IBF Chairman: Hopkins must start negotiations with Kovalev

Main Events does not want to pass up a guaranteed opportunity to fight for the IBF title, only to have a fight with Cleverly fall apart. However HBO -- which

Chris Mannix | Jun 17, 2013

IBF Chairman: Hopkins must start negotiations with Kovalev /

Bernard Hopkins was originally scheduled to defend his title against Karo Murat on July 13. — Bernard Hopkins was originally scheduled to defend his title against Karo Murat on July 13 :: Nat Castaneda/AP

Main Events does not want to pass up a guaranteed opportunity to fight for the IBF title, only to have a fight with Cleverly fall apart. However HBO -- which does not do Golden Boy fights and, presumably, would not be interested in a Kovalev-Hopkins fight -- wants the Cleverly fight, and by passing on it, Main Events could severely damage a relationship with HBO at a time when it has several fighters on its radar. In addition to Kovalev, Main Events promotes middleweight contender Curtis Stevens and co-promotes, along with Russell Peltz, heavyweight contender Bryant Jennings.

Published Jun 17, 2013

CHRIS MANNIX

Chris Mannix is a senior writer at Sports Illustrated covering the NBA and boxing beats. He joined the SI staff in 2003 following his graduation from Boston College. Mannix is the host of SI's "Open Floor" podcast and serves as a ringside analyst and reporter for DAZN Boxing. He is also a frequent contributor to NBC Sports Boston as an NBA analyst. A nominee for National Sportswriter of the Year in 2022, Mannix has won writing awards from the Boxing Writers Association of America and the Pro Basketball Writers Association, and is a longtime member of both organizations.