One of Familton’s sons, Dean, is one of the most astute observers of boxing that I know. He almost always predicts the correct outcomes of up-coming fights. I’m sure he loved Hopkins going into Saturday’s fight.

“Dean wasn’t shocked at all by what happened,” Familton confirmed. “He compared Hopkins and Pavlik to the Harlem Globetrotters and the Washington Generals. I didn’t argue the point with him, because if you wanted to pick out the perfect style for Hopkins to show off his strengths and ability, well, it would be Pavlik’s.

“But wait a minute! We have to remember that Hopkins is 43! Just as he did with Trinidad, who was killing the opposition before they fought, Hopkins neutralized a guy who brutalized almost all of his opponents. He totally dominated, rounds one through 12, a fighter 17 years younger than him. Let’s give him his credit.”

“Hopkins did something he hasn’t always done in this fight, at least not in recent years,” Familton said. “He’s a counter puncher, but he took the lead early against Pavlik and he was successful with it.

“He realized in the first round that he was the bigger, stronger, faster man and he ran with it. Usually, he steps back, makes the other guy miss and counters. Pavlik, on the other hand, is only a counter puncher when he’s in a shootout and in close.

“Hopkins never gave him that opportunity.”

“Consistency is part of the criteria of being a great fighter,” Familton said. “Hopkins has it. Toney didn’t have it, which is why I wouldn’t consider him to be a great fighter. He had everything else – talent, toughness, boxing acumen – but as Teddy Atlas often says on TV, you can never take the mental part out of boxing. It’s as important, and maybe more so, than the physical side.

“With Hopkins’ dedication to the sport and his psychological and emotional stability I think he would have been competitive in any era.”