LOS ANGELES — Bernard Hopkins is in a class of his own where boxing accomplishments are concerned. No active pro boxer has come close to achieving the number of milestones the light heavyweight champ has amassed during his amazing 23-year career.
Hopkins has two all-time boxing records to go with a dozen hall-of-fame-caliber statistics on his resume, but the 46-year-old veteran isn?t 100-percent satisfied with his impressive body of work.
Hopkins, who defends his RING and WBC light heavyweight titles against Chad Dawson on Saturday at Staples Center, spoke about doing something that would merit ?iconic status? against the talented 29-year-old contender during a recent media workout.
?Haven?t you already achieved that?? asked one of the boxing writers who managed to find the L.A. Sands Boxing Gym tucked away in the warehouse district on the edge of downtown.
?Nah, I haven?t done it yet,? Hopkins immediately shot back, shaking his sweaty shaved head without looking at the writer. ?Maybe knocking out Chad Dawson will do it.?
Maybe? Evidently, being the oldest world champion in boxing history (perhaps any pro sport) and taking on the No. 3-rated contender (according to THE RING) in his weight class doesn?t cut it for the hardnosed Philadelphia native.
Or maybe Hopkins is simply an extremely driven, goal-oriented competitor whose standards just happen to be higher than most.
Hopkins (52-5-2, 32 knockouts) began forging his legacy in the middleweight division, where he became the first undisputed champion since Marvelous Marvin Hagler by unifying all three major belts in 2001.
He followed that feat by breaking Carlos Monzon?s record for middleweight title defenses (14) in ?02. He racked up 20 defenses before he lost his titles via controversial split decision to Jermain Taylor in 2005, a loss that snapped a 12-year unbeaten streak.
