On December 18th Bernard Hopkins, pugilist-agitator-legend will attempt to prolong the frustrating odyssey normalized by aging fighters in the modern landscape. Hopkins will be jumping ship from HBO to Showtime and challenging young Jean Pascal for the legitimate Ring Magazine Championship at Light Heavyweight. While brothas of a certain age are now arguing the legacy of Jordan vs. Kobe and fending off the passage of our own virility, aging boxers continue to earn big bucks for being (shall we say) less than potent. Hopkins stands unique, still brutally skillful (albeit boring as hell), he has become a part of the machine that keeps the flow of new blood at a standstill in a sport craving rejuvenation. Brett Favre may have gotten his coach fired and acted defacto GM but Bernard Hopkins is actually a “suit” with all the perks of deception and commerce that come with the title. As a promoter he is more practiced and calculated in his rants rarely saying anything that wasn’t meant to sell you an often boring fight. As the head of a vanguard of older fighters wringing HBO dry of resources, Bernard’s comments are often the most provocative thing he has to offer. God forbid he engages in a battle worth any of us talking about, so with nothing compelling (aka “new”) to say about his upcoming battle with Pascal Bernard has earned my interest with his running commentary on his favorite topic.
Race
Chris Rock joked that there’s nobody more racist than old black men and we laughed the kind of laugh that also hurts. I am a black man in my 40’s and it still amazes me to think about some of the so-called taboos we just accepted as “life, and I grew up in the 80’s! I certainly can’t imagine the dark side to the intensity of Bernard Hopkins, who grew up in the streets of Philadelphia and went to prison. However, I do know he fancies himself as being of the same ilk as Bill Russell which is far from the truth. Bernard spoke up for himself and his right to be compensated justly, Russell and Jim Brown spoke up for the economic (and social) development of all black people. In his current state Bernard’s comments on Manny Pacquiao and race are the only issues keeping him relevant as we all know threats of knocking out Pascal are falling on deaf ears. But unlike my dismissal of Floyd Mayweather Jr.’s childish Pacquiao rant, I choose to take Bernard to task for this, because his “observation” is a companion piece to his stupid “I’ll never let a white boy beat me comment.” So let us dig deeper into Bernard’s statements and the idea that there are and always will be “cultural” fighting styles.
Bernard is shilling for a Golden Boy Partner and contemporary
Stating that Sugar Ray Leonard would give Manny Pacquiao trouble isn’t inflammatory, because he would beat Mayweather and Mosley just the same. Not because of speed or any “slickness” but because Ray Leonard is bigger and more versatile than the three men in question. Sergio Martinez, if he can boil down to 150 lbs. will do the same thing to all three men that Ray Leonard would -and he isn’t black. Remember, this was Bernard saying Pacquiao avoided black fighters and he’s calling for a fight with Shane Mosley who has been anything but “slick”� in his dotage. Do any of you think for one minute GBP won’t find a way into co-promotion of a Mosley vs. Pacquiao bout? There’s probably an injunction waiting to fly as we speak, pointing out small print Shane didn’t read as I write this. If boxing’s “freedom fighter” was so interested in brothas getting a shot, where was he when Philadelphia’s own Zahir Raheem needed him?
Hell, Manny can still make 140 lbs; did Bernard stump for Devon Alexander, a clear example of the “style” he is referring to? How many of you will be surprised that if Andre Berto signs with Golden Boy he will become the “brotha” Manny Pacquiao is ducking? (Despite not being able to beat Luis Collazo cleanly). Will he accuse Manny of beating up old Mexicans if he is out promoting Pacquiao/Marquez III? I’m pretty sure he won’t, he’s not interested in taking positions that negatively affect his bottom line. Is there a “black” style? If so, is it even relevant in an increasingly global sport?
What is the “Black” style Bernard speaks of?
In taking his shot at Pacquiao Hopkins pointed out that there’s an aggression that ghetto blacks have that he’s avoided. Hmmm? Yeah man that hood in Pomona is rough, you can’t get caught slipping in the PA 2 the CA. Manny’s beginning was just as humble and desperate as a lot of black fighters, yet unlike Hopkins he isn’t in the business of glamorizing it. To me, the African American “style”� I enjoy is not based on aggression but utilizing speed and reflexes to force opponents into mistakes. Call it defensive, cerebral or passive aggressive, when combined with athleticism this “style” is a style that is hard to beat. Yet, the world is changing around us and what old men like me and Bernard don’t see is the global impact of this. Take Hopkins as an example, he has never been “slick” to me but wily and tough. He can appear slick against Frankensteins like Kelly Pavlik, but he is more of a technician. Bernard is more Fritzie Zivic than Pernell Whitaker and his dependence on fundamentals is indicative of his lack of athleticism. The attributes he claims Manny is afraid of, speed and slickness, are what kept him from fighting Roy Jones again when Roy was “himself.”� The global sport of boxing is knocking over stereotypes the way Bernard knocked over cats like Antwun Echols back in the day. With frequency. Plenty of brotha’s appreciate Pacquiao, not for the pressure but the speed with which he can put pressure on a foe. The hardness Bernard claims only a certain type of “brotha” has is running rampant in the impoverished streets of General Santos City.
Dimitri Pirog knocked off touted African American Danny Jacobs on HBO earlier this yr with this so-called “black” style. It was VHS of Golden Boy to not realize that a Russian kid with gifts can emulate black fighters by way of watching youtube, imagine that. American Heavyweights, caught up in stereotypes believe they can just bypass Wlad Klitschko’s jab because he’s a glass chinned version of Rocky’s Ivan Drago. They haven’t noticed that a man that big has never been athletic enough to hook off the jab, but Klitschko can. Juan Manual Marquez was avoided for years at featherweight by fellow Mexicans because he was too slick, an attribute consistent with black fighters. Bernard looked like the one who lacked rhythm and spontaneity vs. Calzaghe in April 2008. Calzaghe was slick, had fast hands and feet with too many angles for Bernard, who seemed the textbook stiff he cautioned Pavlik to stop being. Joan Guzman, a Dominican, fights with slickness that Bernard claims only black fighters have; so where is his advocate? Maybe in years past cultural templates were more prevalent but like many old guys Bernard is the last to get the program upgrade. He probably listened to Eminem and actually saw no distinction between an all time great rapper and Vanilla Ice.
What kind of style did Jason Litzau just upset Celestino Caballero with a couple of weeks ago?
Before I close this examination and validate Bernard any further by discussing race, understand this. Black fighters have no more ownership of the pound for pound rankings than white football players have over the Quarterback position. Manny Pacquiao is exercising the same selective process put in place by our fractured industry and utilized by black fighters like Bernard and Roy Jones before him. We want Floyd to fight certain people, but for the competition not because we believe he is afraid of a particular ethnic group. Unfortunately, as if the stars had aligned for the worst two men, they have brought out the lowest in us from a racial standpoint. And I used to believe that men only broke off into racial tribes for survival, when they are incarcerated.
Hopkins by UD over Pascal, he would have never fought Chad Dawson had he won (vs. Pascal) for the very reasons he criticized Pacquiao. Pascal is short, (he ain’t no damned 5’11”), telegraphic and greener than Dawson which is why Bernard sees him as easy prey.
Of Pacquiao and “brothas,” specifically Mayweather
Manny Pacquiao’s resume was mostly legitimate at featherweight and super featherweight, two divisions populated by mostly Latin fighters. His time as a “star”� is really only two years old, he followed Floyd’s road to name brand relevance because Hatton and De La Hoya were still the mainstream benchmarks in 2008. Mayweather is the only African American who I believe can give him the stylistic problems seen in great black fighters and the monetary pay-off. Cotto was a stablemate and a viable money maker who beat the breaks off “slick”� Zab Judah and defeated Shane Mosley. Margarito would not be here had Mayweather wanted to fight Manny Pacquiao, and Floyd is as good as it gets in any color. What these two camps are struggling with has nothing to do with styles because there’s too much money on the table to avoid one another. Yet, the “relatives” of Mayweather are the ones obsessed with PDA’s that, if they were valid, no one could test for them. This is a family of geniuses, and if anyone was afraid of a style it is them -because they see what others don’t. Speed is a trait of elite athletes, Pacquiao is an elite specimen, just watch him play basketball, the most athletic game. Pressure is usually used by men who don’t have speed; Floyd’s defense can diffuse 1-2 punchers, he has a whole click of speed advantage over. Even Zab Judah, who was just as fast, was spooked out of moving his hands when Floyd shut him down. Floyd will have to fight a man who isn’t discernibly slower and rarely throws less than 4 punches- and this is a problem. Instead of looking for African American opponents on Manny’s ledger, ask yourself how many fast (hands/feet) pressure fighters are on Mayweathers? If there’s any fear of “blackness” I would say it’s the fear of the “blackness” in Manny Pacquiao.
Saul Alvarez vs. Chavez Jr.
Why not? They don’t like each another and neither is special enough to graduate beyond Mexican gate attraction. Maybe a catch weight battle can be the make up and kiss battle Top Rank and GBP need so they can get on with making real fights.
