Bernard Hopkins Will Never Fight Andre Ward, Maybe Lucian Bute

Bernard Hopkins is an interesting character who always says something interesting. It may not make any sense at all, but it is at least interesting. Since the California State Athletic Commission is going to make a ruling on the Hopkins-Dawson fight on Tuesday, Lem Satterfield of The Ring took the opportunity to catch up with the ageless wonder. In the shadow of the Super Six finals, Lem asked Hopkins about the possibility of fighting Andre Ward. Ward has said that he sees Hopkins as a mentor and it seems like Hopkins respects that notion.

"I would never fight Andre Ward. I would never fight him. I would never fight him because, one of my favorite shows was Kung Fu. And, the master never fought the student, and the student understood that he would never challenge the master."

I would think that there are a multitude of reasons that this fight would never ever happen, the least of them is the perceived notions of mentorship based on a old TV show. Speaking as a huge Ward fan, this potential fight with Hopkins could be one of the dullest fights in history. I have absolutely no interest in seeing Ward and Hopkins in the ring, which would mean that almost no one wants to see that fight. Hopkins also explained why he wouldn't want a fight with someone he considers to be a student.

"It's business, but I believe that when I fight an individual, things are going to be said during the promotion that you can't recoup. I know how passionate that I get into my opponents' soul, spirit and life, and knowing that everything that I do and say, I mean. So for that particular person, normally it doesn't go past that night of fighting."

In terms of a next fight, Hopkins is looking toward potential big money fights north of the border again.

"My thing is that, right now, if it don't make sense financially, there's nothing to motivate me. So whatever makes sense business-wise, that's where I'm going. And it looks like Bute because I've got a lot of fans in Canada after the two Pascal fights. I have a lot of fans in Canada. It shows that Canada respects boxing and they respect my talents there."

At this point, why not call out Lucian Bute. Hopkins does have some name recognition from the Pascal fights and he would make for a decent fight for the young Canadian star. Weight might be a bit of an issue with Bute being at 168 and Hopkins being at 175, but there is enough money in this matchup for it to be a real possibility. Hopkins is just finishing his rehabilitation so he should be ready to line up another fight soon, be it a rematch with Chad Dawson or a big-money fight with Bute. What do you guys think should be the next for Bernard Hopkins?