know a guy respectful and credible and he has a following, and you said Joe Smith.Hopkins was enamored by the fact that Smith was coming off a very big

Last month, when I traveled to London to cover the Gennady Golovkin-Kell Brook middleweight world title fight, I stayed at the hotel next to the O2 Arena, the same place where the HBO crew working on the American broadcast was staying.On the morning of the fight, I had breakfast in the hotel restaurant. As I was walking out, Bernard Hopkins, who was working on the telecast as HBOs analyst, was walking in. We had seen each other a few times during fight week but hadnt had much of a chance to talk. He invited me to sit with him. Weve known each other since 2000, and I have covered around two dozen of his fights. I would say I know Hopkins as well as any fighter I have covered in my career. Weve met each others families and when we chat, it is often not even about boxing at this point.But when we sat down on this morning, we talked about Hopkins career. At 51, did he still want to fight again after a two-year layoff and a one-sided loss to Sergey Kovalev, and if so, when and who would he want to fight?So we sat and talked it out for more than an hour while overlooking the River Thames on a lovely London morning. This was not an interview, rather just a deep conversation about what Hopkins wanted to do.The former middleweight and light heavyweight champion made it clear he wanted a farewell fight and that he wanted it this year, before he turns 52 in January. He saw the hoopla surrounding the recent retirement of Kobe Bryant and wanted the chance to leave boxing on his own terms with a similar farewell fit for a king. For some of the fights in the later years of his career, he has come into the ring to the classic Frank Sinatra song My Way, and hed be damned if he wasnt going to go out on his terms.Hopkins made one point very clear, over and over: He did not want to fight a walkover opponent. Sure, he wanted somebody he would be favored to beat but a real opponent with a good record. He used the word respectful and credible. He wanted somebody whom nobody could say was a soft touch or an unworthy foe. Somebody the fans and media would see as a legitimate fighter.But he is 51 and doesnt move like he once did. So one concession was that he wanted to make sure whoever he faced was not somebody that was too slick and moved a lot. He didnt want to have to chase a guy for 12 rounds. He wanted a guy to come to fight and be in front of him.Then Hopkins (55-7-2, 32 KOs) asked my opinion on who he should fight. He would have preferred to fight for a world title at either light heavyweight or super middleweight but none of those titleholders were available. I put my thinking cap on and came up with two names I thought fit his requirements well.Both were from Long Island, New York, with good records, straight-ahead styles and fan bases. Each was certainly a respectful and credible opponent. They were also fights I believed could be made without any political issues, and both were opponents I felt HBO would approve.One was Seanie Monaghan (27-0, 17 KOs). The other was Joe Smith (22-1, 18 KOs). Hopkins asked me for my view of both fighters and his eyes grew wide. He liked what he was hearing. He punched their names into his phone and began to look them up. He said he would do his homework and also take the names to Golden Boy CEO Oscar De La Hoya and president Eric Gomez to see what they thought.I said to Hopkins, Wouldnt it be funny if you wound up fighting one of those guys and we could joke about it for years to come that the fight was hatched over a cup of tea in London at a restaurant overlooking the River Thames.Hopkins laughed and agreed. A month later it has come to pass.Hopkins will in fact face Smith in his last fight -- The Final One as it has been dubbed -- on Dec. 17 on HBO from The Forum in Inglewood, California.I was at a fight and you was there also and we were looking at the river in London that morning, Hopkins recounted to me after the fight was set on Monday. I had just done a light run and walked in for breakfast and we got to talking. A name was kicked around and you said, I know a guy respectful and credible and he has a following, and you said Joe Smith.Hopkins was enamored by the fact that Smith was coming off a very big win, an upset first-round knockout of contender Andrzej Fonfara on June 18 on NBC in prime time.I didnt know Joe Smith until you mentioned his name, Hopkins said. I went and did my research. Hes promoted by Joe DeGuardia and we have a good relationship. I knew that Joe respects me and that wed be fair in any deal, and here we are.I was doing my research on him like I do on all of my opponents. I said this is a guy I want. We are fighting for legacy. Hes fighting for his legacy and Im fighting to keep mine intact and make sure I go out with no negatives. But when I looked at the tape I said to myself, Why did Dan tell me to look at this guy, another puncher in front of you who is coming to rip your head off like Sergey Kovalev?But then I thought what do I want? Do I want a guy who is a C-level? Thats not Bernard Hopkins. I have to be honest about doing this final fight.Hopkins has not scored a knockout since he stopped De La Hoya with a body shot in the ninth round in 2004. I bust his chops about that sometimes.He said he wants to finish his Hall of Fame career with a KO, so he is doing some work with weights, which he has not done in years, not since he worked with fitness guru Mackie Shilstone to bulk him up to light heavyweight in the first place for his 2006 upset of Antonio Tarver to win the title.I want to go out with a knockout, Hopkins said. I didnt have one in 12 years since I beat Oscar, my partner. Not just the win -- I want the knockout. This is not just promotional talk. That will be the bow on a long career.When told he would be facing an opponent who was not even born when Hopkins turned pro in 1988 (the year I graduated high school), Hopkins paused.Its not only crazy, its insane, Hopkins finally said. Im an old m-----f-----.Then Hopkins began figuring out how many presidential administrations his career has lasted. He turned pro during Ronald Reagans second term and boxed through George H.W. Bushs term, two Bill Clinton terms, two George W. Bush terms and two Barack Obama terms.I dont want to still be boxing when Hillary Clinton is sworn in, he said, offering his prediction for the outcome of next months election.Im done. This is the final one, and what a good way to end it, he said. Joe Smith is all action, hes credible, hes hungry, he throws a lot of punches, only one loss. A young guy. And he come off a big, confident win. So he has momentum to know that he belongs. Thats the kind of opponent I need. I want to put on a fantastic show. I want to be able to enjoy this.Hopkins said -- and Gomez backed it up -- that his contract has language legally stipulating that this is his last fight, as opposed to when he retired the first time after beating Tarver a decade ago and was bored to death a few months later.He said it will be different this time. He is 10 years older and knows it is time.I signed off on this in writing that I am done, he said. It says this is my final fight and I will not return as a fighter ever again. This aint bulls---. Im done, win, lose or controversy. But I came back for this fight because I wanted to go out on my terms.People might think thats cocky, but if they know my career I did just about everything my way. But if I was coming into the restaurant that morning in London two seconds later we wouldnt have seen each other and had that conversation about Joe Smith.Its a conversation we will no doubt discuss for years to come. Adidas Shoes Outlet Wholesale Adidas Shoes Free Shipping . Paul Pierce couldnt believe he missed at the end. Young scored a season-high 26 points to spark a huge effort from the leagues most productive bench, and Los Angeles beat the Brooklyn Nets 99-94 on Wednesday night after blowing a 27-point lead. http://www.wholesaleshoesadidas.com/ . On June 12, just as the sun sets on the magnificent historical city of Sao Paulo the inventors, innovators and purveyors of “joga bonitowill” open their campaign. The opponent, Croatia and all its football might and will. As opposites do attract we are set for a corker of an opener. Cheap Adidas Shoes China . Jane Virtanen scored two, and Alex Roach and Elliott Peterson rounded out the offence for the Hitmen (40-15-6). Brady Brassart chipped in with three assists. Colton McCarthy scored twice, Brayden Point had a goal and two assists, and Jack Rodewald also scored for the Warriors (15-35-9), who were 2 for 5 on the power play. Adidas Factory Outlet Online . Siddikur, whose previous win on the circuit came in Brunei three years ago, finished his bogey-free round with a birdie on the 18th for a total of 17-under 199. Indias Shiv Chowrasia, who has finished runner-up in this tournament twice, was in second place after a 66. Connor McDavid went around Pavel Datsyuk like he was standing still, blowing past a longtime NHL star for the kind of scoring chance a teenager shouldnt be able to produce with such ease.McDavid playing above his age is nothing new.Ive seen him ever since hes been about 14 years of age and hes been the best player against everybody two, three years older than him, Dallas Stars general manager Jim Nill said. Hes an elite player.McDavid is elite at 19 years old, and going into his second pro season with the Edmonton Oilers is already knocking on the door of being the best hockey player in the world. Sidney Crosby has that title right now, but uncertainty about the Pittsburgh Penguins captains third concussion in six years has put his run of dominance on hold.Oilers general manager Peter Chiarelli believes in short order fans will realize how stellar McDavid is. The Great One already sees it.I like Connor McDavid, Wayne Gretzky said. I think this kids going to be a tremendous superstar and a great player for our sport for a long time.McDavid follows agent Gretzky, Eric Lindros and Crosby as a generational talent who everyone knew had star potential. A broken collarbone limited him to 45 games in his rookie season, yet McDavid still had 16 goals and 32 assists. He was a finalist for the Calder Trophy despite missing half the season.Making moves like hes using a joystick, McDavid is earning every bit of the hype that has surrounded him since he had 209 points in 88 games during his 14- and 15-year-old midget season in Toronto. His peers are in awe at just how fast McDavid is able to make plays.You can see a guy who can make plays in full speed, said Stars forward Lauri Korpikoski, who spent last season in Edmonton. Hes got some wheels, he can fly and at the same time he sees the ice and is able to make plays and find guys at that full speed.The NHL is trending toward speed and skill, and McDavid exemplifies that. Scouts -- and his own agent and Hockey Hall of Fame defenseman Bobby Orr -- have said McDavid needs to build upper-body strength as he grows into his frame, and having a stronger lower body, as Crosby does, would push him even further.That willl come in time.dddddddddddd. Hockey lifers see all the right ingredients for greatness in McDavid, who is part of an exciting wave of young players that includes 2016 top picks Auston Matthews of the Toronto Maple Leafs and Patrik Laine of the Winnipeg Jets, 2015 No. 2 pick Jack Eichel of the Buffalo Sabres and 2014 No. 1 pick Aaron Ekblad of the Panthers.The future of the sport is bright because of all that talent, but McDavid stands out -- even to his peers.Hes a very special player, everybody knows who he is and what he can do, Matthews said. He thinks the game extremely well, and hes a fast player. ... He can do a lot of things at a pace that not many people can do.McDavid is progressing fast, too, and is still learning and adding more tools to his game. Faceoffs need work after he won just 41.2 percent of draws as a rookie, but whats most dangerous to the competition is that hes fine-tuning how and when to use his speed to take over.You can definitely use your speed to give yourself a little bit more space, McDavid said. Another thing that Ive had to learn is to slow down sometimes and not let yourself kind of fly through the hole or fly through an opportunity where you could get the puck. Theres definitely a need for speed and theres a time to be slow and kind of slow down for the puck and wait for it.McDavid hasnt had to wait for much: He was the no-doubt No. 1 pick when he was eligible, and the Oilers last week named him the youngest captain in NHL history. Unflappable as usual, McDavid called opening a new arena and being the face of a franchise the same pressure that Ive always dealt with before.This is nothing new, but the pressure will only expand with time.Hes going to continue to grow our game with his skill level, Nill said. He can play the game at such a high level, he plays the right way. Hes a very respectful man on and off the ice. I just think the ceiling is endless with him. Hes going to be the face of our game for many, many years.---Follow Stephen Whyno on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/SWhyno ' ' '