'They call Him Joe': Win Over Hopkins Puts Calzaghe At Center Stage

Observation on Calzaghe-Hopkins

By Anthony Coleman: First of all lets get something out of the way: yes Saturday night’s Light Heavyweight title fight between Joe Calzaghe and Bernard Hopkins was boring and ugly. It featured the script of a typical Hopkins fight: grappling, clinching and fouling. Secondly, the fight was still of extreme importance. We had two of the best fighters of the last fifteen years facing one another while they were still pound for pound level guys and not semi-washed up geezers. Despite the low quality of the action the fight actually meant something to the legacies of both men and the business of Boxing. Now it is the time to reflect and really consider what we have learned from Saturday night’s encounter.

For Joe Calzaghe this victory continues the roll he has been on since destroying Jeff Lacy in their Super Middleweight unification match two years ago, and he can now make a legitimate case for being the pound-for-pound best fighter in the sport.. However, unlike the aforementioned Lacy annihilation and his win over Mikkel Kessler, Calzaghe was not impressive. Besides getting dumped on his pants in the first round courtesy of a perfect Hopkins right hand, there were obvious holes in his game. Calzaghe’s punching technique was way off. While he has always been known as a slapper, on Saturday night, his punches lacked any semblance of snap. The man only landed soft powerless combinations (which is infuriating because he has very good punching power when he throws his weight behind his punches). Plus at times he was open to counters because his punches were wide. A lot of Calzaghe’s sloppy technique can be attributes to his opponent, but some of the deficiencies we saw could have been avoided.

Yet Calzaghe was able to soldier on and land enough of his punches, to earn the victory, and bank more points in his pound-for-pound ratings. By beating an all-time great for the Light Heavyweight title, and winning undisputed recognition as the Super Middleweight champion with his win over Kessler last year you can make a strong case for him being the Number 1 fighter p4p. Also there are more big money paydays to look forward to. There is a talked about showdown between he and Roy Jones Jr., but he could also fight Middleweight champion Kelly Pavlik, rematch with Kessler, square-off with Chad Dawson (who I think will not be so avoided anymore after reviling how bad his chin was in his controversial win against Johnson) or face off with Glen Johnson (and I would love to see that fight). The doors are opened for Joe to make some serious cash before he rides off into the sunset of his tremendous career.

While the sky is still blue for Calzaghe, the same cannot be said for Bernard Hopkins. He was able to make the fight close for three reasons. The first being that knockdown, the second was his John Ruiz-esque grappling, and the third is the fact that to the day he dies he will always be one of the best defensive fighters in the sport. Even though Calzaghe landed the most punches on the modern day “Old Master” than any fighter before him, the man still had a hard time landing and if he did he rarely landed cleanly. This performance proves again that,whether you like him or not (and lets be real many simply do not like him), Bernard Hopkins is an effin’ Boxing God.

However, besides those weapons, the rest of his performance left a lot to be desired and the now former Light Heavyweight champ and one of the greatest Middleweights in history has a lot to be concerned about. The most obvious thing that we should note was his total and utter lack of handspeed. All night long Hopkins was in position to land his lead right hand counter, but he had trouble landing it. Make no mistake; Calzaghe exhibited holes in his defense that, even as late as the Taylor fights or the Tarver fight Hopkins would have capitalized on with his right hand and except in the first round it wasn’t a huge factor because his hands couldn’t get there fast enough to Calzaghe’s face. You could see him thinking about it, but his body wouldn’t allow him to do what he commanded it to.

Plus Hopkins couldn’t sustain an offensive attack. He is no longer capable of landing that right hand and left hook to the body or head in combination. He offensive attack Saturday night was to hit a single counter shot then force a clinch.

Hopkins also couldn’t stick to his game plan. His main objective was to keep the fight at center ring and to maul and land his punches on Calzaghe. You’ll also notice that Hopkins was spending most of the fight on the ropes; and it wasn’t because he decided suddenly to change his strategy. His legs wouldn’t allow him to stand at center ring with an opponent of Calzaghe’s caliber.

But perhaps the most alarming sign was the fact that Hopkins, a man known for his superhuman conditioning, was visibly fatigued. By the 9th round his stamina was clearly fading as he was obviously breathing from his mouth for air. When was the last time you saw a Bernard Hopkins fight when his opponent had more energy than he had when the 12th round began? Hopkins’ energy shortage was shocking to me.

Even at his diminished physical state Hopkins would probably be good enough to defeat contenders in the Light Heavyweight division. But judging from his performance on Saturday night, he simply doesn’t have the speed, reflexes, or even the stamina to defeat Boxing’s elite fighters. Based on an admirable effort and his fantastic body of work, B-Hop will still be in my personal pound-for-pound list. However, it might be time for him to retire.

While this fight may have bordered on suckiness, it actually had repercussions on the sport. We saw a great fighter add another badge on his trip to Canastota, and we may have seen the curtain call on the career of one of the greats. In the next couple of months we will see the ripple effects of this fight.

Calzaghe/Hopkins – Thoughts on the aftermath

By Jim Dorney, photo by HoganPhotos.com/GBP: Having watched the fight a few times now & read the varying reports, I’m struck by a number of things about this fight:

Hopkins is most certainly NOT past it – He fought a strategically great fight, but was still ultimately beaten by a fighter able to adapt more in the ring on the fly – A rare thing indeed.

Calzaghe WAS made to look average – Hopkins had bragged that he would do this, and he was right. What he couldn’t do, however was win the fight. In losing he made Calzaghe put in what was apparently the least inspired performance of his career in terms of ring artistry, but perhaps most impressive in terms of ring smarts & strategy.

Hopkins certainly WAS the man to beat at 175lbs – Having watched both Dawson vs. Johnson & Woods vs. Tarver, I’d wager Hopkins would have beaten the lot of them

Either Calzaghe didn’t sit down on his punches or he doesn’t have as much power at 175lbs as he did at 168lbs – I suspect a bit of both might be true, as Hopkins was dipping his head so if Calzaghe did throw full force then he risked damaging his famously frail left. That said, at no point did any of the shots that Calzaghe landed appear to both Hopkins

The American fans surprised me with their humility – With it doubtless being a close fight, I was expecting more outrage from American fans unwilling to accept that an American fighter had lost a close decision – The reaction has been moreso that they’ve accepted that Calzaghe won on the whole

I’ll make no bones that I’m a big Calzaghe fan. I always have been. That said, I have to admit that in Hopkins he certainly had as much as he could handle. It was the first time I’ve feared that he would get beaten, especially after the first round, and even after coming on strong later on in the fight, I was still concerned that Calzaghe would have the decision go against him, given he was on foreign soil with all-American judges – Credit to the judges for recognising that even though Hopkins succeeded in taking away Calzaghe’s rhythm, he still got hit more by Calzaghe than by any other fighter in his entire career.

Calzaghe showed humilty in victory, acknowledging Hopkins’ great strategy & execution (pardon the pun on the alias) thereof, and it was a shame to see that Hopkins refused to show any in return. For me, he had the opportunity of winning many more new fans by showing more respect.

I noted with interest that Joe Cortez once again came in for some maligning. Some of you may recall an article I wrote after the Hatton-Mayweather fight where I criticised the way Cortez handled the bout. This time I actually felt Cortez was more balanced. I still feel he ultimately allowed Hopkins to fight his kind of fight, and should have warned Hopkins for his constant holding (particularly in light of how he gave Hatton a number of telling-offs for holding vs. Mayweather wheb the blane was not his), but I can’t fault him in not taking points from Calzaghe for occasional low blows (a warning was appropriate, and was given) and in not allowing Hopkins undue time to recover after his oscar-winning attempt at claiming he was struck low when he wasn’t even hit later on in the fight. In short, I feel most benefit Hopkins got from the referee was by his craftiness & not by Cortez’s design.

In terms of what Calzaghe does now, I await his decision with interest. Moreso after this fight, I feel he has confirmed he has nothing left to prove. It’s expected that he’ll fight Roy Jones then retire. If he does, he’ll almost certainly retire undefeated. Jones CANNOT beat Calzaghe at this stage of his career – I’d be doubtful that he ever could, but his best chance would have been around 10 years hence.

Tarver has also challenged Calzaghe, which I think would make a better fight, but I still see the Welshman coming out on top.

What WOULD maybe be interesting would be if Hopkins could get a rematch with Tarver now Tarver has the belts – I’d certainly fancy Hopkins in that one…

In conclusion – well done, Joe Calzaghe – Finally your critics have apparently been silenced this time – Hopefully for good!

Hopkins Claims Throw Back Win - 2 of 3 Judges Disagree

- By Paul Strauss: In the first round, it looked like Bernard Hopkins, the crafty old veteran, was once more going to prove his critics wrong, and pull off an upset. His plan was to first win the psychological warfare, and then out think and out tough Joe Calzaghe. Hopkins wanted to make Calzaghe mad, and thereby upset his game plan. Calzaghe's game plan was to use his greater speed to overwhelm and constantly pressure Hopkins. He understood it was going to be one of his toughest fights, and when Hopkins dropped him with a short right counter in the first round, that thought quickly became a reality.

Hopkins was able to land the blow by giving the impression he was bending in to clinch, but instead he fired the short right. Calzaghe didn't see it coming, and it dropped him straight back on the seat of his pants. When he got up, he seemed more embarrassed than hurt, but the punch definitely stung him, and left him with a minor abrasion on the bridge of his nose, and maybe a trickle or two of blood.

Much of the first and second rounds had Hopkins continuing with his side to side movement and occasionally jumping in with a right hand, followed by his head. Then he would clinch, getting a tight grip on Calzaghe's right arm, keeping his own right free to beat on Calzaghe's left side and the back of his head. Calzaghe tried to return the favor with his own rabbit punches.

In the final seconds of the third round, Calzaghe seemed to get a little bit of rhythm going. Then he landed an accidental low blow, which was caused when Hopkins pulled Joe’s head down. It wasn't much of a blow, and I swear Hopkins "winked" at referee Joe Cortez, when asked if he was alright. In between rounds, Trainer Freddie Roach cautioned Hopkins that throwing one punch at a time wasn't going to win the fight. He advised, "This guy is a sucker for a right hand, so throw the right and follow it with a left hook, okay?" Hopkins' deadpan expression remained intact, so it's hard to make out whether he actually heard the advice, or if he did, did he agree?

Regardless, his pattern didn't change. It appeared that Calzaghe was pulling away slightly on points by the seventh round, but Freddie Roach told Hopkins, "This guy is ready to go. You're stronger, and you need to walk this guy down.". Maybe Freddie was a bit confused, because at the end of the previous round, referee Joe Cortez pulled so hard on the two fighters after the bell that he caused Joe to fall.

At this point in the fight, it appeared Joe Cortez and Enzio Calzaghe might be tiring more than either fighter. Cortez was getting quite a work out, when after what seemed to be every few seconds, he would yell "break" and jump in between the two combatants. Several times, he pleaded with the fighters to keep it clean, because he didn't want to take away points. Enzio was yelling himself hoarse, trying to get his son to step up the pressure, and to keep his punches inside of Hopkins gloves. He must have dehydrated himself, because in between curses, he took a hit from the water bottle!

In the tenth round, Calzaghe started a left, but Hopkins used his own left to pull Calzaghe's head down. As a result, the blow strayed low, but before making contact with the palm side of the glove, it hit Hopkins' right glove. Hence, it didn't appear to be a hard blow. But, Hopkins wasn't going to let the opportunity slip by, so he did his best imitation of a method actor, resting up for much of the allotted five minute penalty time. It seemed to temporarily rejuvenate him, and he appeared stronger for the remainder of the round.

Enzo Calzaghe continued berating his son to do more. He gave his son the impression he was behind in the fight, and needed a knock out. In the other corner, Freddie Roach and team were giving Hopkins the impression he was ahead in the fight. Regardless, the same pattern continued, which was pressure by Calzaghe and an occasional counter by Hopkins.

In the twelfth round, Calzaghe continued with pressure, and it was obvious Hopkins was tired, but still dangerous. At one point Hopkins grabbed on to Calzaghe's right arm, and when Cortez ordered them to break, Hopkins maintained his grip, and forced Calzaghe to keep moving away from Cortez, so he couldn't step between them to force a break.

After the fight, both fighters tried to garner agreement from the crowd that they had won the fight. It seemed as though Calzaghe was their choice. Michael Buffer announced the official scores: 114-113 for Hopkins, and 115-112 & 116-111 for Calzaghe. Calzaghe remains unbeaten, and Hopkins’ options dwindled considerably.

Calzaghe was a gracious winner, praising Hopkins' abilities, and agreeing with post fight interviewer Max Kellerman that this had been one of his toughest fights. He said, "It wasn't pretty, but a win is a win." When Kellerman ask him about the first round knockdown, Calzaghe jokingly said he slipped, but then quickly admitted he got caught. He added that he was stung, but not in any real danger, and that that was the only time Hopkins hurt him. Kellerman asked, "What's next for you? Will it be Pavlik or Roy Jones, Jr. Calzaghe said that he seemed to be a legend destroyer, so maybe it will be Jones.

When Kellerman switched to Hopkins, Hopkins claimed he had taken Calzaghe to school, and that his performance was a throw back to the old days. He said, "I busted him up. Look at me, I am not marked up." Kellerman pointed out the punch totals, which heavily favored Calzaghe, adding Calzaghe set a record for number of punches landed against Hopkins. Hopkins remained unfazed, repeating that he thought he won the fight, because he set the pace. Kellerman countered, explaining it appeared Calzaghe was the aggressor for much of the fight.

What's in store for Hopkins now? He certainly remains a good fighter, and one who is capable of giving just about anyone in the super middle and light heavy weight classes trouble, but is just making a creditable showing all that important at this point in his life?. Maybe it's time to hang them up for good this time Bernard.

Calzaghe Beats Bernard Hopkins

By Frank Gonzalez Jr. Undisputed Super Middleweight (WBA/WBC/WBO) Champion, Joe Calzaghe (44-0, 32 KO’s) made his debut fight in the USA, as a Light Heavyweight Saturday night at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas, against America’s legendary, former undisputed Middleweight Champion and current (IBO/NBA, no, not basketball) Light Heavyweight Champion, Bernard “The Executioner” Hopkins (48-4-1, 32 KO’s).

The lead up to this fight there was a lot of emphasis on Hopkins’ age and his workouts with his conditioning coach as well as Calzaghe’s methods of training with his father, a jazz musician turned boxing trainer. And of course, there were some typical mud slinging, mostly by Hopkins. Calzaghe kept to his usual polite demeanor, even after Hopkins’ told him that he’d, “never let a white boy beat him.” Calzaghe just responded saying, “If you fight me, you will lose.”

The ring answers all questions, with no regard for all the hype, pre fight talk, pound for pound rankings and even the official Judges’ Score Cards at the end. Fortunately, the winner of this fight got the W at the end of the day.

At 36 years old, Calzaghe is no spring chicken but he hasn’t shown any signs of aging or slowing down and has won all of his fights so far. At 43, Hopkins may be “old” but he remains in excellent shape and is possibly the craftiest fighter I’ve ever seen. His ability to win the psychological battle and foul opponents opposite the ref’s view is an art form worthy of recognition. His fights can be boring but he is tenacious in finding ways to win.

As they made their way to the ring, thoughts of how open Calzaghe’s style leaves him to the straight right hand, and how Hopkins knows how to deliver one, danced in my head. There were no loyalties here for me; I like both Hopkins and Calzaghe. Both are great fighters in their own right.

Calzaghe is a slapper, a rhythmic boxer, who doesn’t generate big power with single shots so much as he wears opponents down with his overall volume of offense, good stamina and athleticism.

Hopkins is the master of getting inside his opponents head. He has sneaky power and good accuracy when he punches. He takes away what his opponents do best and can hurt opponents with his specialty; holding while hitting (opposite the ref’s view). If Hopkins has a signature punch, it might be the low blow or the head butt. But seriously, the man is a legend.

The Fight

Round One

They felt each other out for a moment, Calzaghe pressed forward, Hopkins waited to counter. They traded shots and Hopkins clinched against the ropes until the ref broke them. As Calzaghe came in, Hopkins’ landed a clean right and put Calzaghe on his seat. Calzaghe up immediately but was tentative and Hop landed another right. They brawl in close, ref brakes them. Calzaghe kept coming forward, throwing one at a time. Calzaghe’s nose bled from a small cut caused by a Hopkins punch. 10-8 Hopkins.

In the corner, Enzo Calzaghe told his son, “You’re letting him bait you in for that kind of punch.”

Round Two

Calzaghe the aggressor and exchanges with Hopkins against the ropes. Referee Joe Cortez working hard already. Calzaghe landed two low slapping punches, no warning. Hopkins held every time Calzaghe got close enough. Hopkins landed a nice straight right. Hopkins overreacts to an unnoticed low blow. Hopkins used his left arm to hold Calzaghe when in close and punch with his right. Calzaghe countered with the same. 10-9 Hopkins.

Ref warned Hopkins corner about hitting behind the head.

Round Three

Hopkins boxed outside, moved and came in with shots aimed at the body, scoring too. Hopkins held and hit until Cortez broke them. Calzaghe gets Hop in corner and flurries with slapping punches. Crowd roars. They trade and both score. Calzaghe started finding his rhythm and exchanges dirty shots with Hopkins. Ref warned Calzaghe and crowd booed. Hopkins landed more telling shots and matched athleticism with Joe.

Freddy Roach tells Hopkins that Calzaghe’s a sucker for the right hand.

Round Four

A sloppy start with Calzaghe chasing Hopkins, who held and hit when possible. Cortez getting a work out. Calzaghe starting to wrest control of the tempo as they brawled into the ropes, where Joe scored. The ref said, “Brake!” And Hopkins threw a punch that landed. Ref paused action to warn both to, ‘keep it clean.’ Calzaghe chased Hopkins round the ring, dropped his hands, taunting Hopkins in. Hop scored nice off the ropes with counter punches. Lot of wrestling initiated by Hopkins. Calzaghe pressed forward and punched his way in and out. Calzaghe landed a left at the bell. Hopkins hit Calzaghe from behind, right in front of Cortez, who broke them apart yet again. Momentum starting to shift as Calzaghe started landing more and forcing Hopkins to fight his fight instead. 10-9 Calzaghe.

Round Five

Calzaghe jabs his way into Hopkins, whose only direction is backwards and sideways, always away from Calzaghe. Calzaghe showboats a little as his confidence starts to soar. Hopkins eats some leather as Calzaghe landed a nice left and a flurry of little shots. Calzaghe forcing Hopkins to keep busy. Hopkins back against the ropes as he is committed to defense as Calzaghe pressured him. Hopkins to the body. Calzaghe landed a series of lefts to the head and after the bell, Hopkins kept punching. 10-9 Calzaghe.

In the corner, Roach told Hopkins, “I need more than one at a time, throw combinations!”

Round Six

Calzaghe stalked Hopkins. Hopkins backed up and held when Calzaghe got close enough. Calzaghe pressure starting to bother Hopkins, who holds after throwing any punches. Calzaghe started using his jab to move Hopkins around. Hopkins, one punch and hold, every time. Calzaghe shoe-shined Hopkins until the bell, Cortez got between them and pushed Calzaghe, who went to the floor.

Cortez told Hopkins corner, “Bernard, I don’t want any more of those tactics, I don’t want to take any points. I want a clean fight!” Then he went to Calzaghe’s corner and said the same thing. Calzaghe’s father was screaming at his son to pick up the aggression.

Round Seven

Calzaghe landed jabs and got Hopkins on the ropes. Calzaghe landed more and more, Hopkins held more and more. Hopkins led with his head and continued to hold. No warnings from the ref either for all the holding. Calzaghe got the better of the exchanges and Hopkins was less and less effective. Calzaghe dropped his hands then went after Hopkins against the ropes. Calzaghe landed slapping shots. Hopkins landed a short right that buckled Calzaghe’s balance. Too little too late. 10-9 Calzaghe.

Round Eight

More of the same as Calzaghe pressured Hopkins, whose path was the ropes as he backed up and waited for counter opportunities. Calzaghe landed a clean left to the face. Hopkins held. Calzaghe threw combinations. Hopkins landed a right then backed up. Calzaghe a left, Hopkins a right. Calzaghe threw more, landed more and Hopkins is tricky but doing so much less. Calzaghe rallied with punches and scored and taunted Hopkins to the bell.

10-9 Calzaghe.

Roach told Hopkins, “You need to throw more combinations.”

Round Nine

Calzaghe has his spacing down, his confidence up and his rhythm working as he landed a straight left on the face of Hopkins. Calzaghe flurries, Hopkins held. Calzaghe harassed Hopkins with little punches that keep Hopkins going backwards. Hop landed a nice right. Calzaghe landed a bigger right. Calzaghe in control. Calzaghe landed another straight left. He mimicked Hopkins, dropping his hands and was even winning the psychological battle at this point. 10-9 Calzaghe.

Enzo Calzaghe screamed at Joe, “You won the last four rounds in big style, I think this guys ready to be knocked out. TRUST ME! TRUST ME! TRUST ME!”

Round Ten

More of the same, with Calzaghe controlling the tempo, forcing Hopkins backward and popping punches. At one point, they got close, Hopkins turned round and with Calzaghe behind him, he did a little taunting dance in front of Hopkins backside. Prior to the theatrics, Calzaghe threw a slappy uppercut toward the body that was low but didn’t have any steam on it but Hopkins played it to the bone, taking a knee and pretending to be in pain, while taking a few minutes to get some oxygen as the crowd got restless and annoyed by his bullshit. Calzaghe bounced around, spread his arms in askance of “what?” The crowd complained as Hop milked the clock. Calzaghe incited the crowd, walking back and forth, bouncing around, waving the crowd in…and drawing cheers in his direction and jeers in Hopkins’. When action finally resumed, it was back to work for Joe, who kept the pressure on. Hopkins landed a straight right as he jumped in to deliver it. Hopkins rallied a bit but always held whenever Calzaghe got close enough. Hopkins did score some decent shots. Calzaghe scored some too as Hopkins landed two low shots opposite side of Cortez. Calzaghe kept fighting. The long rest helped Hop get some energy back. They traded to the end. Good round for both guys, Hopkins gave a good effort late. I’ll call it even, 10-10.

Round Eleven

Calzaghe pressured Hopkins and they traded shots until Hopkins held. Calzaghe landed a sneaky right as they tussled inside. Calzaghe landed a clean combo to Hop’s face against the ropes. Calzaghe’s pressure made Hopkins try another; ‘I got hit by a low blow’ routine, but Cortez didn’t stop the action. Hopkins rallied and they traded, both landed. Calzaghe outworked Hopkins and landed more often. Hopkins did some good work but just not enough to win the round. 10-9 Calzaghe.

Calzaghe’s corner, possibly fearing a bogus decision, tells him, “You got to STOP him!”

Round Twelve

Calzaghe reached out to touch gloves but Hopkins didn’t share his enthusiasm, they commence to brawl and Hop landed one and Calzaghe landed about five. Hopkins tried to land the straight right, charging in with it on a few occasions. Calzaghe keeps Hopkins outside and kept punching. Calzaghe landed a nice left, Hopkins landed some good shots, Calzaghe countered well and Hopkins held. Calzaghe had too much energy and Hopkins didn’t have enough. Calzaghe bounced and punched, Hopkins darted in with combos when he struck. Calzaghe, in charge since about the fourth round, kept taking it to Hopkins as they slugged to the bell. The crowd cheered wildly. 10-9 Calzaghe.

As Calzaghe jumped up onto the ropes to address the crowd, they cheered some more. It was obvious who the crowd thought won the fight.

The Official Scores were 114-113 Hopkins, 115-112 for Calzaghe and 116-111 for Calzaghe, who won by Split Decision. The Judge who scored in favor of Hopkins was the only one wearing glasses. According to the unreliable compu-box stats, Calzaghe landed more punches against Hopkins than anyone ever has.

* *

During the post fight interview, Calzaghe was told of his compu-box numbers over Hopkins and asked how he did it and he said, “I don’t know, to be honest. I found it really hard tonight. He caught me in the first round. I think I slipped (laughing), but I had to dig deep. Bernard’s a great fighter.” He thanked the fans in attendance. He went on to say that he felt more loosened up after the fourth round and felt stronger in the fight and knew it wasn’t going to be pretty but, a win is a win.

Interviewer: You said you felt you slipped. (Calzaghe never said that) It was a clean knock down; did he ever hurt you in the fight?

JC: “I said I slipped. You know I’m joking. (laughs) He caught me with a flash knock down, it’s only the third time in my career I’ve ever been on the floor and I got up and did what all great champions do, I went on about my business and like I said, I’m so happy right now.”

When asked about Kelly Pavlik and Roy Jones Jr. Calzaghe said he didn’t know just yet. He did say maybe Roy Jones Jr. since he just beat Hopkins and is now a “Legend Killer”.

Of course Hopkins said he won the fight when he was interviewed but after Hopkins demonstration of honesty in the ring (the low blow show), how much credibility do his words really have?

Congratulations to Joe Calzaghe, the new man to reckon with at Light Heavyweight. There’s still three other major belt holders in the division in Zsolt Erdei (WBO), Chad Dawson (WBC) and Antonio Tarver (IBF) and one belt that is up for grabs at the WBA. It’s likely that Joe goes for Roy Jones Jr. next, unless Roy out-prices himself to prevent it from happening. Can anyone imagine Jones traveling to England to fight Joe Calzaghe? I can’t. If Roy can’t dictate all the terms of the fight from the money to the venue to the gloves, etc, don’t expect Roy to be a serious consideration.

I’d like to see Roy Jones Jr. finally fight Bernard Hopkins in a long overdue rematch but we know that’s not going to happen. Hopkins may have lost this fight but he is still way too dangerous for Jones to seriously consider. The only thing Jones has is his name at this point and that name has lost much of its luster since 2004. If Jones is for real, he would do well to prove it by fighting Hopkins before 2008 ends.

Why can’t they just have a tournament at Light Heavyweight between Dawson, Tarver, Erdei and Calzaghe and out of that quartet; the last man standing would be the undisputed Champion. I think Calzaghe has what it takes to beat them all but speculation means nothing until they fight in the ring. Dawson is only a champ due to a horrendous decision win over Glen Johnson, who beat him but didn’t get have the Judges blessings. Erdei is seriously untested and Tarver is on the downside of his boxing career.