(Photo credit: Tom Casino/Showtime) By Allan Fox: 48-year-old IBF light heavyweight champion Bernard Hopkins (53-6-2, 32 KO’s) he was approached by some “powerful people” about him facing 36-year-old Floyd Mayweather Jr. in 2014. The fight would involve Hopkins coming down two divisions in weight to face Mayweather at middleweight.
Nothing was said from Hopkins about whose these powerful people are, and whether there would be a rehydration clause in the contract to keep Hopkins from ballooning up to the 190s after he makes the 160 lb. weight limit, if he even could make the weight.
Hopkins said in a press release “It was a conversation said to me, and that’s why I responded…when I realized that there is a fight that they owe him in May of next year, and whether I’m willing or can I make 160, and I said, well, if I have that much time…They didn’t act like they were joking, and we’re talking powerful people. So I’m sitting back saying, ‘Okay.'”
Hopkins has a fight this Saturday night against Karo Murat (25-1-1, 15 KO’s) on Showtime at the Boardwalk Hall, in Atlantic City, New Jersey, USA. It’s supposed to be an easy fight for Hopkins, but you never know. Hopkins will be turning 49 in January and it’s possible he could slide at anytime and go downhill in terms of his skills.
It’s difficult to imagine Floyd Jr. saying yes to a fight against the aged Hopkins because there are so many reasons why it wouldn’t be a good idea starting with the age of Hopkins. If Mayweather were to beat him, he wouldn’t get a lot of credit because of how old Hopkins is. Beating a guy that is near 50, gives Hopkins an excuse for why he would lose the fight, and it would also leave many fans with the same belief. It’s also a fight that wouldn’t attract a ton of interest because Hopkins is not a huge star on the lines of Saul “Canelo” Alvarez. Hopkins has hardcore fans, but he’s probably not much more of a star than say Mike Alvarado or Tim Bradley. Whether that’s good enough for Floyd to take the fight is unknown. If Mayweather sees Hopkins as the best option because he’s a little more known among casual boxing fans than the options he would have, then it’s possible the fight could happen. But it’s doubtful that a fight between Mayweather and Hopkins would bring in huge PPV numbers. It might be seen as an old timers fight by fans due to the age of both fighters.
Mayweather would probably win the fight with ease due to Hopkins being weakened by coming down to 160, a weight that Hopkins hasn’t fought at in eight years since 2005. The only thing that could possibly make things tricky for Mayweather is if Hopkins is able to rehydrate to the 180s and enjoy a huge 30 lb. weight advantage in addition to his five inch height advantage. One of the reasons why Hopkins was so successful at middleweight for many years was his height and reach advantage over more of his opponents. If you put the 6’1″ Hopkins in with the 5’8″ Mayweather, who would probably weigh around 150 lbs. on fight night, the size differences between them would be tremendous.
The fight could happen if for no other reason that it would make money for Showtime, but it would be like a circus type of a fight and not fair to either fighter or the fans who would have to pay huge money to see something like that. If Hopkins won, it would be because of his size advantage. If Mayweather won, it would be because Hopkins was drained and incredibly old. Neither guy would gain much from a victory and the fans wouldn’t really learn a lot from the fight due to the weight and age differences between the two fighters. It would be like a sideshow fight instead of a real sporting event. Personally I would be turned off towards a fight like that because it would meaningless.
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