Bernard Humphrey Hopkins Jr. is an American former professional boxer who competed from 1988 to 2016. He is one of the most successful boxers of the past three decades, having held multiple world championships in two weight classes, including the undisputed middleweight title from 2004 to 2005, and the lineal light heavyweight title from 2011 to 2012.
Hopkins first became a world champion by winning the IBF middleweight title in 1995. He would go on to compile 20 defenses, which remained a record for the weight class until 2018. In 2001 he successfully unified the middleweight division by defeating Félix Trinidad to win the WBA , WBC, Ring magazine, and lineal titles. A victory over Oscar De La Hoya for the WBO title in 2004 cemented Hopkins' status as undisputed champion, while also making him the first male boxer to simultaneously hold world titles by all four major boxing sanctioning bodies. In 2001, Hopkins was voted Fighter of the Year by The Ring magazine and the Boxing Writers Association of America. In 2011, The Ring ranked Hopkins as third on their list of the "10 best middleweight title holders of the last 50 years." As of March 2019, he is ranked by BoxRec as the eleventh greatest boxer of all time, pound for pound.After losing the undisputed title to Jermain Taylor in 2005 and failing to regain it in a rematch the same year, Hopkins achieved further success in 2006 when he moved up to light heavyweight, winning the IBO and Ring titles from Antonio Tarver at 42 years of age. Two defenses of the Ring title were made before a loss to Joe Calzaghe in 2008. Three years later, Hopkins defeated Jean Pascal for the WBC and lineal light heavyweight titles, as well as regaining the Ring title. This made Hopkins the oldest boxer in history to win a world championship, at the age of 46, breaking George Foreman's record set in 1994. Hopkins later broke his own record by winning the IBF light heavyweight title from Tavoris Cloud in 2013, and again in 2014 when he won the WBA title from Beibut Shumenov, at ages 48 and 49, respectively.Nicknamed "The Executioner", and later "The Alien", Hopkins was known among observers for his longevity and ability to continue competing successfully at an advanced age. Widely considered one of the greatest boxers of the modern era, he was a highly strategic and defensive boxer known for carrying good speed and power along with counterpunching skills. He credits mastering the boxing fundamentals and a great defense for his longevity in the sport. He was also a very seasoned fighter, being able to take advantage of a wide variety of situations in the ring and implement rough and dirty tactics while fighting on the inside or in a clinch.In the last years of his active career, Hopkins also became a minority partner with Golden Boy Promotions, with which he still remains post-career.
Wikipedia
“I am an old man, I just happen to be an old man that can fight.”
As quoted at "Calzaghe nicks round one" at BBC Sport (8 February 2008) http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/606/A32124377
2000s, 2008
As quoted in "Hopkins turns up heat on Calzaghe"at BBC News (14 November 2007)
2000s, 2007
“I feel in an executioner mood, I am going to punish him and punish him slowly.”
On a scheduled fight with Joe Calzaghe, as quoted in "Hopkins issues chilling warning" (19 February 2008) http://news2.thdo.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/boxing/7253985.stm
2000s, 2008
On Joe Calzaghe, as quoted in "Hopkins turns up heat on Calzaghe"at BBC News (14 November 2007) http://news2.thdo.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/boxing/7084427.stm
2000s, 2007
