It wasn't the fight WBC and WBO middleweight champion Kelly Pavlik was hoping to land, according to a report on ESPN.com, but it's better than nothing.
Pavlik (34-0, 30 KOs) and Bernard Hopkins (48-5-1, 32 KOs) have come to an agreement to fight on Oct. 18 at the Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City. But there is a bit of a twist. Pavlik will move up from middleweight to light heavyweight to take on Hopkins.
Despite Pavlik's reluctance to take the fight, it is a good matchup for several reasons. Hopkins, who fell to Joe Calzaghe in a spilt decision last April, needs a win over a solid opponent to prove he still has what it takes to fight on an elite level.
For Pavlik, a win over Hopkins would put him in the driver's seat for future matchups against the likes of Calzaghe, Roy Jones, Felix Trinidad, Paul Williams and Winky Wright. A third fight with Jermain Taylor could even be in the cards. But that's at least 18 to 21 months down the line.
Comments (2)
Any idea when tix go on sale?
They are still hammering out the details. You have a little bit of time before they open up sales to the public.