Calzaghe vs. Hopkins Superfight

	"My heart and head is telling me that the Welshman will secure his legacy on the Sunset strip"

As Joe Morgan predicted, Calzaghe retained his unbeaten streak and took the bout by decision.

Joe Calzaghe is no ordinary Joe. After years on the periphery of the national sporting consciousness he is finally getting the recognition he deserves. But in his next fight against Bernard "The Executioner" Hopkins he will be facing another ring legend.

Hopkins has a claim to being the greatest middleweight of all time – having defended the undisputed world title six times in the first half of this decade.

He is also undefeated since his move up to the 12 and a half stone division during which time he defeated the reigning Ring magazine light heavyweight champion, Antonio Tarver, and former light middleweight world champion Ronald "Winky" Wright. This makes him Calzaghe’s toughest ever opponent.

Speed

Calzaghe has the faster hands. The Welshman unleashes barrages of punches which can see him throw more than a hundred shots in a single round. He says putting on the extra seven pounds in the move up to light heavyweight has not added any latency to his fists.

Power

While both fighters hold 32 knock outs each, Hopkins is the more dangerous power puncher – watch clips of him knocking out ring legend Oscar De La Hoya with a sickening body punch.

Punch resistance

Hopkins can probably take the better punch. Calzaghe has hit the canvas against Byron Mitchell and Kabary Salem.

Stamina

Hopkins lives the life of a pugilist with absolute dedication to his training. This has enabled the 43-year-old to remain at the pinnacle of the sport for so long. But Calzaghe fights with absolute intensity for 12 rounds. I expect the Welshman to have more left in the tank if the fight goes goes into the later rounds.

Defence

Calzaghe is the more elusive fighter and has better head movement.

Intangibles

Calzaghe has been plagued with hand injuries during his career. He has broken the metacarpal in his left hand. Should such an injury reoccur in the fight with Hopkins it could be a decisive factor in a victory for the Executioner.

Tactics

Hopkins promises a prison house rules match which will leave Calzaghe "pissing blood".

While the Executioner is also a master of the sweet science, watch some clips on youtube.com of him moving in with his head after throwing a right hand and you will get an idea of some of the vicious tricks which he has in store for the Welshman. But Calzaghe has exceptional versatility in being able to adapt to the style of his opponent. This intuitive gift should trump any rough house tactics or otherwise employed by Hopkins.

If you can stomach putting your cash on Hopkins – who has said he will never lose to a "white boy" among other things in the run up to the fight – you may feel he is a good value bet.

Calzaghe is susceptible to hand injuries. He is also fighting for the first time in the US and at light heavyweight – but it is Hopkins who is the outsider with the bookmakers. You can pick up odds of 9/4 on the American at bet365 and Stan James (7/4/08).

However, my heart and head is telling me that the Welshman will secure his legacy on the Sunset strip. Do not expect him to knock out or stop his American foe – put your cash on a unanimous points victory for the Valley Boy.