Hopkins Dominates Tarver
Sunday June 11, 2006
Bernard Hopkins promised he would retire after his fight against Antonio Tarver. If he sticks to his word (which remains to be seen), then he is certainly going out in style. Hopkins dominated Tarver over 12 shockingly one-sided rounds. Hopkins, at 41 and in his first fight at light heavyweight, went into the bout as a 3-1 underdog. However, Hopkins looked stronger and fresher throughout -- even scoring a knockdown in the fifth when Tarver's glove briefly touched the canvas. Tarver, who reportedly lost 43 pounds to make weight after bulking up for his role in the next Rocky movie, gave one of the worst performances in a big fight in recent memory -- landing less than 10 punches in all but two rounds. Tarver, 37, seemed to lose confidence very early in the fight and appeared more concerned with going the distance than he did with actually trying to win the fight. All three judges scored the bout 118-109 for Hopkins.
For Hopkins, the win caps off a Hall of Fame career by adding another big name to his resume. For Tarver - who also lost a $250,000 bet that he'd knock out Hopkins before the sixth round - the loss is devastating. If this was his final fight - and he didn't sound too interested in continuing his career in the post-fight interview - he'll be remembered as the guy who knocked out Roy Jones Jr. ... but little else. He better hope that the upcoming Rocky movie is a hit . . .
Comments
BERNARD HOPKINS IS ALWAYS BEEN POUND FOR POUND THE SMARTEST BOXER OF HIS GENERATION AND NOW HES GETTING HIS DUE
I was lucky enough to attend this fight and it was amazing. You would not believe the energy that crowd poured out for Hopkins. It was a fantastic performance by Hopkins and an unforgettable night. If only Tarver had bothered to show up…
Just to clarify that was not Hopkins first fight as a light heavy, when he fought his first pro fight it was as a light heavy
I believe they both should retire. It is shameful to be a champion and come in and fight like Tarver did and no matter how well Hopkins fought he has a style that puts you to sleep. He is not an exciting fighter. I’m glad I saw Cotto’s fight instead on that night.
BHops is the greatest fighter of all time. I am glad I was alive while he was!!
tarver prbly thght he cld take da nite off w/o get dat ass whppd! obvsly he was rong. bhop whppd dat ass all arnd da ring. roy whppd both of their asses. i really want bhop 2 stp letn $$ b da detrmn’n fctr as 2 wthr he rmtchs roy or not. cuz i as well as he prbly knows, he’ll get dat ass toasted!!!
Hopkins is probably the greatest boxer ever. He held his middleweight championship for ten years. He went from May 23rd 1993 until July 16 2006 without a loss. Through it all Hopkins remained very respectful to most of his opponents. Hopkins has never been knocked out or TKO’d. He has only been knocked down a few times. Nobody else can boast that.
TARVER SUCKS! HIS WHOLE CAREER IS AN ACCIDENT. WATCH THE RJJ KO FIGHT. HE JUST HIT RJJ AT THE RIGHT TIME-NO SKILL INVOLVED. ANY FIGHTER THAT HAD SOMEWHAT OF A NAME, HE BARELY BEAT! THIS MAN IS A JOKE AND B-HOP PROVED JUST THAT. HE’S A ONE HIT WONDER. STOP LIVING IN THE PAST AND SHOW US SOMETHING NEW. HIS FIGHTS ARE LIKE A BEDTIME STORY-THEY PUT MY ASS TO SLEEEEEEEEEEP. B-HOP KICKED HIS ASS & IT WAS TOO FUNNY TO WATCH.
did any of you people who say Hopkins is the greatest figher of his generation, etc, etc actually seen his fight against Roy Jones when both were at their primes? It wasn’t even competitive. Jones dominated and barely broke a sweat.
Tarver sucks, he fought roy jones when roy has fallen way off his prime. If Antonio fought roy 5 or 6 years ago-he would’ve gotten his ass whooped by RJJ the great.