Hopkins v Abraham

Apparently this fight is being discussed. I think Hopkins wins this as he didn't look shot against Kovalev but just beaten by a good, younger man. Abraham is younger but Hopkins is still a level above skills wise. Difficult for him to get a decision in Germany, which is where it's likely to take place.

Any thoughts? Not the most interesting of match ups to be mooted this week but it's a chance for Hopkins to win a title in a division that he hasn't won one in yet and then hopefully he can retire.

To win a strap in another division at 50 would be simply incredible!

A winnable fight for Hopkins.

Would win it easily. Hes got Dirrell and Wards blueprint to follow. Abraham has no plan B

Hopkins is incredible. I know he keeps himself in great shape and his diet is all healthy but surely there'll be some issue getting to super middleweight at 50 years old. I'm sure he's not far off light heavy as a walking around weight but at 50 I'm sure it'll be difficult.

Abraham hits hard enough has the power to stop anyone. It could be a painful night if Hopkins has any of the after effects of the 12th round of his previous fight.

RanjitPatel wrote:Abraham hits hard enough has the power to stop anyone. It could be a painful night if Hopkins has any of the after effects of the 12th round of his previous fight.

Above middleweight? I'm not so sure. Especially with someone who has never really shown weakness in his chin like Hopkins. I don't think this could be much less of a factor.

I think he has but I'm not saying it'll lead him to beating Hopkins. At Hopkins age, a beating like he suffered against Kovalev could have a lasting effect and could conceivably lead into this fight.

Didn't think it was in doubt that Abraham hit hard. Hit harder at middle but still hits hard. No one fancying a tear up with him, not even Froch, probably evidences that. The counter is it's easier to outbox him but he's beaten everyone that's gone too war with him.

If the Hopkins that started the first round agaisnt Kovalev turns up he is a clear favourite against abraham imo, but as aluded too he took a LOT of shots against Kovalev and it could affect him at that age

Apart from Steiglitz i can't remember who abraham has knocked out at 168, and Hopkins may have been blasted around the ring but was still there for the ful l12 agaisnt the heaviest handest fighter at 175

If he makes weight well enough he'll outbox abraham and survive any big shots that land on him, geez Smith almost beat abraham

Trinidad hit hard, they said. Worked well for him didn't it?

Whilst I'm not saying that Hopkins will be anything like as good as he was back then, I simply can't see that a well-past-his-best Abraham will be able to beat Ol' Popkins.

Bernard should nullify him easily (even in Germany) in a dull dull fight which will go to the cards. Then please retire - both of you!

Trinidad hit hard, they said. Worked well for him didn't it?

Whilst I'm not saying that Hopkins will be anything like as good as he was back then, I simply can't see that a well-past-his-best Abraham will be able to beat Ol' Popkins.

Bernard should nullify him easily (even in Germany) in a dull dull fight which will go to the cards. Then please retire - both of you!

Artur simply not quick enough to land consistently on Hopkins imo.

I don't think Hopkins will have been damaged by the Kovalev defeat. One looks for psychological scarring and I can't seen any.

Easy ud for Hoppy but for some reason I still quite like the fight. I guess I just like watching these two for different reasons. Hopkins for his monologues, guile and defence. Abraham for his toughness, chin and sometimes a little bit of devastating power. I guess Artur's only hope is to see if he can bully him a touch on the inside. But Hopkins should be able to handle him, I would have thought.

If Abraham lost a couple of rounds to Paul Smith, I'm sure Hopkins can at least double that.

I can't see Anraham being able to stop Hopkins. I like AA but is one dimensional and against a clever fighter he is pretty clueless so would fancy Hopkins to win by decision.

Hopkins is incredible, isn't he? At the age of 50, talking about going down a division to fight for a title, and he's considered the nailed-on favourite!

For me the Kovalev fight showed that his time is probably up, but would like to see him go out on a high, and then hang up the gloves.

disgraceful...shouldn't be allowed a licence...makes a mockery of the sport...stinking old spoiler


There....just saved TRUSS the effort of responding

I can see Hopkins winning this one in decent style if it’s made. Abraham is custom-made for Hopkins, just the kind of fighter he specialises in taking apart. Even at fifty I think Hopkins will have the tank to decision Abraham given that Abraham doesn’t cut the ring off the way Kovalev does and lulls in and out of fights, particularly when his opponent is beating him to the punch on the outside and keeping him at range. Abraham’s obviously got the power here, but I just don’t think he’ll be in range enough to land many big shots, and certainly not more than one at a time even if he does. Hopkins will either be beating him to the punch outside or just spoiling in close, preventing Abraham from getting any shots off. Not sure Abraham can dictate the pace and terms of engagement enough to beat old man Bernard, which is the key.

I’ve stopped guessing when Hopkins is going to age a decade overnight. Instead it just seems to me that he’ll deteriorate bit by bit each year. Sure, each year’s deterioration will be a shade more pronounced than the last, but I don’t think he’ll have fallen off a cliff and be massively declined from 2014 because of the Kovalev fight. Granted, going on how abysmal Pascal looked at the weekend, you can’t rule out the possibility that the loss at Kovalev’s hands might have wiped out everything Hopkins had left, as it may have done for Pascal. But the whooping Hopkins took wasn’t anywhere near as bad as the one Pascal received, and let’s be honest, the usual rules just don’t seem to apply to Bernard.

I think Hopkins, if he does fight Abraham, has picked the perfect fight to bring to fruition what he promised for 2015 – breaking his own record as the oldest, oldest (oldest oldest) title holder ever, ticking another box by winning a title at 168 and then bowing out while still a belt holder at 50. Hopkins all the way, but in the nicest possible sense hopefully never getting in a ring again afterwards.

I'd expect a Pavlik-like schooling.

Hoppy saying he's looking for a challenge to bow out on?

C'mon Artur's tailored for him...

Why not fight Beterbiev which would be a much bigger challenge? But Hoppy, great fighter that he is, has always had to duck and dive a touch at light heavy.

Also, get the feeling from this, this might not be Hoppy's last fight just yet:

http://www.boxingscene.com/video-bernard-hopkins-on-targeting-one-final-world-title--94806

Two guys that fight 30 seconds a round and then con their way through the rest...

I think people who like watching 50 yr olds fight are pretty sad people..

The fact he's still a player at his age is even more sad.

I'd be interested to know who Hopkins should have faced that he hasn't at Light Heavyweight?

Hammersmith harrier wrote:I'd be interested to know who Hopkins should have faced that he hasn't at Light Heavyweight?

I do not agree with the premise and insinuation of this post.

Predictably articulate response, instead of carrying on some petty grudge you could just answer the question perhaps.

I find it difficult to argue with you as you approach debate obtusely.

In short Hopkins has fought everyone there has been to fight at Light Heavyweight.

He was cornered into the Kova fight, tried to distance himself from it until he had nowhere else to turn. Hopkins likes to call himself old school and fight anyone, but it's becoming increasingly obvious this isn't completely the case. He never fancied the Stevenson fight either. Now Beterbiev. Tarver was an average LH champion at best.

How is the beltless Beterbiev an option, genuine pie in the sky to throw his name out there just because he's flavour of the month.

Tarver
Calzaghe
Pavlik
Pascal
Dawson
Cloud
Kovalev

Quite clearly Hopkins is dodging the risky fights at 175lbs, you are aware he can't miraculously fight both Kovalev and Stevenson (ducking everyone anyway according to you on another thread), the latter becoming pointless the moment he lost to the former. He might have been cajoled into facing Kovalev but he ultimately did face him and predictably everyone he did beat becomes average and those he didn't face top of the pile.

Tarver - average
Calzaghe - super middleweight and lost
Pavlik - middleweight 
Pascal - super middleweight but good win
Dawson - tried to distance himself from Dawson for ages, beaten handily
Cloud - decent win, Cloud did nothing after, average
Kova - first proper light heavy he ever boxed, and thrashed

It's a very good record by most people's standards but not as good as all that. Don't be fooled into thinking Hopkins hasn't been quite cute when it comes to matchmaking. He doesn't want to know about Beterbiev. He doesn't want to know about a Kova rematch either.

Why would he want to know about a Kovalev rematch, he got beaten nearly to a pulp and Beterbiev is a nobody in the division at the moment, you can make excuses for every opponent if you wish but they represented the best the division had to offer.

It is my contention that Hopkins isn't as old school as he likes to make out, that is all...

And a dominant middleweight can't beat a dominant light heavyweight...

But that maybe was a bit unfair calling Tarver average, he was quite good, but hardly dominant.

I must have imagined Greb, Charles and Fitzsimmons.

A bit scathing on a guy in his late 40s fighting well above his prime weight...

Charles was a career light-heavyweight surely?

Greg was a freak but I'll give you that one.

Fitzsimmons did win the light heavy title becoming the first three weight world champion, but was  George Gardiner a dominant champion?

By definition you could say any LH who loses to a middle isn't dominant, so it's impossible to argue your point.

Charles like Archie Moore was a middleweight who moved up to Light Heavy and beyond while Fitzsimmons beat a decent Heavyweight by the name of James Corbett or does that not count because he's then too big.

Ok...

Perhaps I should say it's very rare rather than impossible, for a dominant middle to beat an exceptional light heavy.

But it's almost impossible for a dominant light heavy to beat an exceptional heavy.

There, everyone happy now?

Hammersmith harrier wrote:Charles like Archie Moore was a middleweight who moved up to Light Heavy and beyond while Fitzsimmons beat a decent Heavyweight by the name of James Corbett or does that not count because he's then too big.

Charles and Moore were essentially career light heavies. They may have been middles when very young but always be remembered as light heavies.

Fitzsimmons did beat Corbett yes, one of the freak results of the twentieth century.

To be really pedantic Moore was a Middleweight into his late 20's and Charles made his name as Middleweight the moment he trounced Burley twice.

Hammersmith harrier wrote:To be really pedantic Moore was a Middleweight into his late 20's and Charles made his name as Middleweight the moment he trounced Burley twice.

From you sir, I wouldn't have expected anything less.

Hopkins would have been retired years ago if it wasnt for the numerous world titles and endless world title opportunities floating around boxing now.

Hopkins tried very hard to get a fight with Stevenson. He took on Kovalev after it fell through. To say he was cornered is hilarious. Herman you have already shown your transparency on this subject. Time to stop embarrassing yourself now

Maybe Hopkins did want to fight Stevenson, that may be true.

But he never wanted the Kova fight, only a moron would state otherwise.

Considering he took the fight I find that an extremely odd comment to make.

Loss of face if he didn't?

It's endless supply of excuses, if only more boxers had the same attitude as Hopkins with fights they don't want; you know actually taking them.

Kathy Duval has said publicly that Hopkins took the fight happily without too much negotiations needed. Nobody forced him

Hopkins had to take the fight once Bob and Oscar started talking again. Having said Kova would have to switch promoters to get the fight.

Anyway, I've got nothing against Hopkins, real champion unlike that joke Stevenson.

Sorry but what does Bob and Oscar talking have to do with it?

Have you honestly spent days trying to make a point about something when you haven't a clue what you are talking about?

Time to wrap it up now, I'm bored.

Wats Bob and Oscar talking got to do with it. Funny when people make things up and then get bored after they have looked foolish

Yeah I I think I should retract that. Slip of the pen.