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We may have seen the end of Bernard Hopkins last weekend. After his dominating win over Kelly Pavlik, Hopkins told BoxingScene.com's Jose "OnFire" Aguirre that his only motivation to continue fighting was to land the winner of the November 8 bout between Roy Jones Jr. and Joe Calzaghe. Calzaghe, who won a close decision over Hopkins in April, said that he was not interested in a Hopkins rematch and would not even consider the fight.
Jones has followed the lead of Calzaghe. He won a unanimous decision over Hopkins 15-years-ago and while the rematch was discussed about 20 times over the years, it just simply may never happen. Seaking with the father of BoxingScene, Tim Smith, at the Kingsway Gym in Manhattan, Jones was pretty serious when stating that no matter what Hopkins or the people say - there will be no rematch.
"I don't care what people say, I'm not fighting him," Jones said. "They can ask all they want. I'm through with him."
According to Jones, Hopkins turned down $8 million for a rematch back in 2001. He also spoke to Jones about a rematch in 2006, but Jones called it a ploy to land the fight with Tarver.
"After that I told him we were through," Jones said. "I told him that I wasn't going to ever fight him. I don't see how it's ever going to work out."
Jones did praise Hopkins for his win over Pavlik and said that he wasn't surprised by it.
"I thought he fought a brilliant fight," said Jones. "I wasn't surprised. Kelly Pavlik didn't have any experience. He hadn't fought anybody except Jermain Taylor. Kelly Pavlik didn't belong in the ring with someone with the kind of experience that Bernard Hopkins has." Source: Roy Jones Jr. - "Hopkins Can Forget a Rematch!" - Boxing News
Update 11-11-08
Bernard Hopkins has no interest in staging a rematch with Roy Jones Jr. He sat ringside at New York's Madison Square Garden and watched Jones take a beating at the hands of Joe Calzaghe. Jones won a decision over Hopkins fifteen-years ago and there was hope by both that a rematch could happen at some point in 2009, but the rematch was riding on a Jones win. Hopkins thought Jones looked terrible, old and feels that retirement is in order.
"I've never seen Roy look like that. He just didn't look healthy. I don't know if he wasn't feeling good, but he didn't look good. Physically he looked old. He face was shrunken. It looked like that against Trinidad. He just didn't look strong," Hopkins told boxing scribe Tim Smith of The New York Daily News. "I don't want to fight Roy, not after (Saturday) night. What's the point?"
Jones calls himself "Superman." Hopkins told Smith the Superman era is over because Jones' reflexes are no longer there to perform in the manner that created the Superman nickname.
"The things that he was able to do because he was Superman he can't do them anymore,"Hopkins said. "And those were the things that awed us with him - the fact that he didn't throw a jab and follow it and that he could throw that lead right from across the ring and land because he had such good reflexes -are the things that he can't do any more."
"Because he could do that and get away with it he never learned the basics. And when you get older and your legs go and you're not as fast as you once were that's what you go back to is the basics. He can't go back to it because he never learned the basics."
Hopkins doesn't think Jones has it anymore to be a force at any weight. He hopes his longtime rival will hang up the gloves and walk away before suffering a serious injury.
"I just hope Roy doesn't hustle his name and let them pimp him out. This is a cruel business," Hopkins said. "I think Roy should just roll out. I don't think he has the physical and mental ability to fight at any weight class - middleweight, super middleweight, light heavyweight, heavyweight. I think it's a wrap." Source: Hopkins: "No Interest in Jones Rematch, Roy Must Quit" - Boxing News
Jones has followed the lead of Calzaghe. He won a unanimous decision over Hopkins 15-years-ago and while the rematch was discussed about 20 times over the years, it just simply may never happen. Seaking with the father of BoxingScene, Tim Smith, at the Kingsway Gym in Manhattan, Jones was pretty serious when stating that no matter what Hopkins or the people say - there will be no rematch.
"I don't care what people say, I'm not fighting him," Jones said. "They can ask all they want. I'm through with him."
According to Jones, Hopkins turned down $8 million for a rematch back in 2001. He also spoke to Jones about a rematch in 2006, but Jones called it a ploy to land the fight with Tarver.
"After that I told him we were through," Jones said. "I told him that I wasn't going to ever fight him. I don't see how it's ever going to work out."
Jones did praise Hopkins for his win over Pavlik and said that he wasn't surprised by it.
"I thought he fought a brilliant fight," said Jones. "I wasn't surprised. Kelly Pavlik didn't have any experience. He hadn't fought anybody except Jermain Taylor. Kelly Pavlik didn't belong in the ring with someone with the kind of experience that Bernard Hopkins has." Source: Roy Jones Jr. - "Hopkins Can Forget a Rematch!" - Boxing News
Update 11-11-08
Bernard Hopkins has no interest in staging a rematch with Roy Jones Jr. He sat ringside at New York's Madison Square Garden and watched Jones take a beating at the hands of Joe Calzaghe. Jones won a decision over Hopkins fifteen-years ago and there was hope by both that a rematch could happen at some point in 2009, but the rematch was riding on a Jones win. Hopkins thought Jones looked terrible, old and feels that retirement is in order.
"I've never seen Roy look like that. He just didn't look healthy. I don't know if he wasn't feeling good, but he didn't look good. Physically he looked old. He face was shrunken. It looked like that against Trinidad. He just didn't look strong," Hopkins told boxing scribe Tim Smith of The New York Daily News. "I don't want to fight Roy, not after (Saturday) night. What's the point?"
Jones calls himself "Superman." Hopkins told Smith the Superman era is over because Jones' reflexes are no longer there to perform in the manner that created the Superman nickname.
"The things that he was able to do because he was Superman he can't do them anymore,"Hopkins said. "And those were the things that awed us with him - the fact that he didn't throw a jab and follow it and that he could throw that lead right from across the ring and land because he had such good reflexes -are the things that he can't do any more."
"Because he could do that and get away with it he never learned the basics. And when you get older and your legs go and you're not as fast as you once were that's what you go back to is the basics. He can't go back to it because he never learned the basics."
Hopkins doesn't think Jones has it anymore to be a force at any weight. He hopes his longtime rival will hang up the gloves and walk away before suffering a serious injury.
"I just hope Roy doesn't hustle his name and let them pimp him out. This is a cruel business," Hopkins said. "I think Roy should just roll out. I don't think he has the physical and mental ability to fight at any weight class - middleweight, super middleweight, light heavyweight, heavyweight. I think it's a wrap." Source: Hopkins: "No Interest in Jones Rematch, Roy Must Quit" - Boxing News
