A.C. Shocker: Hopkins Schools Pavlik

By Ted Sares - "If I do say so myself, there is going to be quite a void now in super-middleweight boxing and I can't wait to see who will step up and fill it." --Joe Calzaghe

A great career continues, as Kelly Pavlik was unable to cope with a well prepared Bernard Hopkins who easily dominated the heretofore invincible “Ghost.“In what can only be described as a shocker, the WBC and WBO world middleweight champion lost to Hopkins in convincing fashion and then some.

The bloodied “Ghost,” now 34-1, was unable to cope with the superb defense, hand speed, sharper punches, greater weight, and all-around ring smarts of Hopkins who moves to 49-5-1 with this decisive and inspiring win. Heck, he didn’t even need to resort to any roughhousing or ugliness. He simply schooled (and perhaps exposed) the 26 year old and punctuated matters by perpetrating a beat down on the youngster in the final stanza.

Off this showing, Pavlik would appear to have his hands full if and when he fights undefeated King Arthur Abraham in defense of the middleweight crown he retains. One thing is certain; he is not quite in the same driver seat.

As for Hopkins, this future Hall of Famer has a number of options--all juicy. He can retire, attempt to get the winner of Jones-Calzaghe, or look for another fight with which to say goodbye.

Fights like this are what make boxing such a great sport. Boxing is all about the unexpected; subjectivity; and the fact that you simply cannot put the data in a computer and come out with a sure answer. Tonight, a legend turned back the clock and proved as much.