By Lyle Fitzsimmons, Sports Network
LAS VEGAS – As far as rivalries go, it was more vitriol than violence.
Outside of three Roy Jones Jr. fouls that each crumpled Bernard Hopkins to the canvas, the crowd of 6,792 at Mandalay Bay was treated to little in the way of action as the 45-year-old Philadelphia evened a 17-year-old score with a unanimous decision in their 12-round light heavyweight rematch.
On the short end of a unanimous verdict in Washington, D.C. back in 1993, Hopkins was a one-sided winner at least on paper the second time around, sweeping the cards with two counts of 117-110 and one of 118-109 in a fight that featured as much angst outside the ring as in it.
Largely back and forth while consistently non-interesting in the first five rounds, the fight livened up in the sixth when Jones landed a blow behind Hopkins’ head that drove him to the campus and earned a point deduction from referee Tony Weeks after a several-minute delay.
A skirmish broke out at the bell to end the round, when a member of the Jones entourage charged the ring to get at Hopkins and was subsequently removed by security officers.
The action waned again until Jones’ next foul, another blow behind the head that again sent Hopkins down – to the displeasure of the crowd who saw little cause – in the eighth round, though no points were taken for the infraction.
A low blow from Jones to Hopkins prompted the third would-be “knockdown,” before Hopkins rallied late in the round with a solid legal flurry to Jones in 41-year-old’s corner.
Hopkins took control of what action existed in the fight’s latter half, ending the majority of the exchanges by bullying Jones to the ropes and scoring occasionally clean shots to the head and body.
Jones, who was nicked alongside the left eye early in the fight, was unable to mount a sustained attack, instead landing only single jabs and right hands before extended grappling and holding.
The biggest cheer of the night, in fact, came at the indication that the final round had just 10 seconds remaining.
Source: pnj.com
No comments:
Post a Comment