Cleverly vs Hopkins fight coming soon..............sighhhhhh

This is the 3rd year in a row that Cleverly has given the BBC Sports Journalists this story.

I wonder if they have a "Cleverly vs Hopkins fight this year" template saved.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/wales/21737204

It'd take a pretty big swing from Hopkins' point of view to make this fight happen - doesn't anyone else remember his tweet directed to both Warren and Cleverly the last time (of many) that the pair of them started name-dropping Bernard?

@FrankWarren@Nathan Cleverly: "Stop using my name to promote your BUM title holder."

Classic B-Hop.

If rumours are true that he's said he'd come over to the UK to fight Clev are true, plus with GBP looking to break in to the UK market who's to say that GBP wouldn't host it here?

88Chris05 wrote:It'd take a pretty big swing from Hopkins' point of view to make this fight happen - doesn't anyone else remember his tweet directed to both Warren and Cleverly the last time (of many) that the pair of them started name-dropping Bernard?

@FrankWarren@Nathan Cleverly: "Stop using my name to promote your BUM title holder."

Classic B-Hop.

thats right.

Plus didn't Hopkins call out Ward to his face on Saturday night.

Dan Rafael put a pic on twitter of Hopkins shouting at Ward who was commentating ringside.

But sure we all know what will come next..."we offered Bernard a lot of money , but he refused, he obviously is afraid to fight Nathan
"

According to Ward, Hopkins was basically saying to him (again) that there is no amount of money in the world that will get the two of them in the ring together. Sky Sports showed Hopkins awaiting Ward backstage after Ward beat Froch, where he said the exact same in front of a host of photographers and reporters, so it's not the first time he's distanced himself from the idea of fighting Ward.

Afterwards Hopkins was pretty clever in saying that he felt he could still beat "anyone at 175" but then only "most of the guys at 168." I think he knows which way the wind blows on a fight between him and Ward. The interviews I saw were the ones done by Kellerman immediately afterwards and also parts of the press conference where he mostly talked about how happy he was to have put Don King down and out for the final time. I'm hearing that, in some other interviews, he's apparently mentioned Ward's name as a future opponent but I'm yet to see anything which backs that up.

The tweet showed a pic Hopkins leaning over the ropes pointing at Ward and Rafael wrote "Hopkins calling Ward out!!!"

I think it would be stupid of Hopkins too as why get beat again straight after a big win (as what would happen).

I think Hopkins could beat clev and hold two belts then fight ward for a biggish payday. Easy win for Hopkins if clev fights his usual daft stand and trade with a sht eating grin on his face.

Thing is, Reborn, would Ward really want it? Not out of any fear of Hopkins, obviously, but for other factors?

The lad's already regarded as a bit of a no frills operator who not everyone wants to pay good money to watch; can you imagine how turgid twelve rounds of him against Hopkins might turn out to be? He showed he can turn it up against Dawson but another twelve round stinker right now isn't going to do him any favours.

And then, there's the question of what, if anything, Ward really has to gain from beating Hopkins. Everyone acknowledges that this isn't a peak (or anything like peak) version of Bernard we're seeing today; everyone would expect Ward to win just about every minute of every round and, when he does, how much credit would he really get?

Granted, people pointed to Hopkins' age when Taylor and Calzaghe beat him, but Hopkins was able to score subsequent good wins afterwards to show that their wins weren't all about catching him at the right time. However, if Ward beats him then I'm inclined to believe that Hopkins will run out of miracles soon in any case, so again I'm not sure it would be a win which could possibly look better in time like the aforementioned.

I mean, as Wingy said in his prediction video for Hopkins-Cloud, Bernard will eventually run out of time and Mother Nature will one day simply have to say to him, "Nope, sorry Bernard but not this time - you're an old fart!"

Besides, Ward has been pretty clear in saying that, right now, he has no interest in leaving the 168 lb weight class. Bernard's hinted that he could still make Super-Middleweight, mind you, but it's something to keep in mind all the same. I imagine Hopkins could make twelve stone without it taking too much out of him, but if he did then you'd only get a plethora of critics saying that he was weight drained in any case.

Unless Ward states his intention to clear out the Light-Heavyweights very, very soon, then I just don't think a fight between him and Hopkins makes all that much sense.

I hear ya mate.

Problem is for Ward though.......who does he fight???

Bute & Pascal look set to go at it, Froch and Kessler the same...

Hopkins is about as big as he could get.

A fight with a fringe level fighter isn't really going to be tolerated for Ward now he has set his standard so high. So high in fact that there isn't anyone in or around his weight that generates much interest. We all know that Ward would win every second of every round against Hopkins. But he would also win every second of every round against the rest of them more or less.

I see nothing for him at 168 unless Chavez Jr, Martinez, GGG etc deceide to move up and I can't see fights with either happening. Chavez Jr still some cream to be milked by Bob, Martinez a bit small , and GGG still trying to make a name for himself.

For me, as much as it pains me to say it, a Hopkins fight probably has as many pros and cons as a fight with anyone else in 168 / 175 land at this point.

Hopkins doesn't want the Ward fight, he made that pretty damn clear, he said "I wouldn't fight you for no money" about 3 bazillion times. He knows he wouldn't beat Ward at this stage of his career, though I think he maybe would have relished it a fair few years back.

Reborn-DeeMcK-Reborn wrote:

88Chris05 wrote:It'd take a pretty big swing from Hopkins' point of view to make this fight happen - doesn't anyone else remember his tweet directed to both Warren and Cleverly the last time (of many) that the pair of them started name-dropping Bernard?

@FrankWarren@Nathan Cleverly: "Stop using my name to promote your BUM title holder."

Classic B-Hop.

thats right.

Plus didn't Hopkins call out Ward to his face on Saturday night.


Dan Rafael put a pic on twitter of Hopkins shouting at Ward who was commentating ringside.

But sure we all know what will come next..."we offered Bernard a lot of money , but he refused, he obviously is afraid to fight Nathan
"

Hopkins did the exact opposite of call him out. He said he wouldn't fight him for any money, and that is very wise, considering Ward would destroy him

Pure BS from Dan Rafael then isn't it, usually he's pretty solid, strange.

Reborn-DeeMcK-Reborn wrote:I hear ya mate.

Problem is for Ward though.......who does he fight???

Good question, and one that doesn't really have an easy answer right now and while it's frustrating that Ward's only boxed once in the fifteen months since he won the Super Six, it's also a bit of an indicator of the lack of really good fights out there for him now, particularly if he insists on staying at twelve stone.

Kessler and Froch are tricky to sell given how consumately Ward beat them. Obviously whoever wins that one in May is likely to get another crack at Ward (again, he's simply going to have to go over old ground if he's staying put at Super-Middle) and they'd deserve it, particularly Froch who really put it all on the line by taking on Bute straight after his loss to Ward, but it'd be hard to get those first fights out of the mind.

Abraham is going to be permanently at a lower rung than those three from now on and doesn't carry any real financial clout anyway (and again, he barely won a minute of a round against Ward in any case). It remains to be seen if Andre Dirrell can make up for lost time, and his brother Anthony is suffering with injuries left, right and centre. Pascal isn't going to move back down after blaming his loss to Froch on being tight at the weight and also having seen what happened to Dawson, Bika brings nothing but another ugly spectacle and the likes of DeGale and Groves are just a little too wet behind the ears to go in against him right now.

To be honest, the only real fight that seems worthwhile at all for Ward right now at 168 lb is a rematch against the winner of Froch-Kessler II. After that, I'd be very disappointed if he didn't seek out new challenges at Light-Heavyweight, unless the 168 lb landscape changes dramatically over the next few months.

There'll be the Froch v Ward rubber match

AlexHuckerby wrote:Hopkins doesn't want the Ward fight, he made that pretty damn clear, he said "I wouldn't fight you for no money" about 3 bazillion times. He knows he wouldn't beat Ward at this stage of his career, though I think he maybe would have relished it a fair few years back.

did you watch the cloud fight? hopkins clearly says after the fight to ward he will fight him on any channel for as little money as needed to secure the fight, and that hes gonna kick his ass. ward either missheard or is playing games

dan rafael is correct. hopkins did call ward out. he went straight to that side of the ring after the 12th, and asked ward for the fight. ward claimed afterwards he couldnt hear what hopkins was saying, but it was clear to me. most of the footage of hopkins saying he wouldnt fight ward is from a while back. hopkins seems to have changed his mind and now wants the fight.

Reborn-DeeMcK-Reborn wrote:

88Chris05 wrote:It'd take a pretty big swing from Hopkins' point of view to make this fight happen - doesn't anyone else remember his tweet directed to both Warren and Cleverly the last time (of many) that the pair of them started name-dropping Bernard?

@FrankWarren@Nathan Cleverly: "Stop using my name to promote your BUM title holder."

Classic B-Hop.

thats right.

Plus didn't Hopkins call out Ward to his face on Saturday night.

Dan Rafael put a pic on twitter of Hopkins shouting at Ward who was commentating ringside.

But sure we all know what will come next..."we offered Bernard a lot of money , but he refused, he obviously is afraid to fight Nathan
"

"So we are going to fight this nurse who we met last week"

Or "Nathan's local plumber is 16-3, we can't afford to slip up against him or the Hopkins fight is gone"