Is anyone actually impartial anymore? I'm a brit and therefore will probably be accused of nut hugigng for even mentioning Joe but I don't care. Many said Lacy would mess Joe up, didn't happen. Then he goes and fights a guy younger, stronger, ranked as no two behind him and wins convincingly. Then he lands the most punches anyone has on BHop (I think). And still people poke fun at him and say he needs to fight this guy or that guy. Why not just be honest and say I don't like the guy? Look its easy I don't like Bernard Hopkins because of his stupid white boy comment and constantly going on about where he came from. He's loaded now and WE KNOW he was in jail. Its a good story but we don't need it on repeat... Its like when guys below a fighter, Froch is a good example in this case, claim the main man is avoiding them. Actually it is just unfortunate for Froch he'll always be behind Joe, its just timing. Like if Amir Khan thinks he can take Hatton the timing is wrong, nobodies fault, no big deal. This doesn't just have to be about Joe, what is it about a certain fighter that makes YOU think no matter what he does "I'm not impressed".
Joe's the fuckin man, good on the man takin out bhop in a hard fought fight. bring on Roy Jones or Anderson Silva maybe?
I don't get the Calzaghe hate at all either, what's the issue? He's a great fighter who has an entratining unorthodox style, with a 'your average guy' personality. & Has, as you mentioned, consistently proved himself. At the end of the day it's an issue of nationality, which is ridiculous to me. A lot of people just don't like British fighters for whatever reason. Personally I don't buy into that bullshit at all. If you're a good fighter, you're a good fighter. I don't need to see your passport.
lets be fair though, were all british and i support Calzaghe , Hatton and Bisping 100% against any yank anyday.
Speak for yourself, though I like Bisping, There are a lot of fighters I'd root for against him that aren't British.
It just depends on what type of fighter you like. Joe didn't win impressively against Hopkins, and (I hate to say it), alot of his punches looked like 'slaps' compared to Hopkins. Hopkins had cleaner, more effective punches, but Joe had more volume and was the aggressor. It was an ugly fight to be sure.
Really? Most of the post fight venom I've seen has been reserved for Hopkins. I don't understand hating on either of them, they're both incredible boxers who should be on any P4P list. BHops game is super gritty, bordering on dirty, but that's really a skill and part of the game. He makes outlandish comments to sell a fight, I don't think anyone can fault him for that too much. People get on Calzaghe as well, no fighter is perfect, but I don't think anyone who knows what they're seeing would hate on either man.
I respect Hopkins as a boxer and detest him as a human being. People are upset with Calzaghe because he clearly outboxed someone who has been nearly deified in boxing for reasons I'll never understand. When you outclass somebody that people hold in such high regard, there's bound to be some angst over it.
I don't see any un-due animosity. Most of the guys who aren't giving him credit are guys who weren't fans before the fight anyway. Hopkins accrues the same amount of criticism. It's pretty even-keel, and business as usual on an internet fight discussion board. No need to be overly sensitive about it.
Get real pal. Most people who hated Calzaghe hated him long before the Hopkins fight. The things he's been criticized for the most are not fighting outside of the UK, and for having what is referred to as a "slappy" style. That's primarily it. But fans of any Sport get to decide who they like and who they don't like. That's part of the deal of being a Sports fan.
Even if this fight was ugly, he still has had some really good fights. His bout with Kessler I thought was amazing. Can't hate the guy off of one fight.
It's quite simple really. Hopkins was using perimeter of the ring hte whole fight leaving Calzaghe with two options: get wild and crazy and lunge in with power shots and risk getting countered to death by Hopkins, or throw a punch of short punches to accumulate points. He wisely did the latter.
I actually think opinion towards Calzaghe has been getting a lot more positive recently. He has proved himself in his last few fights and I think the animosity towards him is dying off a bit.
That's not precisely true. And it's certain not a way to bait a counter-puncher and counter-punch them. Calzaghe found his rythm, that's true, but the first 4 and 1/2 rounds he fell right in with what Bernard wanted him to do. Swarming is one way to get to a counter-puncher, but it's not often the most effective way.
I dont hate Cal. He's just a slappy amateurish fighter that's beatable. I think people are slow to get on his bandwagon because of that.
good job to Joe, I wanted him to win in an entertaining way but unfortunately Bernards cheap, hold and pray strategy prevented this from being a great fight. Good job to Joe, and I hope Bernard never fights again, such a boring disappointment.
I thought Joe won and also that he should've received all of BHOP's purse due to Bernard being the most visually disastrous fighter to watch all time
