What is up with Jim Grey's biased interviewing? Tries to get on Hopkin's good side telling him he clearly won when it was very close and then goes over to Pascal and gives him ****.
Pascal's minimalist work rate was just what Hopkins needed to fight well within a sustainable pace for him. It was like a fountain of youth for Hopkins allowing him to potently execute his hall of fame boxing expertise as if he were 20 years younger. Hopkins mostly smothered Pascal's usually exciting - if infrequent - charging bursts from all angles, making Pascal look more like the old man and one who appeared to be fighting out of a straight jacket. On a good night Pascal's style has the flavor of an inferior Roy Jones Jr. With a work rate that rarely pressured Hopkins, Pascal could hardly hope to do better than the genuine article did this last April against him. Only the two freak cuff/slipdowns of a fighter that hasn't been down in over a decade and some nodding to the champion scoring saved Pascal from losing his belt.
On a good night against the right competition Pascal has looked fairly good. If he hopes to gain greater recognition he needs to somehow find another gear.
I think Pascal's supposed to rematch Dawson now. I hope he adjusts, because Dawson's probably going to be the fav and I would expect him to get the belts back.
The ref, Michael Griffin, did a really good job, IMO. I think I've seen him live at Casino Rama cards, and on TSN. He should get some work in Vegas, replace someone like that mofo Cortez.