By Dan Ambrose: WBC light heavyweight champion Bernard Hopkins is getting the utmost out of the huge amount of talent that he’s been blessed with in his career. He’s accomplished things that the vast majority of fighters can only dream of.

However, there comes a time when it all ends. Nothing lasts forever and it looks as if Hopkins is about to hit the ceiling in what he can accomplish in his October 15th fight against 29-year-old Chad Dawson (30-1, 17 KO’s).

If you look around the internet, the run of the mill average boxing fan sees a sure thing victory for Hopkins against the younger dare I say more talented Dawson. However, I see these same boxing fans being pretty much in the dark about how good Dawson, and they don’t recognize true talent when they’re seeing it with their own eyes.

Dawson is the real deal, and other than an off night against Jean Pascal last year, Dawson’s record is unblemished. Fans see what Hopkins has been accomplishing recently in wins over Enrique Ornelas, Roy Jones Jr, and Pascal and think that means that Hopkins will beat Dawson.

Sorry, that’s not how it goes. All Hopkins proved is that he can beat a handful of guys that are made for him. Jones is shot, Ornelas is a fringe contender and Pascal is a four round fighter that fights in only brief spurts. These are guys that Hopkins can still beat.

Dawson, however, is a completely different guy altogether. He’s on another level in terms of boxing skills and talent. Dawson likes to jab, throw combinations and make his opponents miss. He’s not a fighter that Hopkins is going to be able to maul on the inside, because he’s stupid enough to fight Hopkins’ fight.

For Hopkins to beat Dawson, he has to make the mistake of throwing zero punches and just wrestling with Hopkins in close. I don’t see that happening, I really don’t. Hopkins’ work rate is pretty much anemic now, and he seems to struggle to get to the 30 punch per round plateau. That’s not going to be nearly enough to beat the much busier Dawson, who is going to be jabbing and tagging Hopkins all night long with power shots.

Unlike Hopkins’ loss to Joe Calzaghe in 2008, in which Hopkins complained bitterly afterwards that he should have got the decision, Dawson is going to leave no question that he’s the better man on October 15th. He’s going to beat Hopkins so soundly that even Hopkins won’t be able to complain afterwards saying that he should have won.