Legacy of De La Hoya and Hopkins
By Tom Donelson

INSIDE BOXING (August 11, 2004) - With all the discussion centering on the upcoming De La Hoya-Hopkins fight, the one question that have been asked is what would a loss or a victory mean on each fighter’s legacy?

My own thesis is that a victory will enhance both fighters but a lost will not or should not affect their place in history. Consider the example of Hagler-Leonard fight, since this fight has been contrasted to that classic battle.

When Hagler came into the match, he was considered the most feared Middleweight and very few pundits gave Leonard much of a chance. Hagler had beaten the best at the Middleweights and had already beaten two of Leonard rivals, Duran and Hearns. Leonard had only one fight in the previous four years. Leonard victory enhanced his status as a great fighter and cemented his place in boxing history. By beating Hagler, Leonard added to his resume that included Hearns, Benitez, and Duran. While Leonard reputation was enhanced, Hagler did not lose his place in boxing history. Having eleven knockouts in twelve previous championship fights, losing to Leonard did not diminish a brilliant career. One reason was that this fight was a close fight and Hagler’s supporters could make the case that Hagler actually won the fight.

Today, we still view Hagler as one of the greatest middleweights. So what about De La Hoya and Hopkins? While Hopkins has not fought the quality of middleweights that Hagler faced, Hopkins has been the most dominating Middleweights over the past decade. 18 title defenses is a considerable achievement in any era and no one can take that away. While many have made the point that Hopkins skills don’t reflect his chronological age, Hopkins has fought two of his biggest fight after the age of 35. He beat Trinidad at the age of 36 and he is now close to the age of 40 for the De La Hoya fight. As boxing historian Frank Lotierzo has observed, Hopkins skills may be eroding, ever so slightly. Lotierzo has stated that we are not seeing Hopkins at his best so if he loses to De La Hoya, could we really say that De La Hoya beat Hopkins at his best?

If De La Hoya loses, he still has a considerable resume. De La Hoya has fought the best of his generation and he has yet been beaten badly or stopped. This is a fighter who has fought at 130 pounds and moved up to Middleweights. At each division, he has been a champion. De La Hoya stature will be enhanced similar to Leonard if he wins but it will not be diminish if he loses.

As for Hopkins, there will be those pundits who will claim that he was over rated or that he does not deserve to mention in the same breath of a Hagler or Monzon. Hopkins loss should not diminish his stature and a victory will enhance Hopkins own stature for he would have beaten two of the better fighters of his generation in Trinidad and De La Hoya.

Hopkins’ career is similar to Larry Holmes. In the beginning of the 90’s, the middleweights featured fighters such as Roy Jones, James Toney and Michael Nunn. Hopkins followed in these other fighter’s shadow and his loss to Jones is still held against him as a measuring stick. It should be pointed out that Hopkins gave Jones a better battle than Toney did in their match. Holmes followed Ali and forever found himself compared to the great one. Holmes, like Hopkins, just beat everyone in front of him and now many boxing historians have elevated Holmes place in boxing history. Time has allowed Holmes career to stand on its own. Hopkins is a similar fighter. Other great middleweights, who have long since left the division, have overshadowed Hopkins. There are historians who will remind us that Jones did beat Hopkins but then so did 49 other fighters. Until the second Tarver fight, most boxing historians consider Jones one of the best pound for pound, so losing a decision to him should not be a black mark.

Here are my thoughts on both fighters place in boxing historian. De La Hoya stature will not be diminishes if he loses but his stature will grow if he wins. De La Hoya is in a unique position since he will continue his career as a boxing promoter and will continue to make his mark in the sport. As for Hopkins, a win will obviously add to his stature but as the years passes; Hopkins career will stand on its own.