I'm going with Hopkins late TKO here. In his performance against Glen Johnson he showed a high workrate and that he could crack a good chin. In the rest of his career he showed he spun southpaws in a web they couldn't escape from. I tend to think the speed of Nunn gives him massive issues but Bernard times him with rights coming in and that the body work he'd put in when Nunn stayed on the inside and slowly grind him out. Nunn's speed gives any MW problems though, B-Hop would probably be down on points when he stops Michael. Nunn has the capabilities to win but I can't see it with his style tbh. Although I'm a pretty large appreciator of Bernard H2H, moreso than most here.
Agree. I'm not completely sure about being down on points tho as i believe Hopkins would be very aggressive and try to smother him as every opportunity, plenty of bumrushing, mauling etc. Hopkins was brilliant strategically and he's not going to sit around letting Nunn have his way. Hopkins footwork is brilliant and he's the rare guy who can pretty much match Nunn for dimensions.
No need for me to type a response as George C and J.T have already written what I feel would happen. Cheers All
Hopkins menaces (did I use that right?) and bullies the finesse out of Nunn, imo, grinds him out and makes it really ugly.
I don't think anyone thinks Nunn stops Hopkins here, so the question is when did Nunn ever look good in a fight that went the distance, or even past 10 rds? He lost to Toney, basically drew with Barkley and outpointed Starling without really convincing. Prime Hopkins wouldn't let hims rest, he would press him harder than any of these three did. I just don't see how Nunn, based on how he actually performed in longer fights, handles that pressure well enough to win over 12 rds.
Heyy George: Did you watch the fight against Glen Johnson? Although it was a very good performance by Bernard to be sure, he never "cracked Johnson's good chin." Johnson was not off his feet, and the stoppage was pretty questionable (even if the result was never in question). And, Johnson hadn't exactly reached his best form as a fighter. He lost to the strong, but very limited, Merqui Sosa in his very next fight, and lost almost every time he stepped up his competition for several years after this. I am not saying that Bernard winning is an impossibility, But, Nunn is much better than anyone Bernard beat at Middleweight.
Yeah, I meant he stopped him and was the only guy too for another good 25 years. I agree it was pretty questionable and he could've kept going. My overall point was that he did stop him. I agree on the rest, although I tend not to look into Johnson's losses like other fighters. He lost all the time to guys he clearly better than. Nunn would be by far Hopkins's best MW opponent, bar Jones.
I love Nunn but I lean towards Bernard in this one. He had a way of winning fights that may not always have been pleasing but he was an expert at naturalizing the strengths of his opponents.
