Hopkins to make ring return in Philadelphia

UPPER DARBY, Pa. (AP) — Bernard Hopkins once promised his mother he’d retire at 40.

Yet here he is, creeping up on 45, and the fighter considered one of boxing’s all-time great middleweights is still dancing in the ring and prepping for another fight.

Hopkins shuffles his feet and punches the air as Jay-Z’s “Dirt Off Your Shoulder” blares through the musty gym. His groin protector reads “Executioner,” an apropos alias during his perfect 10-year reign as middleweight champion.

Wearing a white tank top, dark spandex shorts and white sneakers, Hopkins beckons his sparring partner into the ring.

After boxing the equivalent of 10 rounds, Hopkins hops out for some jump rope and other cardio exercises.

“Once you start that engine, you’re cool,” Hopkins said. “It’s starting the engine that takes time.”

Known for a clean and frugal lifestyle that bans alcohol and late nights, Hopkins feels he still has time to keep that engine purring. The end of his 21-year career, which he claimed was over after defeating Antonio Tarver in 2006, is no longer on the immediate horizon.

Nearly 14 months after his last bout, Hopkins (49-5-1, 32 KOs) seeks to prove he has plenty of punches left tonight in his hometown of Philadelphia against Enrique Ornelas (29-5 19 KOs) in a light heavyweight fight. He’s using the rare weeknight fight — especially for a boxer of his stature — as the first step in a three-bout plan to achieve one final milestone.

Hopkins, not a stylistically pleasing fighter but efficient at what he does, intends to go out on top as the heavyweight champion.

“There’s no division after heavyweight,” he said. “It’s over.”

Hopkins’ first item on his to-do list is knocking out Ornelas. If Roy Jones Jr. wins his fight the same night in Australia, Hopkins says the two will meet in March at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.

Then, after four more months of training “to put some muscle on this lean body,” Hopkins said he will challenge WBA heavyweight champion David Haye.

“He’s not the biggest heavyweight and I won’t be either,” he said. “But at the end of the day, what a career.”

Hopkins is focused on revitalizing the Philly fight scene. The north Philadelphia native wants the city, where gritty contenders rose from the streets and became champions, to again be a destination where rising prospects can fight on solid cards on national television.