely head hunt and look to end the fight with one big right hand. And if Hopkins somehow extended the fight beyond the first few rounds, he could mess with David a little bit psychologically. No, that's not an endorsement for Hopkins winning the fight, but if you're being optimistic on his part, it's something to consider. Although the best case for Hopkins is he stinks the place out in losing a one-sided decision.
However, a win by Hopkins at age 45 would have to be considered the biggest win and accomplishment in boxing history. It would jettison his legacy into a new stratosphere and eclipse what Fitzsimmons and Jones did as former middleweights who won the heavyweight title. Even an embarrassing loss by Hopkins to Haye wouldn't tarnish his career accomplishments at all and he'd laugh all the way to the bank.
Hopkins could still probably make the 168 pound super-middleweight limit, and the heavyweights today are bigger than they were a hundred years ago. So why not go for the smallest one holding a legitimate title belt who is much less experienced than either Wladimir or Vitali Klitschko, who are still considered the top of the food chain in the division? Although in fairness to David Haye, he's closed the gap and has to be considered no lower than three in the pecking order of the top heavyweights in the world.
Bernard Hopkins has compiled a remarkable career and record as a fighter and self manager. Other than losing his pro debut, he's avenged the only convincing defeat of his career that he suffered when he was decisioned by Roy Jones in his fourth year as a pro. Since then he's lost three very close decisions after turning 40 years-old to Jermain Taylor twice and Joe Calzaghe. And in reality he's at worst 2-1 in those fights based on what transpired in the ring.
Hopkins held the middleweight title longer and made more defenses of it than any other fighter who's ever owned it. Some of his critics question his opposition at middleweight. However, they conveniently forget that aside from Rodrigo Valdez, the two greatest fighters Carlos Monzon defended the middleweight title against were former all-time welterweight greats Emile Griffith and Jose Napoles when they were on the decline. And Monzon's 1973 rematch with the 36 year old Griffith wasn't his finest hour and many consider the decision to be controversial. Marvin Hagler is another former middleweight great Hopkins is measured against. And as it is the case with Monzon, it's often overlooked that the three best fighters Hagler defended the title against were an overfed all time great lightweight, and two former welterweight greats. Hagler certainly didn't look like a world beater during the 15 rounds he fought Robert Duran. Two years later he erased that memory with a three round demolition of Thomas Hearns - and then lost his title two defenses later to Sugar Ray Leonard who fought once in five years before facing Hagler. At least Hopkins devastated the two top welterweights he fought in Felix Trinidad and Oscar De La Hoya. Not to mention he's never been beat up or cut during a fight. How many boxers can that be said about?
Hopkins also tempted fate and convincingly beat the fighter who shattered Roy Jones' legacy to win the light heavyweight title, Antonio Tarver. But in fairness to Monzon and Hagler, they would've been overwhelming underdogs to Bob Foster and Michael Spinks, who represented the best fighters at 175 during their title tenure. (The same goes for Hopkins.) Again, the point is Hopkins cannot be admonished for Tarver not being on the level of Foster and Spinks. At the same time it also cannot be said with impunity that Monzon or Hagler would've defeated Tarver.
With the exception of Harry Greb and Sugar Ray Robinson, Bernard Hopkins has perhaps the deepest legacy of any other middleweight title holder in history. A win by Hopkins over Haye would have him nipping at the heels of Greb and Robinson. And at the worst his name would have to be mentioned in the same vein as Greb and Robinsons.' I know that's sacrilegious to even say as a joke, but the case in his favor, again, if he beat Haye, would be tough to refute.
If you want to say Mickey Walker, Marcel Cerdan, Tony Zale, Jake LaMotta, Dick Tiger, Charley Burley, Freddie Steele, Gene Fullmer, Carlos Monzon and Marvin Hagler would've have defeated Hopkins if both were at their best, you very well may be right. On the other hand it's nothing close to a reach to envision Hopkins beating every one of them as well. What can't be said is that they were more accomplished middleweights nor does their body of work measure up to Hopkins'. And it cannot be said even as a joke that there's ever been a middleweight who was harder to hit cleanly or took less punishment than Hopkins.
Bernard Hopkins the promoter has mapped out the conclusion of his career perfectly and is playing with house money if he does somehow finagle a fight with David Haye, who like Hopkins is promoted by Golden Boy Promotions.
Frank Lotierzo can be contacted at GlovedFist@Gmail.com
Source: thesweetscience.com
Now that Bernard Hopkins, 51-5-1 (32) has evened the score with his career rival, Roy Jones, there's only one goal left for him to try and accomplish before shutting his career down. And that's adding his name to the list of fighters who have held the middleweight title and then moved up at some point in their career to capture a piece of the heavyweight title. As of this writing only Bob Fitzsimmons
and Roy Jones have succeeded in doing that.
and Roy Jones have succeeded in doing that.Immediately after Hopkins was declared the winner of his rematch with Jones, he said he wanted to be the heavyweight champ and fight WBA title-holder David Haye 24-1 (22), who stopped John Ruiz in the ninth round earlier that day. Most probably think Hopkins spoke a little too soon about wanting the Haye fight. And it's easy to see why. Haye looked terrific in becoming just the second fighter to stop the durable Ruiz. Obviously Haye would be a decisive favorite over the 45-year old Hopkins if they signed to meet. But after the way Haye looked against Ruiz, the risk/reward would be so out of balance in Hopkins' favor, how could he not take the shot? And if you're Haye - a fight with Hopkins has to look like shooting fish in a barrel, and the money would be Fort Knox, especially if the fight were to take place in England, something Hopkins would no doubt be willing to do for the right money. Not to mention he'd relish being the biggest underdog he possibly could be on fight night.If Haye had been the dud that some including myself thought, it wouldn't have been out of the question for Bernard to have lived with him and possibly scored the upset. But Haye is more formidable than Hopkins thought he was before the night of April 3rd. It's Haye's chin that's going to let him down when he loses, which means that Hopkins won't be the guy to do it. However, Hopkins moving away from Haye is a lot different than Ruiz continually pressing forward into his gun-fire. Bernard would present a smaller target and Haye would most likely head hunt and look to end the fight with one big right hand. And if Hopkins somehow extended the fight beyond the first few rounds, he could mess with David a little bit psychologically. No, that's not an endorsement for Hopkins winning the fight, but if you're being optimistic on his part, it's something to consider. Although the best case for Hopkins is he stinks the place out in losing a one-sided decision.
However, a win by Hopkins at age 45 would have to be considered the biggest win and accomplishment in boxing history. It would jettison his legacy into a new stratosphere and eclipse what Fitzsimmons and Jones did as former middleweights who won the heavyweight title. Even an embarrassing loss by Hopkins to Haye wouldn't tarnish his career accomplishments at all and he'd laugh all the way to the bank.
Hopkins could still probably make the 168 pound super-middleweight limit, and the heavyweights today are bigger than they were a hundred years ago. So why not go for the smallest one holding a legitimate title belt who is much less experienced than either Wladimir or Vitali Klitschko, who are still considered the top of the food chain in the division? Although in fairness to David Haye, he's closed the gap and has to be considered no lower than three in the pecking order of the top heavyweights in the world.
Bernard Hopkins has compiled a remarkable career and record as a fighter and self manager. Other than losing his pro debut, he's avenged the only convincing defeat of his career that he suffered when he was decisioned by Roy Jones in his fourth year as a pro. Since then he's lost three very close decisions after turning 40 years-old to Jermain Taylor twice and Joe Calzaghe. And in reality he's at worst 2-1 in those fights based on what transpired in the ring.
Hopkins held the middleweight title longer and made more defenses of it than any other fighter who's ever owned it. Some of his critics question his opposition at middleweight. However, they conveniently forget that aside from Rodrigo Valdez, the two greatest fighters Carlos Monzon defended the middleweight title against were former all-time welterweight greats Emile Griffith and Jose Napoles when they were on the decline. And Monzon's 1973 rematch with the 36 year old Griffith wasn't his finest hour and many consider the decision to be controversial. Marvin Hagler is another former middleweight great Hopkins is measured against. And as it is the case with Monzon, it's often overlooked that the three best fighters Hagler defended the title against were an overfed all time great lightweight, and two former welterweight greats. Hagler certainly didn't look like a world beater during the 15 rounds he fought Robert Duran. Two years later he erased that memory with a three round demolition of Thomas Hearns - and then lost his title two defenses later to Sugar Ray Leonard who fought once in five years before facing Hagler. At least Hopkins devastated the two top welterweights he fought in Felix Trinidad and Oscar De La Hoya. Not to mention he's never been beat up or cut during a fight. How many boxers can that be said about?
Hopkins also tempted fate and convincingly beat the fighter who shattered Roy Jones' legacy to win the light heavyweight title, Antonio Tarver. But in fairness to Monzon and Hagler, they would've been overwhelming underdogs to Bob Foster and Michael Spinks, who represented the best fighters at 175 during their title tenure. (The same goes for Hopkins.) Again, the point is Hopkins cannot be admonished for Tarver not being on the level of Foster and Spinks. At the same time it also cannot be said with impunity that Monzon or Hagler would've defeated Tarver.
With the exception of Harry Greb and Sugar Ray Robinson, Bernard Hopkins has perhaps the deepest legacy of any other middleweight title holder in history. A win by Hopkins over Haye would have him nipping at the heels of Greb and Robinson. And at the worst his name would have to be mentioned in the same vein as Greb and Robinsons.' I know that's sacrilegious to even say as a joke, but the case in his favor, again, if he beat Haye, would be tough to refute.
If you want to say Mickey Walker, Marcel Cerdan, Tony Zale, Jake LaMotta, Dick Tiger, Charley Burley, Freddie Steele, Gene Fullmer, Carlos Monzon and Marvin Hagler would've have defeated Hopkins if both were at their best, you very well may be right. On the other hand it's nothing close to a reach to envision Hopkins beating every one of them as well. What can't be said is that they were more accomplished middleweights nor does their body of work measure up to Hopkins'. And it cannot be said even as a joke that there's ever been a middleweight who was harder to hit cleanly or took less punishment than Hopkins.
Bernard Hopkins the promoter has mapped out the conclusion of his career perfectly and is playing with house money if he does somehow finagle a fight with David Haye, who like Hopkins is promoted by Golden Boy Promotions.
Frank Lotierzo can be contacted at GlovedFist@Gmail.com
Source: thesweetscience.com
Bernard Hopkins explodes: I won't be thrown into boxing grave (part one) -- Examiner
By Michael Marley, Examiner.com
Bernard Hopkins is mad as hell and he said he’s not going to take it anymore.
I just spent a complete hour on the phone with the 45-year-old Hall of Fame fighter from Philadelphia and he made it crystal clear that he will not be rushed off boxing’s big stage despite what he feels are internal (Golden Boy) and external forces working against his continued ring career.
“These motherf***ers want me out,” Hopkins said Thursday afternoon. “They are trying to stop me from working. They all want me out of the way, it’s their agenda against me.
“I will fight the system like I always have. I will fight the system and I love it. They all want to push me out of the way, to throw me in the same (professional) grave that Roy Jones is in now. Are we playing some games here? You know how the game works and so do I.”
Hopkins, who had some blurry moments but still managed to post a wide unanimous decision and avenge a loss from 17 years ago to the 38-year-old Jones Saturday night in Las Vegas, repeatedly remarked on his unhappiness on how Oscar de la Hoya’s promotional company handled his career after a huge upset victory over Kelly “The Ghost” Pavlik.
BHOP, never once to mince words or soft-soap any situation, also threw down the gauntlet to any interested promoter, even despite his VP status at Golden Boy.
“I am the George Foreman of this era because I still have my skills. Sure, I’ve got big name value. But (Evander) Holyfield has that but nothing else, people are concerned about him (his health).
“Put it out there, Mike: I am looking for any and all legitimate offers. I have not been under contract to Golden Boy since before the Pavlik fight. Shane Mosley (fighting Floyd Mayweather on May 1 under the GBP banner) is not under contract to Golden Boy, either.
“So let’s put it on the table right now. I beat the Great White Hope, Pavlik, and Shane beat (Antonio) Margarito, two fights they did not think we would win but we did win them. So, after that great victory, I sat idle for 15 months and Shane sat idle for more than a year also?
“Let’s put it out there: We’re both top fighters, both African Americans and we sat idle after those kinds of victories?
“When I beat Pavlik, that was so great a victory it should’ve given everybody an erection. But nothing happened. You tell me why I sat for so long then...”
Hopkins, who revealed that he fell off his stool in the dressing room while untying his shoelaces after the victory over the diminished Jones, said he was not happy with GBP CEO Richard Schaefer’s postfight remarks on his future.
“What’s the agenda? That’s what I am asking. No one said, ‘Hey, you know Bernard got hurt by an illegal punch, by a rabbit punch to the back of the head, that it made me see spots in the ring, that I saw THREE Roy Jones coming at me.' That was not discussed.
“What he (Schaefer) should have done is to take the podium and say I want to discuss things with Bernard Hopkins’ team which means only me because I am my own team. I can understand Richard’s personal concerns but you don’t talk like that (retirement) without talking to me. You don’t do that because it’s not professional.”
Hopkins said he did not hear such doom and gloom in the wake of Oscar’s beatdown by Manny Pacquiao.
“Manny put the blueprint on retirement for Oscar and I didn’t hear that kind of talk from Richard or anyone else. I see a different agenda when it comes to me and to my career.”
As the conversation -- or, more accurately, the BHOP rant -- continued, I asked him if he was really infuriated at how a cloud was put over his victory.
“Yeah, I am upset because it (retirement) is my decision,” Hopkins said. “You can say that I am pissed because I am pissed. I lost a whole year of my career after beating Pavlik.”
Rumor has it, and tradewinds blowing out of Pensacola indicate, that Jones will pack it in. Should he, I asked his rival?
“I don’t think Roy should fight anymore, I really don’t. But that’s his decision to make.”
As for Hopkins, he’s still breathing fire and ready to fight onward.
Dial 1-800-BHOPWON’TQUIT. Operators are standing by.
(mlcmarley@aol.com)
Source: examiner.com
Bernard Hopkins is mad as hell and he said he’s not going to take it anymore.
I just spent a complete hour on the phone with the 45-year-old Hall of Fame fighter from Philadelphia and he made it crystal clear that he will not be rushed off boxing’s big stage despite what he feels are internal (Golden Boy) and external forces working against his continued ring career.
“These motherf***ers want me out,” Hopkins said Thursday afternoon. “They are trying to stop me from working. They all want me out of the way, it’s their agenda against me.“I will fight the system like I always have. I will fight the system and I love it. They all want to push me out of the way, to throw me in the same (professional) grave that Roy Jones is in now. Are we playing some games here? You know how the game works and so do I.”
Hopkins, who had some blurry moments but still managed to post a wide unanimous decision and avenge a loss from 17 years ago to the 38-year-old Jones Saturday night in Las Vegas, repeatedly remarked on his unhappiness on how Oscar de la Hoya’s promotional company handled his career after a huge upset victory over Kelly “The Ghost” Pavlik.BHOP, never once to mince words or soft-soap any situation, also threw down the gauntlet to any interested promoter, even despite his VP status at Golden Boy.
“I am the George Foreman of this era because I still have my skills. Sure, I’ve got big name value. But (Evander) Holyfield has that but nothing else, people are concerned about him (his health).
“Put it out there, Mike: I am looking for any and all legitimate offers. I have not been under contract to Golden Boy since before the Pavlik fight. Shane Mosley (fighting Floyd Mayweather on May 1 under the GBP banner) is not under contract to Golden Boy, either.
“So let’s put it on the table right now. I beat the Great White Hope, Pavlik, and Shane beat (Antonio) Margarito, two fights they did not think we would win but we did win them. So, after that great victory, I sat idle for 15 months and Shane sat idle for more than a year also?
“Let’s put it out there: We’re both top fighters, both African Americans and we sat idle after those kinds of victories?
“When I beat Pavlik, that was so great a victory it should’ve given everybody an erection. But nothing happened. You tell me why I sat for so long then...”
Hopkins, who revealed that he fell off his stool in the dressing room while untying his shoelaces after the victory over the diminished Jones, said he was not happy with GBP CEO Richard Schaefer’s postfight remarks on his future.
“What’s the agenda? That’s what I am asking. No one said, ‘Hey, you know Bernard got hurt by an illegal punch, by a rabbit punch to the back of the head, that it made me see spots in the ring, that I saw THREE Roy Jones coming at me.' That was not discussed.
“What he (Schaefer) should have done is to take the podium and say I want to discuss things with Bernard Hopkins’ team which means only me because I am my own team. I can understand Richard’s personal concerns but you don’t talk like that (retirement) without talking to me. You don’t do that because it’s not professional.”
Hopkins said he did not hear such doom and gloom in the wake of Oscar’s beatdown by Manny Pacquiao.
“Manny put the blueprint on retirement for Oscar and I didn’t hear that kind of talk from Richard or anyone else. I see a different agenda when it comes to me and to my career.”
As the conversation -- or, more accurately, the BHOP rant -- continued, I asked him if he was really infuriated at how a cloud was put over his victory.
“Yeah, I am upset because it (retirement) is my decision,” Hopkins said. “You can say that I am pissed because I am pissed. I lost a whole year of my career after beating Pavlik.”
Rumor has it, and tradewinds blowing out of Pensacola indicate, that Jones will pack it in. Should he, I asked his rival?
“I don’t think Roy should fight anymore, I really don’t. But that’s his decision to make.”
As for Hopkins, he’s still breathing fire and ready to fight onward.
Dial 1-800-BHOPWON’TQUIT. Operators are standing by.
(mlcmarley@aol.com)
Source: examiner.com
Selasa, 06 April 2010
I take it all back! Hopkins-Jones II was a disgrace -- Eastside Boxing
By Dave Cacciatore, Eastside Boxing
I have tremendous respect for both Roy Jones Jr and Bernard Hopkins, but the performance they gave us this past Saturday night was a disaster but worse than that it was a disgrace. Two men who have benefited so much from the sport of boxing did their best jobs to send fans running in cavalcades to the MMA, basketball games, the home shopping network, or house chores..
The fight lacked many things, most notably punches, something usually thought of as being indispensible in a boxing match. Why I am surprised I am not quite sure. I think I was operating under the delusion that these two great artists of the ring would resemble their former selves, and not pathetic sideshows.
Roy Jones Jr, at one time untouched by the best out there for years. Skilled, lightening fast, thought to be as near to invincible as a fighter has ever been regarded. Roy looked scared walking into the ring. He resembled a blue chip baseball prospect who after being beaned in the head is now afraid to step into the batters box.
The worse sin of all though for Mr. Jones Jr is that he appeared to lack courage. He was more than content to just go the distance without getting hurt. Even with his older slower opponent giving him opportunities and allowing him to stay in the fight he only flashed his punches. Roy never committed to taking chances with explosive bursts that could win rounds and possibly the fight. Roy did not display the heart he showed in the first Tarver when he willed himself to a victory in a similar situation.
While Jones trepidation might have been somewhat excused by his recent history of being knocked out, Hopkins fought more like the “white boys” he despises and less like the leader of the cell block. Hopkins constant crying and whining to referee Tony Weeks was despicable, especially in light of what a dirty fight he fought. Hopkins took every opportunity to foul Jones Jr when he could, then when Roy like every good boxer is taught fouled him back he pouted and acted like the prison punk.
Hopkins histrionics shamed the sport that has given him so much. His feigning that the light punch Roy landed to the side of the back of his head caused so much damage was absurd. If Hopkins was that fragile he would still be on the canvas in Ecuador from when Segundo Mercado dropped him. The most insane part of all of it was that Tony Weeks was either too intimidated or bought it and actually took a point away from Jones the first time he did it. Thereby, giving Bernard the green light to give us encore performances of his Montell Griffin impersonation in the rounds to come. If Tony Weeks really wanted to do his job he would have warned Bernard the first time he pulled that stunt and taken points away if he did it again.
I was wrong about the fight, but I won’t be wrong again about these two declining legends. My biggest regret is that one of my good friends actually shelled out money so that we could watch this joke of a rematch. Hopkins won the fight by a comfortable margin; he is without a doubt a first ballot hall of famer, and one of the greatest middleweights of all time. Roy is a once in a generation fighter whose place in boxing history cannot be questioned. The saddest part of Saturday night is that these two once great ring warriors proved that their greatness is behind them and that what lies ahead is a kind of con/pimp job. Whoring out their names and reputations for a few dollars. By all accounts, neither of these two men needs the money and both have plenty of other business opportunities.
So for the love of the sport that gave you two both so much just let it go guys! Roy’s legacy is already tarnished by his ring performances in the later years and Hopkins with his professional wrestling type antics is on the same road. Bernard achieved his revenge against the man who defeated him 17 years earlier in name only. It was painfully evident that the Roy Jones Jr of the 1990s left the arena a long time ago. Please Bernard dispel any notions you might have of a rubber match, or a challenge for Haye’s paper title. There is nothing left to prove.
Source: eastsideboxing.com
I have tremendous respect for both Roy Jones Jr and Bernard Hopkins, but the performance they gave us this past Saturday night was a disaster but worse than that it was a disgrace. Two men who have benefited so much from the sport of boxing did their best jobs to send fans running in cavalcades to the MMA, basketball games, the home shopping network, or house chores..
The fight lacked many things, most notably punches, something usually thought of as being indispensible in a boxing match. Why I am surprised I am not quite sure. I think I was operating under the delusion that these two great artists of the ring would resemble their former selves, and not pathetic sideshows.
Roy Jones Jr, at one time untouched by the best out there for years. Skilled, lightening fast, thought to be as near to invincible as a fighter has ever been regarded. Roy looked scared walking into the ring. He resembled a blue chip baseball prospect who after being beaned in the head is now afraid to step into the batters box. The worse sin of all though for Mr. Jones Jr is that he appeared to lack courage. He was more than content to just go the distance without getting hurt. Even with his older slower opponent giving him opportunities and allowing him to stay in the fight he only flashed his punches. Roy never committed to taking chances with explosive bursts that could win rounds and possibly the fight. Roy did not display the heart he showed in the first Tarver when he willed himself to a victory in a similar situation. While Jones trepidation might have been somewhat excused by his recent history of being knocked out, Hopkins fought more like the “white boys” he despises and less like the leader of the cell block. Hopkins constant crying and whining to referee Tony Weeks was despicable, especially in light of what a dirty fight he fought. Hopkins took every opportunity to foul Jones Jr when he could, then when Roy like every good boxer is taught fouled him back he pouted and acted like the prison punk.
Hopkins histrionics shamed the sport that has given him so much. His feigning that the light punch Roy landed to the side of the back of his head caused so much damage was absurd. If Hopkins was that fragile he would still be on the canvas in Ecuador from when Segundo Mercado dropped him. The most insane part of all of it was that Tony Weeks was either too intimidated or bought it and actually took a point away from Jones the first time he did it. Thereby, giving Bernard the green light to give us encore performances of his Montell Griffin impersonation in the rounds to come. If Tony Weeks really wanted to do his job he would have warned Bernard the first time he pulled that stunt and taken points away if he did it again.
I was wrong about the fight, but I won’t be wrong again about these two declining legends. My biggest regret is that one of my good friends actually shelled out money so that we could watch this joke of a rematch. Hopkins won the fight by a comfortable margin; he is without a doubt a first ballot hall of famer, and one of the greatest middleweights of all time. Roy is a once in a generation fighter whose place in boxing history cannot be questioned. The saddest part of Saturday night is that these two once great ring warriors proved that their greatness is behind them and that what lies ahead is a kind of con/pimp job. Whoring out their names and reputations for a few dollars. By all accounts, neither of these two men needs the money and both have plenty of other business opportunities.
So for the love of the sport that gave you two both so much just let it go guys! Roy’s legacy is already tarnished by his ring performances in the later years and Hopkins with his professional wrestling type antics is on the same road. Bernard achieved his revenge against the man who defeated him 17 years earlier in name only. It was painfully evident that the Roy Jones Jr of the 1990s left the arena a long time ago. Please Bernard dispel any notions you might have of a rubber match, or a challenge for Haye’s paper title. There is nothing left to prove.
Source: eastsideboxing.com
Senin, 05 April 2010
David Haye Looks Ahead - Wants The Klitschkos, Could Face Valuev Again, Not Interested In Hopkins -- Eastside Boxing
By James Slater, Eastside Boxing
Fresh off his exciting and impressive 9th-round stoppage victory over the gutsy John Ruiz, WBA heavyweight champion David Haye has been talking about his plans and hopes for the future. Appearing on BBC TV's Breakfast show, Haye, sporting a blackened left eye that needed "a few stitches," beamed as he spoke about fighting the Klitschkos as soon as he can.
The 29-year-old with the 24-1(22) record also made it clear how he intends to stick with his plan of retiring from the sport before he turns 31..
"I want to retire before I'm 31," Haye told the BBC. "Four [more] fights would be ambitious and I need to get cracking so the sooner we can get these fights [with the Klitschkos] sorted the better. It's very difficult to hold all the belts at the same time, but it can be done. I think I'm the best, but so do they [the Klitschkos].
"It could possibly be [Nikolai] Valuev again next, but I think it will be one of the Klitschkos by the end of the year. I want the fights that the fans want to see. We're going to start sitting around the table. They've [Wladimir and Vitali] both got fights coming up, so once they've got their obligations out of the way we'll sit down and thrash it out."
However, one other fighter who has been calling out Haye, in Bernard Hopkins, does not look like getting his chance to win the WBA heavyweight belt. The amazing 45-year-old again made it clear he wants Haye when being interviewed after his ugly points win over Roy Jones Junior, but "The Hayemaker" told BBC he is not interested.
"I think he just wants a big payday, to fight for the heavyweight championship of the world he can demand big money," Haye said of Hopkins. "Bernard Hopkins is one of my idols, but now he's 45-years-of-age, he fought another 40-year-old on the same night as me and it was a dire fight for everybody in attendance."
The long awaited Hopkins-Jones II sure was a fight that was anything but great, and a number of people felt whilst watching it that Hopkins, who has fought off Father Time for so long, showed his age at last.
As brave as he is, as clever a fighter as he is and as much as he still thrives on a challenge, we don't want to see Hopkins embarrassed by a heavyweight titlist who is at his very peak. What we do want is for Haye to get it on with the Klitschkos. However, there could be some tough negotiating ahead for that to happen.
Source: eastsideboxing.com
Fresh off his exciting and impressive 9th-round stoppage victory over the gutsy John Ruiz, WBA heavyweight champion David Haye has been talking about his plans and hopes for the future. Appearing on BBC TV's Breakfast show, Haye, sporting a blackened left eye that needed "a few stitches," beamed as he spoke about fighting the Klitschkos as soon as he can.
The 29-year-old with the 24-1(22) record also made it clear how he intends to stick with his plan of retiring from the sport before he turns 31..
"I want to retire before I'm 31," Haye told the BBC. "Four [more] fights would be ambitious and I need to get cracking so the sooner we can get these fights [with the Klitschkos] sorted the better. It's very difficult to hold all the belts at the same time, but it can be done. I think I'm the best, but so do they [the Klitschkos].
"It could possibly be [Nikolai] Valuev again next, but I think it will be one of the Klitschkos by the end of the year. I want the fights that the fans want to see. We're going to start sitting around the table. They've [Wladimir and Vitali] both got fights coming up, so once they've got their obligations out of the way we'll sit down and thrash it out."There is no doubt the two Klitschkos want to fight Haye, and the fans do want to see these match-ups also. Hopefully, this time a deal can be made that leaves both sides happy and a Haye-Klitschko fight will actually go ahead. Haye promises that when he and either brother do get in the ring it will be an "amazing fight," and most fans do not doubt this. Nobody will be happy with what Haye said with regards to a Valuev rematch, but there is that rematch clause the Russian giant has.
However, one other fighter who has been calling out Haye, in Bernard Hopkins, does not look like getting his chance to win the WBA heavyweight belt. The amazing 45-year-old again made it clear he wants Haye when being interviewed after his ugly points win over Roy Jones Junior, but "The Hayemaker" told BBC he is not interested.
"I think he just wants a big payday, to fight for the heavyweight championship of the world he can demand big money," Haye said of Hopkins. "Bernard Hopkins is one of my idols, but now he's 45-years-of-age, he fought another 40-year-old on the same night as me and it was a dire fight for everybody in attendance."
The long awaited Hopkins-Jones II sure was a fight that was anything but great, and a number of people felt whilst watching it that Hopkins, who has fought off Father Time for so long, showed his age at last.
As brave as he is, as clever a fighter as he is and as much as he still thrives on a challenge, we don't want to see Hopkins embarrassed by a heavyweight titlist who is at his very peak. What we do want is for Haye to get it on with the Klitschkos. However, there could be some tough negotiating ahead for that to happen.
Source: eastsideboxing.com
David Haye is The Man and the Klitschkos have nowhere else to go -- The Guardian
By Kevin Mitchell, Guardian.co.uk
If Valuev takes step-aside money (as Ruiz did so Haye could fight Valuev last November), Booth then has to convince Wladimir to come to Wembley in the autumn to put his WBO and IBF titles on the line with Haye's belt.
This is going to be tricky. Klitschko knows that if he loses, Haye would then have three belts to use as negotiating chips in talks with his brother, Vitali, who owns the WBC version. That fight, outdoors somewhere in Europe, would be as big as it gets. Even American television would be on board, mainly because they have nothing credible to offer fans there in the heavyweight division.
People here still worry about American TV. I'm not sure why. Sure, it's great for fighters to go to Las Vegas for the buzz and the extra money. But this is where the clout is now, especially in the sport's premier division. And the man who is creating more buzz than any other big man in the world is Haye.
WHAT A PERFORMANCE
Haye was terrific on Saturday night. Not perfect, but electrifying.
He is creating the sort of excitement Nigel Benn did, a charismatic big hitter with a slightly unreliable chin who loves to entertain.
What more could fight fans in this country ask for: a British world heavyweight champion who throws bombs and only just gets out of the way of the return traffic – but not always.
As Booth said afterwards, "I'm always unhappy with him when he gets hit. We knew that was down to lack of sparring. The only way to work on your defence is to have people punching at you. So we just worked on his punch conditioning, so he could work hard for 12 rounds. This will make him a better fighter, because he had to come through some rough times."
Haye got cut in sparring four-and-a-half weeks before the fight, yet was still confident enough in his own talent to go through with the Ruiz fight. It's that sort of arrogance champions are made of.
Haye looks increasingly comfortable in that role. He knows he is The Man. He knows the Klitschkos have nowhere else to go.
To get these fights for Haye, Booth will have to work on the Klitschkos' sense of honour, because they are both proud men. He could do worse than quote them an old Russian saying that is familiar to these sons of a former Soviet air force colonel: "It is a bad soldier who does not dream to be a general."
The Klitschkos are good soldiers. Some of their recent opponents, though, have been no more than cardboard targets on a firing range.
HOW GOOD IS GEORGE GROVES?
On a quality undercard, the most impressive fighter of the night after Haye was the new Commonwealth super-middleweight champion George Groves.
He looked sensational in stopping the tough old champion Charles Adamu – and in just his eighth fight. Groves still hasn't been past eight rounds.
What was impressive was the 22-year-old puncher's confidence. He showed no nerves at all as he threw wicked right hands behind a demoralising jab and moved around the ring as if it were his own living room, a fighter comfortable in his environment.
That right hand looked a lot like Haye's and it is clear the heavyweight champion is having a good influence on a new champion who can claim to be the best young fighter in the country.
POOR OLD AMERICA
It is not nice to see the business struggling across the pond – especially with farcical contests such as Bernard Hopkins's apparently ugly 12-round win over Roy Jones Jnr on Saturday night.
I didn't watch it and don't want to. But reports suggest it was an ill-tempered affair between two old dogs scrapping over a bone nobody cares about. And they put it on pay-per-view! I can't wait to see the numbers.
This Saturday the farce continues when Evander Holyfield fights Frans Botha. That's the same Botha Lennox Lewis beat in London 10 years ago, the same Holyfield who lost to Lewis in 1999... and to John Ruiz in 2001.
It doesn't get much sadder.
STAT OF THE WEEK, MONTH, YEAR
Philadelphia, once the blue-collar home of the American fight game, now has more MMA (Mixed Martial Arts) fights than boxing matches.
QUOTE OF THE WEEK, MONTH, YEAR
Lou DiBella on the state of the game: "MMA didn't take boxing and put it in the shape that it's in, we did! Sometimes I'm the first to mention MMA to other promoters and they say, 'Shut your mouth,' and they are right. We have to worry about our own sport. We have to make sure we are providing compelling entertainment. In our sport, we shove shit down people's throats, and they are supposed to be interested in it?"
Source: guardian.co.uk
We must all now hope that Adam Booth is as good a negotiator as he is a ring strategist. It would be a missed opportunity almost as criminal as the aborted Pacquiao-Mayweather 
fiasco if David Haye's next fight is not against Wladimir Klitschko.
fiasco if David Haye's next fight is not against Wladimir Klitschko.Haye's trainer and manager again got the tactics right against poor John Ruiz in Manchester on Saturday night, as the WBA champion stayed at range to turn the American challenger's face into putty.
Booth will need similar resolve when he sits down with his promotional partners Sauerland Event and Golden Boy Promotions to get Haye out of his mandated rematch with Nikolai Valuev so he can get his hands on Klitschko. That might be the easy part.
If Valuev takes step-aside money (as Ruiz did so Haye could fight Valuev last November), Booth then has to convince Wladimir to come to Wembley in the autumn to put his WBO and IBF titles on the line with Haye's belt.People here still worry about American TV. I'm not sure why. Sure, it's great for fighters to go to Las Vegas for the buzz and the extra money. But this is where the clout is now, especially in the sport's premier division. And the man who is creating more buzz than any other big man in the world is Haye.
WHAT A PERFORMANCE
Haye was terrific on Saturday night. Not perfect, but electrifying.
He is creating the sort of excitement Nigel Benn did, a charismatic big hitter with a slightly unreliable chin who loves to entertain.
What more could fight fans in this country ask for: a British world heavyweight champion who throws bombs and only just gets out of the way of the return traffic – but not always.
As Booth said afterwards, "I'm always unhappy with him when he gets hit. We knew that was down to lack of sparring. The only way to work on your defence is to have people punching at you. So we just worked on his punch conditioning, so he could work hard for 12 rounds. This will make him a better fighter, because he had to come through some rough times."
Haye got cut in sparring four-and-a-half weeks before the fight, yet was still confident enough in his own talent to go through with the Ruiz fight. It's that sort of arrogance champions are made of.
Haye looks increasingly comfortable in that role. He knows he is The Man. He knows the Klitschkos have nowhere else to go.
To get these fights for Haye, Booth will have to work on the Klitschkos' sense of honour, because they are both proud men. He could do worse than quote them an old Russian saying that is familiar to these sons of a former Soviet air force colonel: "It is a bad soldier who does not dream to be a general."
The Klitschkos are good soldiers. Some of their recent opponents, though, have been no more than cardboard targets on a firing range.
HOW GOOD IS GEORGE GROVES?
On a quality undercard, the most impressive fighter of the night after Haye was the new Commonwealth super-middleweight champion George Groves.
He looked sensational in stopping the tough old champion Charles Adamu – and in just his eighth fight. Groves still hasn't been past eight rounds.
What was impressive was the 22-year-old puncher's confidence. He showed no nerves at all as he threw wicked right hands behind a demoralising jab and moved around the ring as if it were his own living room, a fighter comfortable in his environment.
That right hand looked a lot like Haye's and it is clear the heavyweight champion is having a good influence on a new champion who can claim to be the best young fighter in the country.
POOR OLD AMERICA
It is not nice to see the business struggling across the pond – especially with farcical contests such as Bernard Hopkins's apparently ugly 12-round win over Roy Jones Jnr on Saturday night.
I didn't watch it and don't want to. But reports suggest it was an ill-tempered affair between two old dogs scrapping over a bone nobody cares about. And they put it on pay-per-view! I can't wait to see the numbers.
This Saturday the farce continues when Evander Holyfield fights Frans Botha. That's the same Botha Lennox Lewis beat in London 10 years ago, the same Holyfield who lost to Lewis in 1999... and to John Ruiz in 2001.
It doesn't get much sadder.
STAT OF THE WEEK, MONTH, YEAR
Philadelphia, once the blue-collar home of the American fight game, now has more MMA (Mixed Martial Arts) fights than boxing matches.
QUOTE OF THE WEEK, MONTH, YEAR
Lou DiBella on the state of the game: "MMA didn't take boxing and put it in the shape that it's in, we did! Sometimes I'm the first to mention MMA to other promoters and they say, 'Shut your mouth,' and they are right. We have to worry about our own sport. We have to make sure we are providing compelling entertainment. In our sport, we shove shit down people's throats, and they are supposed to be interested in it?"
Source: guardian.co.uk
David Haye rules out Bernand Hopkins fight offer -- BBC Sport
BBC Sport
Britain's WBA heavyweight champion David Haye has dismissed the prospect of facing American Bernard Hopkins.
Hopkins avenged a 17-year-old defeat by Roy Jones Jr on Saturday - and promptly declared he wanted to face Haye.
"People will think the punch in the back of my head made me a little crazy, but I want Haye," said Hopkins, 45
But Haye, 29, told BBC Radio 5 live: "I think he just wants a big pay day, to fight for the heavyweight championship of the world he can demand big money."
The Londoner, who defeated American John Ruiz in Manchester on Saturday added: "Bernard Hopkins is one of my idols. Looking back at his fights over the last 20, 25 years, he's always been a great fighter.
"But now he's 45 years of age, he fought another 40-year-old on the same night as me and it was a dire fight for everybody there in attendance."
Ex-middleweight champion Hopkins beat Jones, 41, by unanimous decision in an ill-tempered Las Vegas bout.
The non-title fight erupted into life in the sixth round after Hopkins took a blow to the back of the head.
When the pair met in 1993 Jones beat Hopkins on points and the cagey start to the belated rematch suggested the full 12 rounds would be needed once more.
Indeed, the action was in stark contrast to the display put on just hours earlier in Manchester as Haye dropped Ruiz twice in the first round and twice more later on to stop the durable American for only the second time in 55 fights.
However, as the Las Vegas contest reached its mid-point, the contest finally sparked into life as Jones spun out of a clinch and landed a short punch to the back of Hopkins' head.
Hopkins dropped to his knees for several minutes but when the round resumed, he attacked Jones with a furious flurry and the two men continued to exchange punches as the bell rang, with security guards having to restore order.
Hopkins went down on two other occasions, albeit from another rabbit punch and a low blow, while an accidental head butt in the 11th round opened a gash on Jones' left eyelid.
"It was kind of rough," said Hopkins, who improved his record to 51 wins, five defeats and one draw. "Roy's a veteran. He was tying me up. I was tying him up. It was a good fight."
Former super-middleweight, light-heavyweight and heavyweight title holder Jones, whose record slipped to 54 wins and seven defeats with his sixth loss in 11 fights, admitted he may now choose to call time on a glorious career.
"I'll go back and talk to my coaches and my dad and if we think I still have it, we'll keep going, and if not, we'll call it a day," he said.
Source: news.bbc.co.uk
Britain's WBA heavyweight champion David Haye has dismissed the prospect of facing American Bernard Hopkins.
Hopkins avenged a 17-year-old defeat by Roy Jones Jr on Saturday - and promptly declared he wanted to face Haye.
"People will think the punch in the back of my head made me a little crazy, but I want Haye," said Hopkins, 45
But Haye, 29, told BBC Radio 5 live: "I think he just wants a big pay day, to fight for the heavyweight championship of the world he can demand big money."
The Londoner, who defeated American John Ruiz in Manchester on Saturday added: "Bernard Hopkins is one of my idols. Looking back at his fights over the last 20, 25 years, he's always been a great fighter.
"But now he's 45 years of age, he fought another 40-year-old on the same night as me and it was a dire fight for everybody there in attendance." Ex-middleweight champion Hopkins beat Jones, 41, by unanimous decision in an ill-tempered Las Vegas bout.
The non-title fight erupted into life in the sixth round after Hopkins took a blow to the back of the head.
When the pair met in 1993 Jones beat Hopkins on points and the cagey start to the belated rematch suggested the full 12 rounds would be needed once more.
Indeed, the action was in stark contrast to the display put on just hours earlier in Manchester as Haye dropped Ruiz twice in the first round and twice more later on to stop the durable American for only the second time in 55 fights.
However, as the Las Vegas contest reached its mid-point, the contest finally sparked into life as Jones spun out of a clinch and landed a short punch to the back of Hopkins' head.
Hopkins dropped to his knees for several minutes but when the round resumed, he attacked Jones with a furious flurry and the two men continued to exchange punches as the bell rang, with security guards having to restore order.
Hopkins went down on two other occasions, albeit from another rabbit punch and a low blow, while an accidental head butt in the 11th round opened a gash on Jones' left eyelid.
"It was kind of rough," said Hopkins, who improved his record to 51 wins, five defeats and one draw. "Roy's a veteran. He was tying me up. I was tying him up. It was a good fight."
Former super-middleweight, light-heavyweight and heavyweight title holder Jones, whose record slipped to 54 wins and seven defeats with his sixth loss in 11 fights, admitted he may now choose to call time on a glorious career.
"I'll go back and talk to my coaches and my dad and if we think I still have it, we'll keep going, and if not, we'll call it a day," he said.
Source: news.bbc.co.uk
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