FANTASY DREAM FIGHTS: Bernard Hopkins Vs. Carlos Monzon

Posted on | September 24, 2008 | 3 Comments

 

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By: Tony Penecale

In the world of sports, significant records will eventually get broken. Often, the holder of the former record will graciously pass the torch to the new record-setter. Hank Aaron was there to acknowledge Barry Bonds. Mark Spitz gave a ringing endorsement to Michael Phelps. But, not always! Carlos Monzon, the rough Argentina fighter, who set the record for middleweight title defenses, may have not been so gracious when Bernard Hopkins broke his record. Although Monzon had passed away four months before Hopkins won the title, many could envision him looking with disdain as Hopkins ushered in the new record seven years into his decade-long reign. Here we are going to pit two hard-nosed fighters, neither of which would back down from the other. A combined undefeated tenure of over 20 years. The long-reigning kings of boxing’s middleweight division are squaring off, with not only their records, but their pride on the line. Who wins?

STATISTICS

Hopkins: (all stats for bout on 9/29/01)
Age – 36 years old
Height – 6’1”
Weight – 157 lbs
Reach – 75”
Record – 39-2-1 (28)

Monzon: (all stats for bout on 6/30/75)
Age – 32 years old
Height – 5’11”
Weight – 159 lbs
Reach – 76”
Record – 83-3-9 (56)

STYLE

Hopkins:
A consummate professional in the ring, Hopkins can adapt like a chameleon. A combination of a fighter who can box from angles, slug on the inside, with a slick defense, counterpunching prowess, and a penchant to bend the rules. Hopkins likes to test the waters early and then develop his gameplan as he goes along, often switching tactics to keep opponents off balance.

Monzon:
A confident pressure fighter, with an awkward style, who uses his long arms to punish fighters from the outside, and his strength to muscle them on the inside. Is not afraid to get hit and considers his best defense a good offense. At times, he seems slow but his punches are very accurate and will catch opponents off guard. Will get squared-up and off-balance when launching his attack but often has his opponents in a position where they can’t take advantage of his mistakes.

STRENGTHS

Hopkins:

1) Versatility – Hopkins is a skilled boxer, an aggressive slugger, and a precise counter puncher all rolled in to one. Hopkins has show the ability patiently box from the outside and control the tempo, or fight on the inside, backing his adversary up, and landing right hands, hooks, and body punches.

2) Defense – Trying to land a clean punch, much less a combination, on Hopkins is like trying to hold water in your hands. Hopkins blocks, slips, and parries most punches that come his way, but his best defensive maneuver is the “shoulder roll” where he will make his opponent miss by rolling with the punch and then fire back with a right hand or uppercut at his wide-open adversary.

3) Conditioning – A Spartan athlete, Hopkins is one of the finest conditioned fighters. A clean lifestyle coupled with a tremendous work ethic, Hopkins is just as fresh and talkative at the final bell as he is in the beginning.

Monzon:

1) Power – Monzon has considerable thunder in his punches. Whether he is landing strength-sapping hooks and uppercuts to the body, or big right hands to the hand, Monzon has the power to alter a fight in an instant.

2) Durability – Monzon fought some heavy punchers in Nino Benvenuti, Bennie Briscoe, Jean Mateo, & Gratien Mateo, among others. And he often took their best offerings right on the chin. And he would keep coming forward, pressing the attack. Even when stunned, his recovery capabilities are impressive.

3) Confidence – Monzon is often compared with a prime Roberto Duran when it comes to mentality. Self-assured, ruthless, and with intent on destroying whatever was in his path, Monzon in the ring is like a cyborg. He carries a belief that he can conquer any opponent.

WEAKNESSES

Hopkins:

1) Too Patient – Sometime Hopkins has a tendency to wait too long and look for the perfect opening. He will move on angles and continually measure his opponent but not throw enough punches and sometimes gives away rounds doing it.

2) Diminishing Power – Early in his career, “The Executioner” could drop the axe in a swift and chilling manner. Hopkins doesn’t carry that same power and relies more on an accumulation of punishment to wear opponents down for a stoppage or pile up enough points for a decision victory.

Monzon:
1) Easy to Hit – Monzon is primarily concerned about offense and will treat defense as a secondary skill, which allows opponents the chance to land flush shots to his head and body.

2) Lifestyle – Heavy drinking, smoking up to 100 cigarettes a day, and running around with a variety of females is not the making of a supremely-conditioned athlete. Monzon has been able to get away with a party-hardy lifestyle for a long time but it could catch up with him in an instant.

BEST PERFORMANCES
** Indicates the Version of the Fighter Used for this Matchup

Hopkins:

1) ** Felix Trinidad (9/29/01) – Hopkins was the IBF and WBC middleweight champion coming into this unification bout but he was overshadowed by the Puerto Rican superstar and a 3-1 underdog going in. While he promised to match Trinidad in a rough and dirty fight, he shocked everyone, especially Trinidad, by boxing early and building a commanding lead. Trinidad was visibly frustrated going into the latter half of the bout and attacked without abandon. Hopkins took full advantage and punished Trinidad with a variety of powerpunches, wobbling him at the end of the 10th before finishing him in the 12th to become the unified champion and owner of the Sugar Ray Robinson trophy.

2) Glen Johnson (7-20-97) – At the time, it looked like this bout was a masterful win over a boxer with an undefeated albeit padded record. Johnson came into the bout with an impressive punch, solid chin, and rugged determination. But it was all Hopkins from the opening bell as he dished out a frightful beating on the inside. Hopkins continued the assault each round, forcing the referee to visit Johnson’s corner several times, before finally halting the contest in the 11th.

3) Robert Allen (2-6-99) – In their first encounter, six months prior, Allen had greatly troubled Hopkins with his physical southpaw style before an aggressive Mills Lane attempt to break a clinch resulted in Hopkins falling out of the ring and spraining an ankle. Before the rematch, Allen boasted that Hopkins had taken the easy way out and would be dethroned in the rematch. The Hopkins that entered the ring was focused and seething and punished Allen without mercy, knocking him down in the 2nd and 6th rounds. Allen’s only chance was to try and initiate a disqualification by flopping every time Hopkins landed on his waistline. Another brutal volley in the 7th forced the referee to stop the bout, amid protests from Allen’s camp, to which the referee responded “I don’t see him (Allen) complaining.”

Monzon:

1) ** Tony Licata (6-30-75) – In Monzon’s only fight in the United States, he dismantled a very tough Licata, who was sporting a record of 50-1-3 coming in. Monzon wore Licata down with a deliberate body attack and sent him to the canvas with a booming right hand in the 10th round. Licata rose but was met with a blistering series of punches that drove him down to his knees, forcing the referee to halt the contest.

2) Bennie Briscoe (11-11-72) – Five years earlier, Monzon met Briscoe in Argentina, with the bout ending in a 10-round draw. In the rematch, Briscoe was determined and met Monzon, matching wills with him and stunning him in the 9th round. But Monzon kept steady and outworked Briscoe over the course of the bout and walked away with a clear decision victory.

3) Nino Benvenuti (11-7-70) – Going into the bout, Benvenuti was the clear betting favorite as Monzon was relatively unknown. Monzon applied steady pressure to the defending champion, seemingly getting stronger with each progressing round. Benvenuti tried in vain to keep his title, slamming Monzon with a series of hard hooks in the 9th and 10th rounds. Monzon walked right through them and finally crashed a destructive right hand on Benvenuti’s jaw in the 12th and annexed his title with it.

QUESTIONS

Hopkins:
1) How will he deal with Monzon’s freakishly long arms?
2) Can he withstand Monzon’s aggressive power-punching attack?
3) Will he get drawn into a toe-to-toe slugfest?

Monzon:
1) Will the years of hard living catch up to him?
2) Can he crack Hopkins’ slick defense and counter punching?
3) How will he fare against someone who can match him physically?

THE PREDICTION

Most experts are torn going into this fight. Some favor Monzon’s superior power and work rate, figuring he will pressure Hopkins and control the rounds, leading to a decision victory while others see Hopkins taking advantage of Monzon’s wide open attack and blistering him with lead right hands all night. The pre-fight press conferences are lively with the two fighters standing nose to nose, trading insults.

This fight is being held at the famed Madison Square Garden, the location of Monzon’s only fight in America, as well as the site of Hopkins biggest triumph. Monzon enters the ring first wearing burgundy trunks. Hopkins follows wearing a black executioner’s mask, flanked by members of his entourage carrying axes. In the ring, Hopkins looks at Monzon and gives a throat-slash gesture while Monzon sneers back with disdain on his face.

The bout opens with Hopkins boxing from a high guard. He moves and feints, while Monzon moves forward slowly, looking for openings, but respecting the counterpunching ability of Hopkins. Hopkins snaps a few hard jabs late in the round but Monzon is right there in front of him and fires several long right hands that, while they don’t land flush, they are the most impressive punches in the round.

Monzon continues to be the aggressor in the 2nd and 3rd rounds, with Hopkins assuming the role of matador. It is Monzon’s long, albeit slower, jab that is causing Hopkins most problems as he has trouble setting and countering, allowing Monzon to work on the inside, digging in to the body. Hopkins takes the opportunity to target Monzon with an uppercut and hook to the body, before clinching him and spinning him out, landing several rabbit punches before the referee breaks them. Over the first three rounds, Monzon’s superior workrate is carrying the action and winning over the judges.

Hopkins starts to assert himself in the 4th round, realizing that he is behind on the cards. Sensing that Monzon is a straight-up fighter, the right hand will be open and Hopkins takes advantage, whacking Monzon with a handful of crisp rights and pivoting out before the Argentina fighter can counter.

Not wanting to lose the momentum he built, Monzon picks up the pace in the 5th and 6th rounds, coming straight at Hopkins like a runaway locomotive, winging right hands over the top and trying to muscle on the inside. Hopkins is able to slip and roll with most of Monzon’s right hands and counters with short right hands and left hooks to the head. Both rounds are closely contested with the judges having to decide between Monzon’s higher volume or Hopkins’ cleaner punches.

Hopkins takes a bit of a breather in the 7th round and Monzon is controlling most of the round, but not landing a lot of flush punches. Despite not doing much throughout the course of the round, Hopkins explodes late and lands a ripping three-punch combination. With the momentum now on his side, Hopkins fights more aggressively in the 8th round, going toe-to-toe with Monzon. A flush Monzon right hand at the end of the round causes Hopkins knees to dip but he walks back to his corner smiling.

Monzon is out of his corner before the bell rings to start the 9th. He feels like he has his prey wounded. But Hopkins is as tough as they come and he responded in kind. Monzon fires a missile right over the top and Hopkins rolls with it and counters with a flush uppercut that freezes Monzon. Hopkins steps in and clubs him with another right hand and digs a left hook to the body. Monzon is clearly stunned but refuses to fall. He clinches Hopkins who takes the liberty to landing several shots to Monzon’s hip and groin area. Monzon has tremendous recuperative power and by the round’s end, his head is clear and he resumes the attack.

Going into the 10th round, Monzon is sporting a cut on the bridge of his nose and Hopkins is showing some swelling and abrasions around his left eye. Monzon is still free swinging with some wild and impressive-looking punches. Hopkins counters are much shorter and a bit more precise.

The bout is very much wide open going into the final five rounds. It is a matter of who wants it more and who can control the action. Hopkins alternates between boxing and moving, trying to keep Monzon at bay, and then pasting him with combinations when he moves forward. Monzon keeps trying to win a war of attrition, trying to break Hopkins body and will with every body shot he throws.

The shifts in momentum will be often. Monzon will keep chugging forward. He is a winner and does not believe he can lose. Hopkins is just as smart as he is tough and he will use his skills but also won’t be afraid to stand and trade. Monzon will force the action in the 11 h and 12th rounds and Hopkins will roll and counter, landing scorching shots in between Monzon’s thudding attack. Each round will be a case of what the judges prefer.

Hopkins will box more in the 13th and 14th, hoping to force Monzon into making mistakes. It will be razor-close going into the 15th and final round. Hopkins will attack first and try to back Monzon up, shocking the Argentine fighter. Monzon will stand his ground and the exchanges will be exciting. At the final bell, both fighters will raise their arms in triumph. A mutual respect will be earned between them.

The decision is in. Stanley Christodoulou scores it 144-142… Monzon. Judge Joseph Pasquale scores 144-143 … Hopkins. And Judge Tom Kaczmarek scores144-141… for the winner… by split decision… BERNARD “THE EXECUTIONER” HOPKINS!!!

For the next installment of Fantasy Dream Fights, we are going to match two lightweights who were polar-opposites inside the ring. The legendary fire-breathing Roberto Duran against the defensive wizardry of Pernell Whitaker. This upcoming installment will be available on October 8

VOTE FOR YOURSELF:

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