Whitaker was better than Hopkins is now coming into the fight. Nevertheless, both were againg, defensively sound fighters who started getting hit a good deal more than normal. Trinidad and Kovalev are great offensive guys and Kovalev goes to the body even more than Trinidad did. Pernell did score a flash knockdown that was not called v. Trinidad. Pernell had his moments but was beaten up and I see the same pattern for Hopkins as what happened to Whitaker v. Felix.
I picked Hopkins a while back before this fight was announced and I'm sticking to it. Kovalev's boxing skills are lacking/overrated. Plus, Hopkins asked for this fight. Props to Kovalev if he pulls it off but I just don't think his style is the style that beats Hopkins. Of course none of this matters if Hopkins can't handle Kovalev's power. But I think the old man knows what he's doing.
