Is This True About Pavlik?

It's funny this sort of thing happens to fighters after they get beat down like that. "It wasn't me in the ring." (direct quote from pavlik). "It was like my soul was taken from me, I wasn't the same person that night" (direct quote from Tarver). Tarver even went as far as to say, perhaps maybe he was poisoned just before the fight!!

Listen, when guys like tarver/pavlik get their one weapon that has worked for them their entire lives away from them for the very first time, and they have no other weapons, they look like absolute ****. And that's what Hopkins does to people - he takes way what they do best and when that's gone, most people have nothing and get schooled. That's what happened to Glen Johnson, Tarver, Trinidad and now Pavlik. Even Cazlaghe to a lesser extent (he threw half the amount of punches he normally does and output is his best weapon).

They don't understand why they did so poorly, so excuses come out flying - I was sick, it wasn't me, I was poisoned. Etc.

 

agree totally.

too often in big fights we hear about ailments or injuries that may or may not have affected them. it's immaterial at the end of the day.

 

"For me not to even fight and perform, it is beyond me. So I am thinking it was like my spirit was taken from me. But I was not myself. I cannot blame it on my trainer because we trained properly. We were ready. For me not to fight and get hit with straight right hands all night (is mystifying). My reflexes were not there, my counter punching ability was not there. Something went terribly wrong." -

This content is protected

"What pissed me off the most is it wasn't me in there. Every round I was in great shape, I wasn't tired. I wasn't a bit winded. It was just like I had - nothing. I threw a jab, I couldn't double up on it. He moved to the right, I couldn't get off. When we locked up, I tried to go to the body and I just couldn't do it. I couldn't get anything off and we were just holding.

"And it's not that he's that good. For crying out loud he lost to Jermain Taylor, twice. I beat Jermain Taylor twice, I beat him by decision and I knocked him out. It has nothing to do with his athleticism or his craftiness. Jermain Taylor hit him at will. Calzaghe hit him at will. It's just that I didn't have anything. That's not my excuse. I'm not making an excuse. I got beat. I got my butt whipped. It was just a bad night, an off night."

"I felt comfortable [at the weight]. If it did [cause my problems], I don't know of the situation. I'm not going to make an excuse right now because in the locker room, for the last couple of days, I felt great at that weight so I don't know if that was an issue or not. We are just going to go back to the drawing board" -

This content is protected

I think it's clear that it has EVERYTHING to do with "his athleticism and his craftiness!" I think hopkins is just that good at taking away his opponents best weapon and for some guys, like Pavlik, Tarver, Trinidad, Johnson, etc., once that's taken away they have NOTHING.

 

So are you saying that the reporter who recorded the conversation that was posted is a liar, or are you saying that a fighter who is sick should fight like he's a 100%? Those are really the only choices you have. If you want to refuse to acknowledge the fact that sometimes there are valid reasons for a poor performance, you yourself must perform at your absolute best no matter how sick you might be, either that, or you are a hypocrite.

 

Are you writing pavlik's loss off as a fluke, due to the fact he was sick? Even though post-fight (when the emotions are flying), pavlik said he felt perfectly fine?

Listen, if pavlik was feeling a little sick you can write off a couple things - maybe he wouldn't punch as hard. Maybe he would get fatigued late in the fight. But to get completely dominated from the opening bell to the final bell cannot be written off like that! Hopkins is a bad style for pavlik and hopkins knew exactly what to do (lateral movement! he took away kellys jab away, kelly couldn't set up, he had no 1-2's and after that, nard created distance, he would spin him around, kelly has nothing left without his jab and his 1-2).

 

I stepped in the ring for the final time 15 years BEFORE YOU WERE ****ING BORN *******.

And what the **** do you mean "there is no such thing as a legitimate loss?" That is either a typo, and if it is, no big deal, or else you are dumber than a box of rocks.

 

I heard pavlik was pushed on a wheelchair to the ring + he was hit by a car on his way to the stadium.
True story

 

Sick or not its irrelevant. Hopkins had his kryptonite and took his 1-2, flatfooted, double jab thirowing ass too school.

I'm not even a BHOP fan, but I appreciated the lesson he dished out. Pavlik fights in straight lines and I was wiating for this to happen. I really want to see AA vs Pav now to see how he comes back. As the 2nd Taylor fight showed Pavlik is slower and packs less power over 160. He should stay there, maybe a Williams fight could pay the kind of $ he is chasing against the BIG boys.

 

I'm more positively impressed that he's fought Hopkins when he could have fought some hyped up journeyma at MW instead, than I am negatively impressed that he's lost his "unbeatable" tag.

 

Actually -- I agree with you in part. It's ironic that I predicted over a year ago that KP would lose to a slick boxer, and that it would probably happen at LHW. No way did I expect THAT to happen in 2008!

On the other side of the argument, anyone could see that he was nowhere near 100%. That was obvious within 3 rounds. I never imagined that BHop had enough left in the tank to fight the way he did for 12 rounds. I figured he could do it for 4 or 5 rounds, but he did it all night, and that is impressive. Wth Pavlik at 100% it would have been a very good, possibly great fight, not a one sided shellacking.

 

Lets jus say that Pavlik was indeed sick like he says. That changes nothing. If he was not 100% then he had to atleast be 80% or 85%...maybe even 90% and he got dominated. If he was 100% then it would have been closer, but he still would have lost.

 

Bad math. You don't have to lose much speed to make a big difference.

 

excuses, even pavlik at full health might have won one or two rounds compared to none