Frank Warren was disgusted to hear Bernard Hopkins declare he would never lose to a 'white boy' as he clashed with Joe Calzaghe.
Calzaghe's promoter furious at racial slur from Hopkins.
Promoter Frank Warren says he was disgusted to hear Bernard Hopkins declare he would never lose to a 'white boy' as he clashed with Joe Calzaghe in Las Vegas.
The prospect of Calzaghe fighting Hopkins accelerated over the weekend as both men attended Ricky Hatton's fight with Floyd Mayweather at the MGM Grand.
'The Executioner' went nose-to-nose with Calzaghe on two occasions and the animosity between the fighters seems to have given Hopkins a thirst for accepting the fight.
Warren now says what would be an eagerly-anticipated contest is now very close as he negotiates terms of a deal with the American's people.
Trash talk
However, Warren was not happy to hear 42-year-old Hopkins declare he would never lose to a 'white boy' as he clashed with unbeaten Welshman Calzaghe.
"I've heard some disgusting trash talk in my 30 years in boxing but that's the lowest of the lows," Warren told
The Daily Mirror.
"If Joe said 'I'd never lose to a black man' - which he would never dream of saying - he would be nicked by the race relations people, and rightly so.
"There's no need for racial slurs and to say those derogatory things is diabolical. He should know better and his comments show a lack of class."
Warren says he's tabled a bid for Hopkins to fight Calzaghe in Yankee Stadium next April and added: "I'm 99 per cent certain it will happen."
Calzaghe has a fine unbeaten record but now craves recognition across the Atlantic, and a big-money showdown with a name such as Hopkins would certainly increase his standing.
Given the nature of the early exchanges between the two, the pre-fight build-up, should a deal be signed, would come close to rivalling that of the Hatton v Mayweather fight.
