A LITTLE CROW ANYONE?
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by Rick Folstad

That bitter taste? It's crow, served cold and tart. Some of us had it for  breakfast Sunday morning, tried to choke it down with a sip of humility.  It didn't help.

My serving was especially tough. I thought Felix Trinidad was like Superman:  indestructible with good hand speed, a hard chin and enough power to stop a locomotive. His fight with Bernard Hopkins was just a quick stopover on his glorious ride toward a showdown with Roy Jones.

Of course, I forgot about the kryptonite. Bernard Hopkins carried it in both fists. The thing about Hopkins is, he talked a good fight, then went out and actually fought one. You don't expect that in his line of work, especially against Superman.

Saturday night's middleweight unification bout wasn't a fight as much as it was an education, a short lesson in what happens when you sell champions short. Many of us watched the fight in stunned silence, waiting for the late arrival of the real Felix Trinidad, the guy voted most likely to make Jones a richer man.

While we waited, The Executioner did just that, executed one of the best fight plans since the Indians at the Little Big Horn. It wasn't an exciting fight, but strategically, it was a great one, Hopkins figuring out that it would be easier to beat Trinidad with mirrors then clubs.

Obviously, Jones was right when he picked Hopkins to win, saying there wasn't a lot of fight left in Trinidad. Too many ring wars. Too many times getting back up after being knocked down. Too much time spent in the gym and away from home.

For Hopkins, stopping Trinidad in the 12th round puts him in special company: his own. He's all alone at the top of the middleweight food chain, a loud, boisterous champion who made wild predictions, then made them come true.

What's next for Hopkins? How about a long rest and then a tomato can? He's earned one. After that, the 36-year-old has hinted that Oscar De La Hoya would be a fine addition to the collection of trophies on his mantelpiece. How about David Reid? Two guys from Philly mixing it up in the City of Brotherly Love? I'm not sure, but that fight might qualify as Hopkins' tomato can.

Jones? No. At least not right now. Not this year. Hopkins says he won't fight Jones because Jones hasn't shown him any respect. Maybe that's part of it. But money is part of it and so is history. Eight years ago, Jones handed Hopkins his second loss. That memory doesn't go away.

If anyone needs that fight, it's probably Jones. Right now, the needle on his popularity meter is stuck between ``dog catcher'' and ``dentist.'' You have to beat great fighters to be considered great. Jones has been beating good fighters and most fight fans have grown tired of watching him work just hard enough to win.

Hopkins, meanwhile, is now the hottest ticket in the fight game. And while he's talking De La Hoya, Jones is talking about fighting Glenn Kelly or Clinton Woods. Has he even heard of Dariusz Michalczeweski? And please, don't tell me it's about money.
 
I don't want this bitter taste turning sour.