If he would put the pressure from the get go no way hopkins survives. I'm thinking John David Jackson told the guy to take it eazy
possible kovalev's strategy was to not give hops opportunities to counter and foul inside by not being too aggressive. if it was, yeah, he probably over estimated hopkins.
It was clearly a push. Did you not see Smith's fist push Hopkin's chin back? It was clear as day. The best part was/is the cameraman being in the perfect position to catch a bird's eye view of Nard falling out of the ring. As prideful as Hopkins is, this will kill him. He'll remember this moreso than any of his wins. Couldn't have happened to a bigger asshole. I'm sure Bouie Fisher and his son are laughing their asses off. Would love to get Nazim Richardson's take on this since he wasn't in the corner. I'm sure Roy was like, "I've been knocked the fuck out but I've never been knocked OUT of the ring."
REED Never Heard of Joe Smith Until Last Night, but from the Opening Bell, You KNEW Bernard Hopkins was in Trouble... Smith REFUSED to Fight @ Bernard's Pace and Occupied him w/Pressure and the Constant Threat of BOMBS...On Top of that, Bernard LOOKED Like an Ol' Ass Man...Body Lacked Definition, Rocking Ol' School Short Shorts, Taking Small, Unsteady, Baby Steps Out of Harms Way...He Even Held his Guard in an ARCHAIC Fashion @ Times... As for the Knockout Itself, PUNCHES Resulted in Bernard Getting Hurled from the Ring, Period...More Importantly, REED Ain't Buying the "Ankle" Injury or Whatever Excuse Bernard Gave, Either...By the Count of 10-11, Bernard was ON his Feet...He Had Until 20 to Get Back in the Ring, Briefly Considered it, Looked Back in the Ring, Saw Smith Standing There Waiting and THEN Cited a Leg Injury... And REED Can't Say he Blames Bernard...Giving Away 24 Years to a Motherfucker that JUST Knocked You Out of the Ring???...Call it a Career... REED:fightme:
After the Fight, Kovalev ADMITTED to Having Concerns About his OWN Stamina...Prior to the Hopkins Fight, he'd NEVER Fought Past the 8th Round, So he PACED Himself... No Doubt he'd have WAXED Bernard Otherwise... REED:fightme:
While I think Kov is too good and too experienced for Joe Smith, I'd love to see Smith vs Beterbiev. Something about Beterbiev makes me believe he's not as good as advertised. I'd take Smith to whup him.
After having seen nearly all of Beterbiev fights, I don't think he's anything too special. HIm vs Smith would be a hell of a fight imo. On the other side, SMith might only be the luckiest fighter alive. His win against FOnfara might be flukish (1st round ko often are) and Hopkins was definitively not even the same guy that he was a few years ago (absolutely no snap on his punches). I wonder if he'll be willing to let them go as freely against a puncher like Beterbiev
As of right now, Beterbiev's rep is primarily based off his amateur wins against Kov, which mean jack shit right now. Beterbiev ducked Kov last year, and he's now 31. At 31 Kov had already destroyed Cleverly and burst onto the world stage. And Kov is a top 3 P4P fighter while Beterbiev is still fighting on Spike on PBC undercards. He needs to stop living off the amateurs and fight someone who actually punches back. I wouldn't be surprised if he beats Smith. He is more skilled... but I could just as easily see Smith expose him.