WBC orders Hopkins-Dawson II

Chad Dawson picks up Bernard Hopkins and slams him to the canvas, ending their light heavyweight title bout. Photo: Getty Images

EARLIER today the WBC laid out orders for light heavyweight champion Bernard Hopkins 52-5-2-1NC (32) to rematch former champion Chad Dawson 30-1-1NC (17)during the sanctioning body’s 49th annual convention in Las Vegas. The decision comes on the heels of Tuesday’s decision to change the result from a tko win for Dawson to a no-contest at the behest of Golden Boy, on behalf of the Philadelphia born legend. Hopkins was unable to continue after being thrown to the canvas by Dawson in the 2nd round of their October 15th clash, injuring his left shoulder. Five days after the fight, the WBC declared the bout a technical draw according to it’s own rules and the title was returned to “The Executioner”.

On Thursday morning, Dawson’s promoter Gary Shaw, made his case for an immediate rematch, which which fell on kind ears and was approved by various WBC board members, including president Jose Sulaiman.

During post-fight interviews “Bad” Chad expressed is disappointment with Hopkins stating. “I waited five years for the opportunity to fight Bernard. All he did was punch and hold. He was looking for a way out. He didn’t want to fight me.” He went on to say, “If they strip the title away, I’m not going to fight a rematch.” Now the ball is in Hopkins’ court, with many expecting him to vacate the title due to the poor performance in pay-per view sales of their initial encounter. On paper, the matchup made for a boring and ugly fight due to the style of each fighter, and during the little time the pair shared in the ring, both did even less. Hopkins also has other options, a showdown with either undefeated IBF champions, super middleweight Lucian Bute 30-0 (24) or light heavyweight Tavoris Cloud 23-0 (19).

Despite the negative side of a rematch with Dawson, “B-Hop” insists that he would take the fight. “Let’s get the ball rolling,” Hopkins said after leaving the convention. “The fans got cheated because of circumstances in the first fight. Now they get an opportunity to get their money’s worth. The bottom line is a champion defends his belt. That’s what champions do. I believe I am the best at light heavyweight. So my whole thing is champions defend, they don’t get stripped, they don’t throw belts away. I’ve done it for 20 years and I ain’t changing my stripes today.”

Check back with us as more develops.

WBC orders Hopkins-Dawson II

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