Bernard Hopkins is no stranger to controversy. The 46-year-old fighter, who faces Jean Pascal on May 21, weighed in with some comments sure to create a stir regarding Donovan McNabb.
From the Philadelphia Daily News:
"Forget this," Hopkins said, pointing to his own dark skin. "He's got a suntan. That's all."
Hopkins also implied that, while Vick and Owens remained true to their roots, McNabb did not, and that McNabb was rudely awakened when the Eagles traded him to the Redskins last year.
"Why do you think McNabb felt he was betrayed? Because McNabb is the guy in the house, while everybody else is on the field. He's the one who got the extra coat. The extra servings. 'You're our boy,' " Hopkins said, patting a reporter on the back in illustration. "He thought he was one of them."
Replace "guy in the house" with "slave in the house," then replace "on the field" with "in the field," and Hopkins' message is Uncle Tom-clear.
Well... what do you add to that?
Hopkins is friendly with current Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Michael Vick, and the former middleweight and light heavyweight world champion also notes that Terrell Owens, a former Eagle, is someone he respects for "speaking up" over his career.
But he did have a few nice-ish things to say about McNabb, to be fair:
"McNabb? Great. Skills? Throw the ball? Great. But there was something missing," Hopkins said. "Vick? He understands. And T.O. - same cloth." ... "Nice guy. I'd trust [McNabb] around my kids," Hopkins said.
For those stumbling across Bernard Hopkins today who don't know his history, let's put it this way: This isn't going to surprise boxing fans who are familiar with Bernard. He's always been outspoken, sometimes to a fault, but usually just because that's who Bernard is. I'm pretty sure most of us are just going to take this as -- as usual -- Bernard being Bernard. He's beyond PR control. The man truly does not care what anyone thinks of him.
As for the backlash he might catch from people who don't care about his boxing career, that could be another story. But he also just let a lot of people know he's fighting on May 21.