Bernard Hopkins faces Sergey Kovalev as he aims to unify the light-heavyweight division at the age of 49... here are the numbers which make up The Alien's career
Published: 07:23 EST, 8 November 2014 | Updated: 10:01 EST, 8 November 2014
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At 49 years of age, Bernard Hopkins is not your average professional boxer.
The Philadelphia-born fighter may be just two months shy of his 50th birthday yet he holds the IBF, WBA and IBA light-heavyweight titles and is looking to add the WBO and WBC belts to that collection on Sunday morning.
A unification bout with Russian Sergey Kovalev could see the oldest-ever world champion achieve yet another incredible feat - by unifying the entire division in Atlantic City.
+15
Bernard Hopkins is the oldest world champion in history at 49 and is looking to unify light-heavyweight divison
The American has re-launched himself as 'The Alien' in his last couple of world title fights
HOPKINS vs KOVALEV
Watch the huge unification bout live on Box Nation (Sunday, 4am).
Originally the self-professed 'Executioner', Hopkins used to walk to the ring with his head covered in a hangman's hood. Now though he has re-modelled himself and wears an alternative mask - that of an Extra Terrestrial - calling himself 'The Alien'.
Hopkins will be looking to takeout his opponent and unify the division. The American has 55 wins from 65 bouts - with six losses, two draws and two no contests - with 32 of those from knockouts.
He does, however, face an unenviable task against Kovalev. The Russian himself is nicknamed 'The Krusher' and Roman Simakov, who he beat in 2011, later died having slipped into a coma due to the sheer power of the punching from his opponent.
In anticipation of this huge fight, Sportsmail takes you through some of the incredible facts and figures that have shaped The Alien's career...
Intense and strange face-off: Bernard Hopkins vs Sergey Kovalev
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Before his last few fights, Hopkins wore a hangman's hood to the ring and called himself 'The Executioner'
Hopkins (left) faces the Russian Sergey Kovalev in Atlantic City as he looks to unify the division
49 years, 297 days - The American's age. Hopkins is the oldest ever world champion in history.
30 years, 104 days - Age when Hopkins first claimed a world title, the IBF middleweight belt. He defeated Segundo Mercado in April 1995 to win the vacant belt.
75 - The length, in inches, of Hopkins' reach.
Keith Holmes (right) lost to Hopkins in April 2001 as he challenged the American for the IBF Middleweight title
6ft 1in - The American's height.
5 - The number of years which Hopkins spent in prison (1983-88) after being awarded an 18-year sentence. He was locked up at Graterford Prison in Pennsylvania between the ages of 17 and 22. He was incarcerated for nine offences and saw another inmate murdered during his time inside - over an argument for a packet of cigarettes. Despite this, Hopkins did discover boxing as a sport during his time in prison.
1 - Number of fights it took Hopkins to register a loss. On his debut in 1988 he was defeated by Clinton Mitchell.
Hopkins holds his arms aloft after beating Beibut Shumenov during their unification fight in April 2014
$10million - Hopkins was paid a staggering $10m (£6.3m) when he defeated Oscar De La Hoya in September 2004.
$350 - This compares to the miniscule amount of $350 (£220) he was paid during his debut defeat to Mitchell in October 1988.
65 - Fights Hopkins has put his 49-year-old body through to date, with his 66th to come against Kovalev.
Chad Dawson (right) connects with a punch on Hopkins during their fight in Atlantic City in April 2012
55 - Wins for Hopkins during his 26-year career.
32 - Knockout victories for The Alien throughout his career.
6 - Number of bouts Hopkins has lost. The defeats came against Mitchell (1988), Roy Jones Jr (1993), Jermain Taylor twice (July and December 2005), Joe Calzaghe (2008) and Chad Dawson (2012).
Joe Calzaghe (centre) is one of only five men to have beaten Hopkins during his 26-year career
Dawson (right) also beat Hopkins but the American defeated him first in October 2011 in Los Angeles
2 - Draws for Hopkins, against Mercado (1994) and Jean Pascal (2010). He has also had two fights called as no contests, against Robert Allen (1998) and Dawson (2011).
4 - Consecutive years for which Hopkins was undisputed middleweight champion of the world. Hopkins defeated Felix Trinidad at Madison Square Garden in September 2001 to unify the division and he held the WBA, IBF, WBC and WBO titles until he lost to Taylor at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas in July 2005.
Hopkins became the undisputed middleweight world champion after in September 2001
The American knocked out Trinidad (right) to unify the division and become the undisputed champion
21 - Longest run of consecutive victories in Hopkins' career. He claimed 21 straight victories after losing his first fight to Mitchell. He beat Greg Paige in February 1990 and did not lose again until he fought Jones Jnr in May 1993.
A 38-year-old Hopkins shows off his muscles before a fight against Robert Allen in June 2004
48 years, 53 days - Age at which Hopkins claimed the IBF light-heavyweight title from Tavoris Cloud to set a new record for the age at which someone has claimed a world championship. He originally set the record as a 46-year-old when he beat Pascal for the WBC title.
Hopkins (right) lands a right hand on the head of Trinidad during his victory in September 2001
3 - Stab wounds Hopkins received during his childhood on the streets of Philadelphia.
10 - Number of years consecutively for which Hopkins held a middleweight title, from his victory over Mercado (April 1995) through until his loss against Taylor in July 2005).
Antonio Tarver (right) feels the force of a Hopkins punch during their fight, which the latter won
January 15, 1965 - Date on which Hopkins was born, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
12 - Number of different world titles Hopkins has won during his career at two different weight levels - middleweight and light-heavyweight.
26 years, 29 days - Time since Hopkins' debut against Mitchell in Atlantic City - where he will return to face Kovalev in his latest bout.
Hopkins runs off in celebration having beaten Joe Lipsey in Las Vegas back in 1996
- Bernard Hopkins fights Sergey Kovalev in Atlantic City (Sunday, 4am)
- The 49-year-old American is oldest world champion in history of boxing
- He is looking to unify light-heavyweight division against Kovalev
- Originally nicknamed 'The Executioner', he now calls himself 'The Alien'
- Here, Sportsmail looks at the statistic which make up his 26-year career
Published: 07:23 EST, 8 November 2014 | Updated: 10:01 EST, 8 November 2014
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At 49 years of age, Bernard Hopkins is not your average professional boxer.
The Philadelphia-born fighter may be just two months shy of his 50th birthday yet he holds the IBF, WBA and IBA light-heavyweight titles and is looking to add the WBO and WBC belts to that collection on Sunday morning.
A unification bout with Russian Sergey Kovalev could see the oldest-ever world champion achieve yet another incredible feat - by unifying the entire division in Atlantic City.
+15
Bernard Hopkins is the oldest world champion in history at 49 and is looking to unify light-heavyweight divison
The American has re-launched himself as 'The Alien' in his last couple of world title fights
HOPKINS vs KOVALEV
Watch the huge unification bout live on Box Nation (Sunday, 4am).
Originally the self-professed 'Executioner', Hopkins used to walk to the ring with his head covered in a hangman's hood. Now though he has re-modelled himself and wears an alternative mask - that of an Extra Terrestrial - calling himself 'The Alien'.
Hopkins will be looking to takeout his opponent and unify the division. The American has 55 wins from 65 bouts - with six losses, two draws and two no contests - with 32 of those from knockouts.
He does, however, face an unenviable task against Kovalev. The Russian himself is nicknamed 'The Krusher' and Roman Simakov, who he beat in 2011, later died having slipped into a coma due to the sheer power of the punching from his opponent.
In anticipation of this huge fight, Sportsmail takes you through some of the incredible facts and figures that have shaped The Alien's career...
Intense and strange face-off: Bernard Hopkins vs Sergey Kovalev
<center>
Before his last few fights, Hopkins wore a hangman's hood to the ring and called himself 'The Executioner'
Hopkins (left) faces the Russian Sergey Kovalev in Atlantic City as he looks to unify the division
49 years, 297 days - The American's age. Hopkins is the oldest ever world champion in history.
30 years, 104 days - Age when Hopkins first claimed a world title, the IBF middleweight belt. He defeated Segundo Mercado in April 1995 to win the vacant belt.
75 - The length, in inches, of Hopkins' reach.
Keith Holmes (right) lost to Hopkins in April 2001 as he challenged the American for the IBF Middleweight title
6ft 1in - The American's height.
5 - The number of years which Hopkins spent in prison (1983-88) after being awarded an 18-year sentence. He was locked up at Graterford Prison in Pennsylvania between the ages of 17 and 22. He was incarcerated for nine offences and saw another inmate murdered during his time inside - over an argument for a packet of cigarettes. Despite this, Hopkins did discover boxing as a sport during his time in prison.
1 - Number of fights it took Hopkins to register a loss. On his debut in 1988 he was defeated by Clinton Mitchell.
Hopkins holds his arms aloft after beating Beibut Shumenov during their unification fight in April 2014
$10million - Hopkins was paid a staggering $10m (£6.3m) when he defeated Oscar De La Hoya in September 2004.
$350 - This compares to the miniscule amount of $350 (£220) he was paid during his debut defeat to Mitchell in October 1988.
65 - Fights Hopkins has put his 49-year-old body through to date, with his 66th to come against Kovalev.
Chad Dawson (right) connects with a punch on Hopkins during their fight in Atlantic City in April 2012
55 - Wins for Hopkins during his 26-year career.
32 - Knockout victories for The Alien throughout his career.
6 - Number of bouts Hopkins has lost. The defeats came against Mitchell (1988), Roy Jones Jr (1993), Jermain Taylor twice (July and December 2005), Joe Calzaghe (2008) and Chad Dawson (2012).
Joe Calzaghe (centre) is one of only five men to have beaten Hopkins during his 26-year career
Dawson (right) also beat Hopkins but the American defeated him first in October 2011 in Los Angeles
2 - Draws for Hopkins, against Mercado (1994) and Jean Pascal (2010). He has also had two fights called as no contests, against Robert Allen (1998) and Dawson (2011).
4 - Consecutive years for which Hopkins was undisputed middleweight champion of the world. Hopkins defeated Felix Trinidad at Madison Square Garden in September 2001 to unify the division and he held the WBA, IBF, WBC and WBO titles until he lost to Taylor at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas in July 2005.
Hopkins became the undisputed middleweight world champion after in September 2001
The American knocked out Trinidad (right) to unify the division and become the undisputed champion
21 - Longest run of consecutive victories in Hopkins' career. He claimed 21 straight victories after losing his first fight to Mitchell. He beat Greg Paige in February 1990 and did not lose again until he fought Jones Jnr in May 1993.
A 38-year-old Hopkins shows off his muscles before a fight against Robert Allen in June 2004
48 years, 53 days - Age at which Hopkins claimed the IBF light-heavyweight title from Tavoris Cloud to set a new record for the age at which someone has claimed a world championship. He originally set the record as a 46-year-old when he beat Pascal for the WBC title.
Hopkins (right) lands a right hand on the head of Trinidad during his victory in September 2001
3 - Stab wounds Hopkins received during his childhood on the streets of Philadelphia.
10 - Number of years consecutively for which Hopkins held a middleweight title, from his victory over Mercado (April 1995) through until his loss against Taylor in July 2005).
Antonio Tarver (right) feels the force of a Hopkins punch during their fight, which the latter won
January 15, 1965 - Date on which Hopkins was born, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
12 - Number of different world titles Hopkins has won during his career at two different weight levels - middleweight and light-heavyweight.
26 years, 29 days - Time since Hopkins' debut against Mitchell in Atlantic City - where he will return to face Kovalev in his latest bout.
Hopkins runs off in celebration having beaten Joe Lipsey in Las Vegas back in 1996
