A friend of The Neutral Corner, known in NYC boxing circles as GDM, filed this via e-mail on his way to the fight:
So there I was in Kennedy Airport boarding my flight to Las Vegas when I see Juan Laporte, former featherweight champion who fought the best in his day. I asked him who did he think would win the fight? Would it be Hopkins or Calzaghe?
"If it goes to a decision I say Calzaghe, but if there is any knockout it will be Hopkins. When it comes to style you can see a European fighter has more leg movement and hand speed, they are very busy putting pressure on their opponent. Most of the time the American style of boxing is smarter because they have lateral movement and better counterpunching. The only thing that beats American fighters is lackof conditioning."
I asked Juan about Hopkins age and the factor it will play in the fight.
"The age won't hurt him that much because he has been an active fighter all the way through. You don't lose your power however you lose speed and reflexes. It is not like he is fighting 15 rounds, he is fighting 12 rounds and the only weakness he might have is that he already knows about losing in front of his people and is comfortable with the possibility of losing. He may not have the hunger to win that he once had. Calzaghe is detirmined and hungry for victory and has a lot to show the American people. That is always a positive motivation to win. Hopkins will have to be the one who initiates the fight, he has to be boss. If you are boxing and let Calzaghe throw all those punches believe me you are going to get tired. Calzaghe will have to keep the pressure on him, stalk him, stay on top of him and make Hopkins use all of his energy in the clinches. This will wear out Hopkins and Calzaghe will score a lot of points."