The Signficance of the fight!!

It is of my humble opinion that this fight is every bit as significant, if not moreso, as Mayweather-Hatton, De La Hoya-Mayweather or any other big fight in the last few years.

Pity it's not getting the attention it deserves.

What you have here are two legitimate all time greats at the top of their respective games, battling together for super-legend status.

Whoever wins would have to be a consideration for top 10 all time P4P on anyone's list. Both these guys have been as dominant as champions can be with over 40 successful, successive defenses between them.

Both of these guys have proven themselves to be able to handle any style and have the ability to excel in the big fights.

TREMENDOUS fight!!!

Calzaghe by close decision (but don't be surprised if Hopkins pulls out he miracle and stops him)

The Sly One has Spoken!!

 

this is what will happen

 

this fight is happening about 5, 6 years too late, but then again, calzaghe was considered a dubious champ back then while hopkins was still near his prime.

but for some reason, i'm looking more forward to this than floyd-hatton or floyd-oscar. i'm also glad that it's on regular hbo.

 

When was the last time Hopkins stopped anybody other than a shot Joppy 5 years ago? He won't stop Calzaghe unless he cuts him with a headbutt or elbow, causing a cuts stoppage.

 

he will stop him

 

Hopkins didn't stop Joppy.

 

Joppy went the distance.

He stopped Oscar with the phony body shot.

 

he beat the crap outta joppy, but didnt stop him. the last opponent he stopped was oscar.

 

Word. His last stoppage is over Oscar but Calzaghe won't take a dive that easily. Before that I guess it is Tito in 12th round

 

Oscar is pretty solid and Hopkins laid him the F out!!!

 

agreed

no

 

Why not?

Let's consider a Hopkins victory for a second....which 10 fighters would you place ahead of him all time...and based upon what logic?

 

Regardless of who wins...neither guy is top 10 p4p alltime.

Many alltime p4p greats out there slystaff.

 

That's a lot of work my friend. So instead I'll just give you 10 fighters off the top and skip the logic.

Hagler
Duran
Louis
Ali
SRR
Armstrong
Pep
SRL
RJJ
My av

Mind that this is not my top 10 of all time, just 10 fighters that I think are > Bhop > Cal

 

Not to mention Chavez, Hearns, Arguello, Sanchez, Gomez, Zarate, Olivares...etc.

 

dreadful comments

 

::

 

I think Hopkins is merely a victim of the times. Place the same fighter in the 50s with the same relative accomplishments (including a win of Calzaghe for the discussion) and considering him a top 10 all time great would be a no brainer....


But anyway...this is really besides the point of the thread. This fight is significant. Great great matchup.

 

Neither are at their optimum weights, both are quite old.
Just a curiosity, nothing more.

 

dsimon writes:

I agree 100%. You will hear a lot of the excuses: "too late, hopkins is boring, etc etc etc." The fact is this is a seminal fight and the guy who wins it, or does better in it, will add tremendous capital to their name. This might be the most seminal fight in years.

Frankly most people know how good Floyd is and even those of us who stupidly called for the upset by Hatton should have known Floyd was in a different class.... This fight is different because many things could really happen.

Nobody really knows how good Joe is frankly. If he can really do his thing against Hops then he deserves the whole enchilada. If not Bernard does. I am excited.

 

i'm not sure if hopkins is the best fighter i've seen and that distinction probably goes to roy, leonard or whitaker, but he certainly is the most accomplished fighter in the past 20 years or so.

beating calzaghe would place him in the upper echelons of all-time ratings if he already isn't up there.

talk about consistency and longevity, at the very least, it's arguable that he's on par w/ the likes of leonard, armstrong, hagler, and duran.

 

dsimon writes:

I agree with Sly 100%.

The top ten seems a bit much but all it means is consideration. It means one could consider a guy in the top ten not that they will get there every time. Especially with the comp Hops took on ue gets there imo. Calzaghe should get there if he can truly master Hops.

For example, there are certain guys we consider the top 5. Some people would put Jones in the top five some would say "no way" but considering Jones for this position is acceptable to most who know the game.

 

Although I disagree about any top 10 talk, I could see an arguement for Bhop much much more so than Calzaghe. Talent is one thing, but unless you prove it time and again it is speculation at best. Calzaghe just hasn't tested himself enough to warrant even top 50 consideration.

 

This fight is way more significant than Mayweather vs Hatton or Oscar. Those fights were for money, there was nothing significant about them other than the amount of money those guys made, especially the Oscar fight.

 

The greatest of all time :cheer: .

 

dsimon writes:

Yeah the big problem is people never thought much of joe outside his village (so to speak). I sort of cringe when I hear people compare his speed and poise to Roy Jones.... I don't care for Jones much but one just can't really do that! ::

The guys who knew the game back in the day didn't think much of Marciano for the same reasons. He fought everybody over the hill who was any good. But he gets a lot of consideration now and the unbeaten record helps as it would help Joe.

Joe's stock jumped quickly FTB.... and when you look at Lacy subsequent to Joe there ain't much to look at.::

I don't know how old you are but I am 44 and I wonder years from now what people will say about Joe.... I mean when my kids are 44! ::

What they will probably forget is that before Lacy Joe did not have much credability.

 

I'm 28 and I believe Joe's reputation will definitely grow with time (especially with a win).

What I will never understand is how Jeff Lacy can propel someone into the realm of legends.

 

You can say the same thing about Hopkins, in terms of reputation jumping quickly.

Take the pre-middleweight tournament and there's no comparison to his reputation afterward (which is why Trinidad was the favorite to win it).

Frankly, both of their title runs were mostly agains non-descript opponents....and that's due a lot to the fractured titles and the fact that neither division was considered all that strong.

Hopkin's greatness, IMO, was elevated the most after two wins: Trinidad and Tarver.

If we're just speculating for arguments sake that Calzaghe beats Hopkins, I think wins over Kessler and Hopkins would compare very favorably to wins over Trinidad and Tarver, and once you get past either of those names on their records, I don't think there's all that much to look at in terms of wins over great opponent...especially if you consider that guys like DLH and Wright were beyond their best weights when Hopkins fought them. If you want to throw in Glen Johnson for what he would go on to accomplish, that's fine, but Johnson wasn't all that accomplished at 160.

 

True, but a win over Tito is still much more credible than that of Lacy.

 

And I agree with Sly, the boxing significance/importance of this fight. Not with the top 10 p4p all-time, but these are two of the best and most accomplished fighters of this era and they're both pretty close to their prime weights and while neither is in their physical prime, both seem to have maintaned their level pretty well, because they are assuredly in their mental primes as fighters.