Hopkins vs. Calzaghe

Tonight in Las Vegas, Bernard Hopkins and Joe Calzaghe will face off in a much anticipated light heavyweight bout. Watch the official promo video for tonight's fight here. The reigning light heavyweight champion, Hopkins has successfully defended the the middleweight title twenty times -- a record setting feat. After winning the title from Segundo Mercado in 1995, Hopkins remained unbeaten until 2005. And as Net Glimse notes:

"From his victory over Oscar De La Hoya in September 2004 until his loss to Jermain Taylor in July 2005, Hopkins was the undisputed holder of the championship belts from all 4 major sanctioning bodies (WBA, WBC, IBF and WBO). In addition, he was awarded the coveted linear 'Ring Belt' after defeating Felix Trinidad in September 2001."

Bernard Hopkins is widely regarded to be one of the great boxers of the modern era, yet outside of boxing circles, he remains a largely obscure figure. That's probably due--in part--to the fact that boxing's popularity has plummeted over the last 15-20 years (essentially, ever since Mike Tyson went to prison). But Hopkins' checkered past has also--no doubt--contributed to his flying under the radar. Net Glimse's biography of Hopkins illuminates Hopkins' troubled youth:

"(Hopkins) grew up in a rough section of (Philadelphia), where he got involved in crime and gang activity at a young age. Today, he describes himself as a 'thug' in his youth and regrets that it took a stint in prison for him to turn his life around.

Late in 1982, when Hopkins was in the 11th grade, he was convicted and sentenced to 18 years in the state penitentiary for armed robbery. For fifty-six months, from 1984 through 1988, Hopkins was one of three thousand inmates in Graterford State Penitentiary in Pennsylvania.

While incarcerated, he decided to turn his life around. Hopkins studied for and earned his high school diploma, and also began to take part in boxing again, which he had done off and on as a youth. During four years and eight months in prison, Hopkins won the national penitentiary middleweight championship three times. He converted to Islam during his incarceration and was paroled in 1988...

He immediately joined the professional boxing ranks as a light heavyweight, losing his debut on October 11, 1988... But he showed enough in the loss that respected trainer Bouie Fisher took him on. After a 16-month layoff, resumed his career as a middleweight, winning a unanimous decision over Greg Paige on February 22, 1990. Between February 1990 and September 1992, Hopkins worked his way through the ranks of middleweight journeymen, scoring 20 wins without a loss..."

John Hinderaker provides a good synopsis of tonight's fight at Power Line:

"Hopkins is one of the greatest fighters of our time. A street criminal in his youth, Hopkins went to prison at age 17. He discovered boxing in prison and never looked back once he was released at age 22. He became the undisputed middleweight champion of the world--no easy feat with four sanctioning bodies--and defended his title against all comers. Hopkins is now 43 years old, but still in tremendous condition with an impressive win over "Winky" Wright in his last outing. Hopkins' record is 48-4-1.

Joe Calzaghe is from Wales. He has been a champion in the welterweight, light middleweight, middleweight and super middleweight divisions. Calzaghe is undefeated at 44-0. A tireless, relentless fighter, he is the Energizer Bunny of boxing.

Last May, Calzaghe beat highly-regarded Danish super middleweight Mikkel Kessler in a unanimous decision. Calzaghe has a unique style: if you watch him for one round, you may think he's a pretty good, but odd, fighter. If you watch him for ten rounds, you may think he's the best boxer in the world."

And Marcus Henry tells The Neutral Corner at New York Newsday that the Hopkins vs. Calzaghe fight "has legacy written all over it":

"For Hopkins (48-4-1, 32 KOs), it’s a chance to prove once and for all that he deserves to be among boxing’s immortals. Not that Hopkins has to prove anything. The Philadelphia native has beaten everyone from Oscar De La Hoya to Antonio Tarver to Winky Wright to Felix Trinidad (in his prime). But a win over Europe’s best pound-for-pound fighter could be what etches him in stone as one of boxing’s greats with the likes of Roberto Duran, Sugar Ray Leonard, etc…

For Calzaghe (44-0, 32 KOs), it’s a chance to prove he’s the real deal... Calzaghe doesn’t have much to prove. But he’s never fought in the United States and has never taken on an opponent the caliber of Hopkins."

So what does Bernard Hopkins have to say about tonight's fight? Well, as Sports Illustrated notes, he told reporters:

"I would never let a white boy beat me..."