Joe Smith Jr: The man who retired Bernard Hopkins

Image: Joe Smith Jr: The man who retired Bernard Hopkins

By Yannis Mihanos: If history teaches us something is mistakes that people do and how to do our best to avoid them. The trick to best retirement is to retire when people still need you. Look for example Floyd Mayweather Jr, he is more than a year retired and people still cannot stop thinking about him and demanding for him to return.

When people don’t need you anymore, it means you have gone way over the hill and turned yourself to obsolete.

It ain’t pretty when you lose especially when you have just announced your retirement. Many fighters wish to finish at a high note but only a few can realize it.

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Richardson glad Hopkins didn’t get hurt in knockout loss

Image: Richardson glad Hopkins didn’t get hurt in knockout loss

By Eric Baldwin: Bernard Hopkins’ former trainer Naazim Richardson was happy that B-Hop didn’t get hurt last Saturday night in his 8th round TKO loss to Joe Smith Jr. (23-1, 19 KOs) in their fight on HBO from the Forum in Inglewood, California. Somehow, Hopkins slide out of the ring in round 8 after taking four hard shots to the head from Smith Jr.

Hopkins fell on his back on the floor outside of the ring. He said his ankle was hurt and couldn’t get back into the ring. Hopkins didn’t like receiving a knockout.

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Hopkins’ right ankle was hurting him too much to continue

Image: Hopkins’ right ankle was hurting him too much to continue

By Jeff Aranow: After getting knocked out of the ring in the 8th, Bernard Hopkins would have climbed back in the ring last night to continue fighting against Joe Smith Jr. (23-1, 19 KOs) if he hadn’t injured his right ankle during the fall.

Hopkins, 52, says his ankle hurt too much for him to be able to continue fighting. Hopkins’ ankle was throbbing. Hopkins was stopped in the 8th when he failed to get back into the ring in the 8th in his fight against Smith Jr. at the Forum in Inglewood, California.

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The secret of Bernard Hopkins

Image: The secret of Bernard Hopkins

By Yannis Mihanos: What is his secret of Bernard Hopkins? Staying there and hanging tough with the big guns of boxing, fighting against people much younger. It surely takes something special to do it.

Hopkins might never have had that blinding speed or amazing fist strength but he had things that many others failed to have at a consistent daily basis: self-discipline, and mastery of a mind that could turn anytime and anything into a weapon.

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Hopkins-Smith Jr. and Usyk-Mchunu – Official weights

Image: Hopkins-Smith Jr. and Usyk-Mchunu - Official weights

By Dan Ambrose: Bernard Hopkins (55-7-2, 32 KOs) weighed in successfully at 174 pounds for his fight against WBC International light heavyweight champion Joe Smith Jr. (22-1, 18 KOs) for their fight on HBO Boxing this Saturday night at the Forum in Inglewood, California. Smith Jr. weighed in at 175lbs.

Hopkins, 51, did a lot of talking to the 27-year-old Smith Jr. during the face off after the weigh-in. It looked like Hopkins was trying to get into the head of the Long Island fighter to unnerve him and gain an edge for the fight.

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Smith Jr: I expect Hopkins to run like he did against Kovalev

Image: Smith Jr: I expect Hopkins to run like he did against Kovalev

By Dan Ambrose: #2 WBC light heavyweight contender Joe Smith Jr. (22-1, 18 KOs) can’t wait to get 51-year-old former two division world champion Bernard “The Executioner” Hopkins (55-7-2, 32 KOs) this Saturday night so that he can shut him up and “retire a legend” at the Forum in Inglewood, California.

The Hopkins-Smith Jr. fight will be televised on HBO Boxing. Hopkins has been doing a lot of trash talking in calling Smith Jr. a “Common” man, and mentioning him in the same sentence as former middleweight champion Kelly Pavlik, who Hopkins beat by a one-sided 12 round decision eight years ago in 2008.

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Hopkins vs. Smith Jr. & Usyk vs. Mchunu this Saturday

Image: Hopkins vs. Smith Jr. & Usyk vs. Mchunu this Saturday

By Eric Baldwin: Bernard Hopkins (55-7-2, 32 KOs) will be putting a cap on his career this Saturday night on December 17 in facing light heavyweight contender Joe Smith Jr. (22-1, 18 KOs) in a 12 round bout at the Forum in Inglewood, California. HBO Championship Boxing will be televising the card.

The co-feature fight between WBO cruiserweight champion Oleksandr Usyk (10-0, 9 KOs) and Thabiso Mchunu (17-2, 11 KOs) might ultimately provide more entertainment for the boxing public, however. That fight looks to be a competitive one on paper, as long as Usyk mixes it up more than he did in his recent 12 round unanimous decision win over Krzystof Glowacki last September.

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Bernard Hopkins: This is the final one

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By Allan Fox: 51-year-old former two division world champion Bernard “The Executioner” Hopkins (55-7-2, 32 KOs) will be wrapping up his boxing career next month against the highly ranked Joe Smith Jr. (22-1, 18 KOs) on December 17 at the Forum in Inglewood, California.

Hopkins has been a pro for 28 years, which longer than the 27-year-old Smith Jr. has been on this earth. Hopkins hasn’t fought in two years since his one-sided 12 round unanimous decision defeat at the hands of former light heavyweight champion Sergey “Krusher” Kovalev in November 2014.

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Joe Smith Jr. Q&A: Talks about December battle with Bernard Hopkins

1-Andrzej Fonfara vs. Joe Smith Jr._Fight_Nabeel Ahmad _ Premier Boxing Champions7

By Ian Aldous: On December 17th from the Forum in California and live on HBO, Joe Smith Jr. (22-1) will become a part of boxing history when he faces the legendary Bernard Hopkins (55-7-2) in what will be the future Hall-of-Famer’s final ever fight inside a boxing ring. Last week, Joe took some time to talk with me over the phone ahead of the potentially career-defining bout.

IA: When I spoke to you prior to your fight with Andrezj Fonfara (1st round TKO win), you told me he wouldn’t be able to stand and trade with you. I guess your prediction was right, but were you surprised at how quickly and emphatically you dealt with him?

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Oleksandr Usyk to fight on Hopkins-Smith Jr. card on Dec.17

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By Jim Dower: WBO cruiserweight champion Oleksandr Usyk (10-0, 9 KOs) is tentatively scheduled to fight on the undercard of the Bernard Hopkins vs. Joe Smith card on December 17 on HBO Boxing from The Forum in Inglewood, California. It’s still not a done deal, according to Dan Rafael, but it’s in being worked on.

This would be a great addition to the Hopkins-Smith card if Usyk could be added, because he’s a fighter that is heading towards stardom in the sport. Usyk captured a gold medal in the 2012 Olympics for Ukraine, and he recently defeated the highly respected World Boxing Organization cruiserweight champion Krzysztof Glowacki by a 12 round unanimous decision on September 17 in Gdansk, Poland.

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