Domination in America, Starting from being a Boxing Champion-Chapter 654 - 471: Strike with Anger
On the ring, the KBS TV host was introducing the various statistics of Link and Hopkins, including height, arm length, weight, and professional records.
Hopkins, with a height of 184 cm and an arm length of 196 cm, was a lanky fighter with a professional record of 60 fights, 5 losses, 2 draws, and 32 KO victories, making him one of the most experienced boxers currently in the professional boxing scene.
As for Link, 24 fights, 24 wins, and 24 KOs. This was a dream achievement, highly sought after by many obsessive-compulsive boxing fans, who hoped Link could keep this going, preferably winning all matches by KO.
"Mr. Baker, do you have the confidence to defeat Mr. Hopkins and win this match?"
KBS host, Choi Hee, passed the microphone and asked.
Several cameras below the ring immediately turned towards Link for filming, and his image appeared on the big screen.
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"Yes, if you ask me who could win this match, there's no doubt, it could only be me."
Link said with a smile to the camera.
"Go Link oppa!"
"Link oppa Fighting!"
After he spoke, excited cheers and screams, mostly from girls, erupted in the venue.
Phew!
Across the ring, Hopkins disdainfully curled his lip.
"Mr. Baker, based on strength assessment, where would you rank Mr. Hopkins among all the opponents you've faced?"
The host asked.
"Top five, I think. Precise data, I think it's better to tell you after the match."
Link said.
"As we know, except for Tyson, none of the boxers you've defeated lasted more than three rounds against you. Do you also aim to finish the match within three rounds against Mr. Hopkins?"
The host pressed further.
"Yes, finishing the match within three rounds was the minimum target I set before the match, but I hope Bernard can last a bit longer."
Link responded.
He could tell that the host's questions were meant to stir up the atmosphere, so he became more provocative in his responses, and indeed, his words stirred the boxing fans in the stands.
Fuck!
Across, Hopkins, face darkened, glared maliciously at Link. Last month, while watching Link and Clinton Woods in Las Vegas, he saw the audience cheering vigorously for Link, easily giving him home-ground advantage.
He had thought that in Seoul, South Korea, Link's fans would be fewer. Yet, upon arriving, he found the streets plastered with posters of Link, ranging from boxing matches, new albums, to Captain America movie posters.
The situation almost made him think he was still in the United States — everyone seemed to be a fan of Link.
What irked him even more was that the Jamsil Arena was worse than outside. The stands were crammed with Link's fans, with posters and support items densely packed everywhere.
Competing here felt like falling into Link's stronghold, fighting Link in front of tens of thousands of his fans.
This situation put great pressure on him, but at the same time, his fighting spirit intensified. Defeating Link in front of his tens of thousands of fans and turning Link into a bruised mess would be really cool.
Hopkins stared coldly at Link and smirked.
"Mr. Hopkins, Mr. Baker said he plans to defeat you within three rounds. Do you have the confidence to last longer or even turn defeat into victory?"
The host passed the microphone to Hopkins and asked.
"Of course! I'll not just defeat him, but I'll use him as a punching bag, showing him what I'm capable of."
Hopkins bared his teeth at Link and waved his fists at him.
Link just smiled lightly, undisturbed.
Ding ding ding!
The match was about to start; bystanders left the ring. Hopkins looked displeased at the KBS host. He asked Link several questions, but only one for him?
Fucking hell!
Also, those fans in the stands were so unimpressive. Although his reply was more domineering than Link's, after he finished, only a few fans shouted, the rest seemed as if they had forgotten to bring their mouths, giving no reaction at all.
"Hey, Link, look at the stands, all your female fans. Guess what, if I turn your pretty face into a pigheaded mess, think they'll be upset?"
Hopkins maliciously smiled.
"It should, after all, I am really handsome—my face getting injured would be a tragedy. On the other hand, if I make your face look like a pig's, everyone should cheer, 'Good hits, hit hard,' because that's comedy."
"You're too kind! Damn it, man, you better pray to God I don't catch your flaws, because if I do, I'll knock you flat."
Hopkins clenched his fists and cursed viciously.
"Wake up! Stop dreaming, it's time for the match."
Link said with an unconcerned smile.
The ring referee came over to announce the rules of the match, and both men stopped their banter, waiting for the referee to signal the start of the match.
"Hoyle, guess how many rounds Bernard can last against Link?"
From the coach's corner, Franco said with his arms crossed.
"Why not how few rounds Link can last against Bernard?"
Hoyle asked dissatisfied.
"That's impossible, we all know that,"
Franco laughed.
"I guess three rounds."
The gym's owner, Eddie Hearn, said while stroking his chin stubble.
Hoyle glanced at him disapprovingly, "Eddie, this match has nothing to do with you. What are you doing here in South Korea?"
"I heard you and Bernard did a lot of work to deal with Link before the match, and I wanted to see what tricks you've got, see if they're worth learning from."
Eddie Hearn laughed.
"Hmph! Don't worry, I guarantee you won't be disappointed."
Hoyle said, crossing his arms.
Franco frowned and stared at him, "Really playing tricks? You know Link, he hates those tricks, and he won't hesitate to hit hard against those who use them. I advise you not to anger him in the match, it won't be good for you."
Hoyle shrugged his shoulders, about to say something, when the referee's voice came from the ring.
"Boxing!"
The ring referee swung down his arm, and Link, wearing red gloves, touched gloves with Hopkins, wearing black gloves, stepped back half a step, and then stared fiercely at each other.
Bang!
Hopkins initiated the attack, making full use of his arm length to smash a straight punch toward Link's face.
Link reacted quickly, seeing the oncoming attack, raised his arms to block, and solidly caught Hopkins's punch, then immediately returned a punch to Hopkins's face.
Hopkins raised his fists to shield himself and leaned back, stepping backward half a step.
The reason was Hoyle had repeatedly warned him before the match that Link's punches were very powerful, not inferior to those of a heavyweight champion, and taking them head-on would be a setback.
He hadn't believed it before, but after being hit in the arm by Link, he knew it was true. Link's punches were indeed terrifying, and he understood why so many excellent boxers fell one after another in the ring against Link.
The reason lay in the power of the punch.
A guy like Link, who has both the speed of a lightweight champion and the punch weight of a heavyweight champion, is really hard to deal with.
Hopkins clenched his teeth secretly, raised his guard to the extreme, and stayed fully focused on dealing with Link's attacks while also looking for opportunities to hit Link, because he noticed that sometimes Link would intentionally reveal flaws to let him attack.
Hopkins scoffed at such flaws.
Because Hoyle had advised him that to enhance the spectacle of the match, Link sometimes went easy during his attacks, allowing his opponent to attack him at will. Then, he could show off his super-fast reaction speed and high defensive skills, causing the audience to cheer for him.
Hoyle also said that Link usually didn't hit hard against boxers who played along, but would be more ruthless during a KO against those who didn't.
After hearing this, Hopkins just wanted to curse.
Link, that bastard, wasn't just boxing, he was training dogs, and any boxer with a bit of spirit wouldn't cooperate with him on this.
Hopkins certainly wouldn't. He took advantage of Link selling a flaw, closed in tight, and fired a straight punch followed by several jabs, brutally hitting Link.
One punch hit Link's chest, another grazed his shoulder, nearly smashing his chin, causing a gasp from the crowd, and many shouted, 'Careful, Oppa.'
He thought Link would explode, unleashing his Torrential Rain Punch, but Link did not. Instead, he kept swinging his fists up and down, straight punch + jab, and his pace was steady, his expression calm, showing no intent to end the match within the first three rounds.
Hopkins secretly wondered, had Link changed his tactics?
