Its official, yet not official. The date is supposed to be April 12, 2008 yet nothing has been set in stone. Lets assume that it is set in stone and discuss this fight. Lets start with Joe Calzaghe. I have to admit I thought Joe was a hype from the UK until he just picked apart Jeff Lacy and made him look like an amateur who was getting paid. The combinations he put together were simply lovely, he used his height, reach, and speed advantages and showed the world he was more than a hype. For some that was not enough so November 2007 he fought Mikkel Kessler another undefeated fighter from Denmark. Just when many counted Joe out he stepped his fight game with an aggressive tough assault that broke down Kessler and proved that Joe Calzaghe is truly deserving of being a pound4pound best and possibly the best Super Middleweight ever. Bernard Hopkins is a hall of famer without a doubt based on his days as a Middleweight. Nowadays Hopkins is campaigning at Light Heavyweight where he is the Ring Magazine Champion. His activity of fighting is down to one fight a year and his last fight was not his best performance in beating Winky Wright. Now Bernard Hopkins is going to fight Joe Calzaghe. The fuel has been added to the fire by Titantic loads after Hopkins crossed the line stating he would not lose to a white boy at the weigh-in of Mayweather-Hatton. Pretty bold, stupid, uncalled for comment by Hopkins that angered me as man, boxing fan, and as a human. However I digress. So who will win the fight. Well Hopkins is a slow starter and fights very controlled. He does not like fighters who are very active, which is why he lost to Jermain Taylor twice. Bernard is almost 43, his energy level is not the same as it was in his 30s. He conserves his energy more and is very economical with his punches. If he can't get the other fighter to fight slow he is a little uncomfortable and my give up several of the early rounds like he did against Taylor. In my opinion Hopkins only fights 5-6 rounds total of a fight, the other part of the fight the other fighter is usually not moving in too fast because of Hopkins reputation of being a hard puncher and sometimes dirty. Now Joe Calzaghe is total opposite, throwing close to 1000 punches a fight and punching from many different odd angles. Joe is a southpaw who is quick and energized, not one to tire. Joe fights 3 full minutes of every round no matter the fighter. I do not see Joe being still for Bernard because that is not his fight style. This could be a gift and a curse. It could force Bernard to fight more than he wants or Joe could walk into something he does not see. One thing to remember is Bernard is undefeated against southpaws which is pretty impressive since most conventional fighters try to avoid southpaws. Speed and activity goes to Joe, but ring intelligence and power goes to Bernard. This fight looks to be taken by the fighter who imposes their will on the other fighter more consistently. The question is who will it be?
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