Saturday night’s HBO pay-per-view special featuring former world champions Bernard Hopkins and Winky Wright figured to be an ugly fight between two defensive wizards not known for their power. Unfortunately, that’s exactly how it turned out.

It was a fight that had very little flow as Wright attempted to play the aggressor behind his jab and Hopkins relied on quick counterpunches and lots of holding and roughhousing. Wright, bothered by a severe gash over his left eye from a head butt in the third round and obviously not comfortable at the catch weight of 170 pounds, slowed over the final few rounds and Hopkins emerged with a unanimous decision. With neither fighter holding a belt from a sanctioning body, Hopkins gained the Ring Magazine light heavyweight title.

After two feelout rounds in which the fighters combined to land a grand total of just 41 punches, the key point came in the third. Wright leaned forward as Hopkins moved in and Hopkins’ head caught Wright’s left eyelid. Wright spun back in obvious pain as blood gushed down his face. Hopkins, the 42-year-old weapon, then had his target for the night as he managed to target Wright’s eye with punches, elbows, laces and a few more well “accidental” head clashes. Referee Robert Byrd warned Hopkins several times for excessive holding and using his head as a weapon but no points were deducted.

Wright was in control early, landing 23 jabs over the first three rounds and he relied on his favorite weapon in the middle rounds. But Wright had difficulty connecting with any power shots against Hopkins, whose body movement and shoulder rolls left a very small target area.

Hopkins, who averaged under 10 power connects a round over the first six rounds with 57 connects, began to find the mark over the second half with his power shots.
In rounds seven through 12, Hopkins connected on 86 power shots, an average of over 14 a round. Wright, meanwhile, never manage double figures in power connects over the second half of the fight as Hopkins compiled an 86-33 advantage in power shots in rounds seven through 12. Wright, in fact, reached double figures only once in power punches in the entire fight and that came in the fourth round when he landed 12.

Wright, who was a world champion at 154 pounds, was struggling in the late rounds with the added weight and Hopkins’ increased pressure. After averaging 55 punches a round over the first eight rounds, Wright averaged only 44 over the last four. Hopkins, meanwhile, was averaging 58 punches a round over the last four, including a high of 70 in round 10, and he outlanded Wright 68-27 in power shots in rounds eight through 12.

A post-fight CompuBox count found 132 combined clinches in the fight. Hopkins initiated 74, Wright 53, with five mutual clinches. Of Wright’s 53 clinches, 41 occurred between rounds 8 and 12, with 19 occurring in the last minute of each round.

Judges Glenn Trowbridge and Dave Moretti scored it 117-111 for Hopkins while Glenn Hamada had it 116-112.

Overall, Hopkins landed 152 of 640 punches, including 143 of 549 power shots and only nine of 91 jabs. Wright outlanded Hopkins overall, connecting on 167 of 618 total punches, but a majority of Wright’s connects were jabs. He landed 87 of 290 jabs but only 80 of 328 power shots.

Hopkins raised his record to 48-4-1 and now is pointing to a possible showdown with British star Joe Calzaghe. Wright lost for the first time since a hotly disputed decision against Fernando Vargas in 1999 and fell to 51-4-1.

“All he had was that jab and you don’t beat Bernard Hopkins with just a jab,” Hopkins said. “I took away his jab and that was the fight because that’s all he had. As for the butt, this is the hurt business,. Things like that happen. It wasn’t intentional. He lowered his head when I was moving in to punch and my head caught him. It happens."

Wright headed to a local hospital immediately after the fight to have his eye repaired but sent word that he also felt the butt was unintentional and that he still managed to do enough to beat Hopkins.