Is Joe Calzaghe Making a Comeback?

Apparently, watching the Super Six tournament on Showtime proved too much for Joe Calzaghe.

The early word out of Wales is that he's considering a comeback against, of all people, Bernard Hopkins.

Joe, who is 38 and retired for two years, would be putting his perfect 46-0 record on the line.

I love the idea of an un-retired Joe Calzaghe.

I don't like the idea of him fighting Bernard Hopkins when there are so many other compelling fights.

Calzaghe has already beaten Hopkins, and that was one of the more boring fights of Joe's career. Hopkins couldn't handle Joe's speed and resorted to holding and wrestling for twelve rounds.

Let's start with Carl "The Cobra" Froch. His UK counterpart who has called out Calzaghe in the past. Froch, who was beaten by Mikel Kessler just three weeks ago, has quieted a lot of the Calzaghe talk.

Calzaghe dismantled Kessler in November of 2007.

The fight everyone would be talking about is if Joe got in the ring with Lucien Bute. The brawler out of Montreal who is considered, by many, to be the best super middleweight in the world.

There's even Kelly Pavlik. Pavlik, seemingly persona non grata after losing to Sergio Martinez last month, needs a big fight, and a good showing, to restore his tepid reputation.

Sergio Martinez or Paul Williams would make a very, very entertaining fight. Both could give Joe problems with their athleticism.

In his prime, Joe would have been head and shoulders among any of the Super Six contestants as well as Bute. He easily handled Hopkins, Roy Jones Jr., Mikel Kessler, Sakio Bika, and Jeff Lacy. All were top 10 fighters when he fought them, none of them came close to hurting Joe.

For my money, Calzaghe is the best super middleweight in history. His unblemished record speaks for itself.

However, as Larry Merchant said, "Time might stand still, but the clock doesn't."

How much does Calzaghe have left at 38 years old and after a two year layoff?

Then again, Joe was never in any "wars". His hand speed, foot movement, and ring generalship prevented him from being in any all-out brawls that quickly diminish a fighter's skills.

He's also never lost. Many times, the psychological damage of a loss is far worse than the physical damage. Pavlik is a great example. He just doesn't seem the same after Hopkins beat him. The same could be said of Juan Diaz after he was knocked out by Juan Manuel Marquez.

Let's hope the rumors are true and the "Pride of Wales" is lacing up the gloves once again. For my money, there's not a more exciting fighter around than Joe Calzaghe. I can't wait to see him fight again.