Moment of Truth: Bernard Hopkins & Sergey Kovalev
One possible way to determine what the future may hold is to look into the past. With Bernard Hopkins, there’s 26 years of history to sift through to learn everything that can be known about him. If one was looking to finally put Hopkins away for good — that is to knock him out — history tells us it would require a combination of Joe Calzaghe’s relentlessness, Chad Dawson’s apathy to Hopkins’s games, Jermain Taylor’s jackhammer jab, and Roy Jones’s power. Not all of these worked on their own, given none of these men had a particularly easy time against Hopkins, nor did they enjoy sustained success. The problem is that they weren’t able to put it all together, or catch Hopkins at the “right” time.
One way to look at Sergey Kovalev is to imagine that he is the creation of Dr. Frankenstein. After years of studying Hopkins, this was the best he could come up with. A relentless force with destructive power in each hand, a cagey stance, off-kilter timing, a jab that can knock anyone out, an interest in body work, and above all, a strong desire to hurt Hopkins. This is John David Jackson’s monster that will face Bernard Hopkins this Saturday. A monster capable of not only raising questions of Hopkins’s in-ring ability, but also questions of Hopkins’s overall health.
John David Jackson, Kovalev’s trainer, has waited 17 years like a young Lex Luthor for his chance to get back at the Alien. Jackson first encountered Hopkins in 1997. Hopkins was then a middleweight and when round 7 came along, Hopkins could not miss. He trapped Jackson in a corner, hitting him flush with every shot he chose, and pummeled away until Jackson nearly fell out of the ring. If Jackson is like any ordinary man, he’s spent 17 years wondering what went wrong that night. Saturday night he has the chance to correct the mistakes he made in facing Hopkins.
Jackson has stated that the game plan is simple. They plan on fighting at a pace they are comfortable with, not the one Hopkins sets. They plan on throwing respect out the window. Hopkins is without question a legend, but the time for respect and handshakes will be after the fight. Inside, the plan is to try to knock Hopkins out.
And so forth. We’ve heard plans like this before. It’s one thing to talk about beating a fighter. Ask any boxing fan with access to the internet. They’ll provide you with a fully-fledged recipe for beating Floyd Mayweather and an idea on how to make a chocolate cake. It’s another thing completely to face Bernard Hopkins. Hopkins, with 26 years of experience, has mastered certain things. One thing that history points to that he’s mastered is the Sergey Kovalevs of the world.
Nothing above is new. We’ve heard it before. When Hopkins fought Tito Trinidad and when he fought Kelly Pavlik. The story was the young, powerful champion was going to make Hopkins look old. They were going to pressure him and knock him out. Each guy executed their game plan for about 1 minute before reconsidering. They saw that Hopkins moved when they moved, that he was never in range for longer than a glimpse, that Hopkins punched when they didn’t expect, and that he took away their ability to hit him back through any means necessary.
This is where Hopkins is at his most dangerous. Hopkins fights like a feral animal. The first instinct of the animal is to not be there. As Kelly Pavlik stepped in to launch a big shot, Hopkins was already gone. Whether it was quickness or expertly placed feet is debatable. What we do know is that Hopkins was untouched. When Trinidad got past that and managed to trap Hopkins or have him in striking distance, like a feral animal, Hopkins struck first. Hopkins, even at 49, seems to have access to the unconscious level of athleticism we all possess inside that isn’t attainable unless we’re confronted with death or serious injury.
If you’ve seen the fights, you know how this story ends. Hopkins rinses and repeats, ad nauseam until their will breaks. It’s hard to keep fighting when your every move is countered, not to mention you get hit with every dirty trick in the game. This is how Bernard Hopkins has remained relevant as an elite athlete in boxing for over 20 years. Because of this, Hopkins is in the class of Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Gordie Howe. Athletes who remained amongst the elite of their sport for decades. They knew when to alter their style and play in a way to preserve their bodies.
Hopkins is still great. There’s no denying that. He’s a different fighter than he was 15 years ago, but he still remains the same caliber. History tells us that Sergey Kovalev’s all-offense assault is unlikely to work. Better, more gifted fighters have tried it and failed. None, however, have had a trainer who intimately knows Hopkins and none have been able to truly test Hopkins with their power. Apathetic brute force is what we can expect from Sergey Kovalev.
The line-setters in Vegas believe Kovalev is the safest bet. That his youth, athleticism, and power will be enough to keep Hopkins from deploying every trick he’s picked up over 26 years to steal a decision. Experts are pegging Hopkins and his experience with playing matador to forward rushing bulls. In boxing, nothing is certain. It’s the only sport where every moment is sudden death. What you should expect is something historical. Sergey Kovalev is a fighter that can end a fight at any moment and with Hopkins, fights are all but guaranteed to go 12 rounds. We could be in for 36 minutes of the most intense action we’ve seen in ages. A victory for Kovalev immortalizes him as the man who put Hopkins away. For Hopkins, to be the man who put Time in check.
[hr gap=””]
Fun Notes
When Bernard Hopkins made his debut, the Los Angeles Dodgers had won the World Series, The Cosby Show was the number one program on TV, and Rick Astley’s ‘Never Gonna Give You Up’ spent time atop the Billboard Top 200 list. Lip implants were a news item. The Soviet Union took a step toward its eventual dissolution by implementing a mixed economy. Phillip Morris purchased Kraft Foods for $13.1 billion dollars. George H.W. Bush won presidency of the United States. To call him a veteran is an understatement.
