To state the obvious, fight fans have always been drawn to powerful punchers. The sheer violence of a sudden and dramatic knockout is an important part of boxing’s appeal. As harsh as it may sound to some, it’s why so many flock to boxing, why Mike Tyson, for example, became such a huge box office sensation. Simply put, explosive knockouts never fail to excite. But while I enjoy a vicious KO or head-to-head fight as much as anyone else, there is something especially admirable about the technique and skill involved in the finer aspects of “The Sweet Science.” A commanding display of boxing skill is always more impressive and satisfying to me.
Neutralizing a vaunted power puncher with defense and footwork for twelve rounds requires incredible discipline and skill. A skilled technician, like Willie Pep or Pernell Whitaker, can’t afford to lose focus even for an instant because that might be all his opponent needs to land a fight-ending blow. That kind of virtuoso performance is what I love most about boxing, and the athlete who executes such a feat earns my utmost respect.
And in recent years, one fighter in particular has repeatedly demonstrated that skill and cunning can thwart raw power. He has defied the odds many times and has shown that strategy and technique can overcome significant disadvantages, can even turn the tables when it comes to the expected outcome in a competition between youth and age. Because the fact is that with age comes experience, and if that experience is used correctly, it can teach youngsters some hard lessons.
Therefore, in my opinion, the most surprising performances in Bernard Hopkins’ career did not come during his physical prime, but rather later in his career, when he surprised fans with his upset wins over Félix “Tito” Trinidad, Antonio Tarver and Kelly. Pavlik. It was in those victories, not to mention his wins over Oscar De La Hoya, Tavoris Cloud and Jean Pascal, that B-Hop boldly demonstrated why boxing is, in fact, a “sweet science.”
As Larry Merchant put it, “Hopkins reminds me of the movie character, The Cooler, whose job it was to cool down players with a hot hand.” And, in fact, Hopkins felt perfectly comfortable in the role of fire extinguisher, dousing the scorching flames his opponents had lit during their torrid careers in their respective divisions. Trinidad, Tarver and Pavlik were truly “hot hands,” all with a long list of big wins behind them, and all favored to prevail over the Philadelphia veteran.
There was an army of naysayers for Bernard to silence in 2001 when he faced Felix “Tito” Trinidad, the best of the aforementioned trio. The Puerto Rican is a deserving member of the Hall of Fame, a distinction neither Pavlik nor Tarver is likely to earn. While Hopkins was the naturally bigger man, he didn’t possess the vaunted fight-ending power that had drawn so many to Tito. And although Trinidad had recently moved up to middleweight, his devastating stoppage of William Joppy showed that he had brought his power to weight. There was also the fact that Trinidad, at 28, was considered to be in his prime, while Hopkins was reportedly in his underdog, a 36-year-old veteran.
Before the fight, the older man reminded everyone of the stakes in the legacy-defining fight: “I would be lying if I told you this is just another fight. This is a fight that could make me part of the great middleweights of the last fifteen years. I fought to get here… I earned my way here, and I’m going to act like it.”
The rabid, pro-Trinidadian crowd at Madison Square Garden was packed with thousands of Puerto Ricans, eager to see their compatriot triumph, wanting revenge on Hopkins for disrespecting their nation in the build-up to the fight. But the Philadelphia veteran loved nothing more than disappointing the home crowd and proving doubters wrong. Always aware of Trinidad’s power, Hopkins stayed mobile from the start, moving laterally and never letting Tito get ready to unload his power shots. Bernard’s most effective weapon was his jab, as he kept it in Trinidad’s face all night, and even in the close rounds, it was “The Executioner” who got the better of the exchanges.
It didn’t matter that Hopkins had less power because he was more active and consistent with his offense and it was his constant blitz that stifled Trinidad and cumulatively wore him down. He badly hurt Trinidad with a right hook and right uppercut combo to end the tenth round, before ending the fight in style in the final stanza, landing a vicious right hand that sent Tito to the canvas. Although Trinidad beat the count, his father and his trainer had seen enough and he jumped through the ropes to officially end the fight. Hopkins proved the doubters wrong and put on his best performance to date, in the process tying Carlos Monzon’s record of fourteen consecutive middleweight title defenses.
When Hopkins faced Antonio Tarver in 2006, “The Magic Man” was firmly positioned as the best light heavyweight in the world. He had beaten the seemingly invincible Roy Jones Jr. twice, including a vicious knockout in the rematch. On the other hand, Hopkins was coming off back-to-back losses to Jermain Taylor. Besides having the momentum of his race on his side, Tarver had all the physical advantages. Antonio was younger and taller, a southpaw and, most notably, the bigger man, having competed at light heavyweight for his entire career. In contrast, the Philadelphia native was jumping the super middleweight division to go from 160 to 175.
However, prior to the Hopkins fight, Tarver had gained a significant amount of weight to play a fictional heavyweight champion, Mason “The Line” Dixon, opposite Sylvester Stallone in the sixth installment of the “Rocky” franchise. This meant that Tarver had to lose approximately forty pounds to make weight for the match with Hopkins. Meanwhile, Bernad had hired renowned strength and conditioning guru Mackie Shilstone to scientifically develop his body for peak performance at the heaviest weight. Shilstone had already proven himself in the boxing world, having helped both Michael Spinks and Roy Jones move up in weight and capture heavyweight titles.
When the opening bell rang, Hopkins appeared to be in better condition, with visible muscle definition in his upper body. Tarver, on the other hand, seemed to have misjudged the ease with which he could cut the heavyweight from him. And Bernard’s beefed-up body wasn’t just for his aesthetic appeal, as he used his newfound strength to great effect, frequently outmuscling and outmaneuvering the bigger man in clinches. In a surprising upset, the 3-to-1 loser outboxed Tarver throughout the fight, displaying superior reflexes and faster hands despite being the older man.
“I told people they would be surprised it would be an easy fight,” Hopkins said. “I could have fought in this weight class a long time ago. I do very well with lefties. I knew all I had to do was neutralize his jab and work on everything else.” And indeed, Bernard’s ability to nullify his opponent’s best weapon would become a staple of the latter part of his career.
After defeating Tarver, Hopkins maintained light heavyweight supremacy by beating Winky Wright (another incredible win) before losing a split decision to Joe Calzaghe. Meanwhile, Taylor, the former Hopkins conqueror, had lost his middleweight titles to an unbeaten puncher from Youngstown, Ohio named Kelly Pavlik. In a surprising move, Pavlik decided to move up and face Hopkins at a catchweight of 170 pounds. Pavlik’s team believed his younger, fresher role could take out the aging veteran and secure a significant payday in the process. And the odds matched his assessment, as Hopkins was declared a 4-1 loser. But once again, “The Executioner” defied the doubters.
Despite being seventeen years older, Hopkins was the faster pacer, who possessed clear advantages in speed and athleticism, and constantly overwhelmed Pavlik with quick combinations. The cunning fighter from Philadelphia utterly confused his youngest foe, completely sapping every ounce of his confidence. Like Tarver, Pavlik landed a handful of significant punches throughout, none of which seemed to bother Hopkins and the judges correctly scored the fight a loss for the older man, giving Bernard another surprising win that defies the odds. “Ninety percent of the media picked Pavlik and I always appreciate the naysayers,” Hopkins said. “That’s what motivates me.”
It’s worth noting that Pavlik, like Tarver and Trinidad, was never the same after his encounter with Hopkins. The fearsome puncher was unable to recapture the form that saw him overwhelm Jermain Taylor as he fought many of his subsequent fights and lost his title to Sergio Martinez before retiring in 2012. Similarly, despite being just 28 years old when he faced to “The Executioner”, Trinidad competed only four more times in his career, losing two of those matches. And Tarver was never the same either, his loss to Hopkins marked the beginning of his decline as he would soon suffer back-to-back losses to Chad Dawson and struggle to remain relevant from then on.
Hopkins’ career is nothing short of legendary, and the main reason for this beyond his amazing longevity is the plethora of elite fighters he defeated, many of whom enjoyed significant physical advantages. In his three most impressive victories, Hopkins conclusively proved that superior skill, technique and strategy can outweigh youth and power. And he reminded boxing fans over and over again: Never bet against Philadelphia ring wizard Bernard Hopkins.
It’s worth noting that before his final fight, a knockout loss to Joe Smith Jr., many, if not most, had learned that lesson and indeed chose the 51-year-old Hopkins to win what would be the last fighter of his long and amazing career. And while Father Time inevitably won the last battle, the man from Philadelphia had given him a hell of a fight for far longer than anyone thought he could or would. In any case, when Hopkins finally walked away from the fight game, his ticket to Canastota had been blocked many years earlier. Among other feats, his stunning upset wins over Trinidad, Tarver and Pavlik guaranteed it. —Jamie Rebner
The Executioner’s Greatest Victories post first appeared in The Fight City.
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