A couple decades later, Hopkins ran those same streets again as a multi-millionaire boxer intent upon making history.
He did just that on Saturday when he pounded out a unanimous decision over Jean Pascal before 17,560 fans at the Bell Centre to become, at 46 years, four months and six days, the oldest man to ever win a world boxing championship. With the win, Hopkins claims the World Boxing Council light heavyweight belt more than 16 years after he won his first world title, earning it by scores of 116-112, 115-113 and 115-114.
Hopkins was the master craftsman throughout the fight. Pascal wound up hard, trying to take Hopkins’ head off with just about every punch. Hopkins, though, either made him miss entirely or was able to neutralize much of its power.
Pascal was unable to seriously hurt Hopkins, who said he thrives on dismantling the attack of young, aggressive fighters such as his opponent.
“He loads up on every shot and I know Pascal does that,” Hopkins said. “He loads up on those shots because he knows he’s a puncher. He thinks he’s a puncher and he wants to blow the house down, like the big, bad wolf. … He gets so excited and he has the testosterone going so high. He’s like, ‘Boom. Boom. Boom,’ and me, the old fox, wanted him to do that. I just leaned here, I leaned there and leaned there and you have a couple of misses.”
Nobody in boxing is more slick than Hopkins, who said he opted to train for the rematch against Pascal in his old haunts in North Philadelphia. He said he wanted to remind himself of old times, when life was a struggle and everything came hard.
When he does, it seems great things happen. He wouldn’t put a limit on how long he’ll fight but did point out that he won’t become an opponent and wind up taking beatings.
