Oldest champion turns 47
Bernard Hopkins never believed in three-headed cows until he saw a two-headed calf.
When Hopkins looked eye-to-eye at the mounted head, it made him contemplate what other kind of absurd animal roamed in the wild. Why couldn't a cow with three heads be alive and mooing?
Hopkins has never been afraid to look at life differently from the rest of the pack.
Imprisoned as a teen, at 46 the oldest boxer to win a major title, Hopkins stopped worrying long ago about what society thinks.
When the critics howl he should quit, or a promoter tells him his last pay-per-view fight bombed, Hopkins just ditches the Prada glasses and button-down designer vest and suit, steps again through the ropes and into a ring.
"I refuse to be the norm," he says.
At a 47th birthday celebration at a Philadelphia gym last week, Hopkins, who usually bobs and weaves around treats, licked the frosting off his cake. For a fighter known for a frugal lifestyle and a bedtime more suited for young children, it was a rare indulgence saved for a special occasion.
"Believe it or Not, Bernard Hopkins is 47," was inscribed on B-Hop's cake.
The event was less a birthday bash and more about the Philadelphia arrival of his wax figure. The likeness was created by Ripley's Believe It Or Not! in honour of Hopkins becoming the oldest boxer to win a world title. He did it in May 2011.
Hopkins's statue fits in somewhere between similar lifelike creations of the World's Tallest Man and the Mexican Vampire Woman.
It was on a visit to the Ripley's museum in Hollywood that Hopkins saw the double-headed calf. In a way, he could relate to the outcast bovine.
UGLY BOUT WITH DAWSON
As he draws closer toward the end of his career, the awe of winning major fights in his 40s has morphed into questions of why he's still fighting. After an ugly bout and a controversial, later overturned, finish against Chad Dawson in October, Hopkins knows his time is running out.
With 61 professional fights behind him, he appears on the brink of stepping away from the sport. He holds the WBC light-heavyweight title, but no immediate fights ahead.
He'd like to fight again in the spring, in Atlantic City, New Jersey, or even Canada. A rematch with Dawson is possible. If that falls through, Hopkins could challenge IBF super-middleweight champion Lucian Bute.
Either way, the time appears right for Hopkins, second only to Joe Frazier among Philly's greatest boxers, to quit.
Just don't expect him to retire because someone else tells him it's time.
"They can't give you a reason other than, 'You're 47 and you don't need to do it anymore,'" he says.
"I haven't had that type of fight to say that, physically, Bernard Hopkins should stop fighting, or his head is not right, or he can't put three sentences together, or he's fighting to keep his electricity on. That hasn't, and would not be, Bernard Hopkins."
The Dawson debacle was as bizarre an ending to a Hopkins fight as any in a career that began in 1988.
Dawson lifted Hopkins off his feet and tossed him on to the canvas. Hopkins landed on his back and immediately clutched his shoulder. He seemed unable to continue. Referee Pat Russell ruled Dawson had not fouled Hopkins and stopped the fight in the second round, awarding the belt to Dawson.
The California State Athletic Commission later overturned the decision and declared the bout a no-decision. The move means Hopkins still has never lost a fight by stoppage in his 23-year career.
"The thing about that fight that disappointed me was the people who seemed to lose confidence in Bernard," trainer Nazim Richardon said.
DETHRONED GEORGE FOREMAN
Hopkins has not knocked out an opponent since he beat Oscar de la Hoya in September 2004. That was 13 fights ago, one of which was the draw against Jean Pascal in 2010.
In the rematch, Hopkins beat Pascal on points and dethroned George Foreman as the oldest boxer to win a world title.
For the man known as The Executioner, there's little left to chase. "It's about maximising the dollars at this stage of my career, and what does it mean for me and my legacy," Hopkins said.
His legacy is secure as one of the all-time great middleweights. Outside the ring, he became known for his outlandish comments, like barking at Joe Calzaghe: "I'll never let a white boy beat me."
Hopkins insists he won't announce his retirement until after his final bout. He does not want a farewell tour.
Even in his down time, Hopkins keeps winning. A Philadelphia jury last week issued a no-merit ruling in his favour in a breach-of-contract action brought by the estate of Hopkins's former trainer, the late Bouie Fisher.
The suit sought $1.3 million (over R10 million) in unpaid trainer's fees for several fights in 2004 and 2005. Fisher, who moulded a raw Hopkins into a champion, died last year.
PATIENCE LEARNT IN PRISON
The veteran says what he learnt when he was in prison for strong-arm robberies helped him overcome obstacles on the outside.
"The greatest thing I had in prison, was patience," Hopkins said. "Let that clock run down 46 months. That's a long time when you're 17 years old.
“I had to have patience when this guy's trying to hang himself, this guy's trying to cut himself with a razor blade, and this guy is trying to escape any way he can. That's a strong discipline. I just transferred that discipline in there and I took it into my life."
With his dapper attire, millions stashed away, and full use of his senses, he has beaten the odds in the fight game. He has had enough career-defining performances to fill the resumes of many fighters.
Hopkins has everything, except for an overwhelming desire to close the book on his career.
"I will go out and I will finish this, whenever it is, the only way I know how," he says.
"My way."