Frank Hopkins, one-time cutman for, among others, Tyson Fury, has died aged 79.
Hopkins, a renowned, respected and much-loved figure on the British fight scene, was perhaps recognized above all else for his influence on his profession near his home of Emsworth, England, but his composure and expertise contributed to him also working world-title fights in Saudi Arabia and the US.
It was in April 2022 when, at the age of 76, Hopkins was first recruited by Fury to be his cutman for his WBC heavyweight title fight at London’s Wembley Stadium with Dillian Whyte. Hopkins succeeded the similarly respected Jacob “Stitch” Duran.
A reported post-war record crowd of 94,000 were present that night, but Hopkins said shortly afterwards: “People were asking me, ‘Will you be nervous with all those people there?’ but I didn’t and I proved that on the night. I don’t get nervous – I don’t know why, I just don’t. I got nervous for Tony Oakey because he was my nephew and he was going for world titles.
“Honestly, when I was looking at it and they undone those doors and the lights went on [in Wembley Stadium], the people were all singing Sweet Caroline – it was unbelievable.
“I’m not bragging, but I’ve been all around the world, I’ve been to America 10-15 times. I’ve done 37 world title fights – some are big some are small, but I’ve never done anything like that.”
If Fury represents the highest-profile fighter from the northwest of England who came to rely on Hopkins, until the final days of his career there remained others. Nick Ball, the WBA featherweight champion, was one; Hopkins and Fury met when Hopkins was working for the WBO lightweight champion Terry Flanagan; James “Jazza” Dickens was another; he worked with Jamie Moore on the night of his memorably brutal fight with Matthew Macklin in 2006, and then for Macklin when Macklin was being trained by Moore for his fight with Lamar Russ in Atlantic City in 2013.
Hopkins, a long-term car-and-horse trader, took his first steps into boxing when he met Frank Maloney, then working with Lennox Lewis, and told Maloney of the potential of his nephew Tony Oakey.
“I didn’t even know how to put a pair of gloves on a fighter,” he told Boxing News in 2022. “Frank said, ‘Why don’t you do Tony’s cuts?’ I asked Dennie Mancini to teach me and he said, ‘Why would I teach you my job?’
“I told him I was only going to work with Tony and he said, ‘Come and sit alongside me,' and that’s what I did. I did that for six months and then Dennie retired and gave me all his kit.”
The pinnacle of his career perhaps came when he worked with Fury for his undisputed heavyweight title fight against Oleksandr Usyk in 2024.
In so many ways presciently, on the eve of that fight he told BoxingScene: “I do what I enjoy with my horses and motors. My son asks me why I keep driving miles around the country, with the boxing and going over to Saudi Arabia. He said I don’t have to do it. I said, ‘Are you mad? I do have to do it. Do you want me to sit in a chair and die?’ I’m 78 this year. I enjoy it.”
A heart attack had prevented him from being able to work their rematch. “I had to pull out of Fury’s last fight, ‘cause I had a heart attack,” he explained earlier in March 2025. “I’m gutted I’m not doing it no more. I’m 79 years old, and I’ve never, ever, ever missed boxing like I miss it now. It’s been a month. It’s crazy.
“Me and Tony started together – I ended up, in my opinion, one of the best cuts men in Great Britain. I done well, really, didn’t I? I done 38 years.”
Mark Chamberlain, of Portsmouth, and Ryan Garner, of Southampton – both are local to Hopkins’ home in Hampshire on England’s south coast – were among those he continued to work with for as long as his health allowed.
Less than a week has passed since Garner’s most recent victory, over Reece Bellotti, after which Garner said: “Everyone knows Frank Hopkins has backed me through thick and thin. When I was younger, I give him more grey hairs than you could imagine. Frank Hopkins is a legend in the game. I’m thankful he stuck with me, and absolutely gutted he’s not here tonight.
“He’s done my whole career. When I was misbehaving, Frank Hopkins stuck with me and backed my corner through everything. Frank, I just want to say, 'I love you, mate.'”
Tributes, inevitably, have been paid to Hopkins since news of his death spread.
“Everyone at Queensberry are saddened to learn of the passing of Frank Hopkins,” Frank Warren posted on social media. “A top man who worked with many of our fighters across the years. Condolences to his family and friends for their loss. Rest in peace, Frank.”
“Rest in peace, Frank Hopkins,” said the retired WBO junior lightweight champion Barry Jones, of Wales. “One of boxing’s good guys. You’ll be missed.”
“Lovely man,” said Eddie Hearn. “Rest in peace, Frank.”
“Just like to say a special rest in peace to Frank Hopkins, my old cutman,” said Fury. “What he didn’t know about cuts in boxing, nobody knew. He forgot more than most men knew about cuts.
“He was one of the best and greatest in the game, and it was a pleasure to have him as part of my team towards the end of my career.
“All the best, Frank. God bless you and may God make you a good bed in heaven. All the best, see you soon brother.”
Reflecting on his time working with Fury, Hopkins once told BoxingScene: “He does as he’s told [in the corner]. He’s sitting on a four-foot stool, so instead of ducking under the top rope, I have to go over it. He’s talking to SugarHill [Steward, his trainer], and his back is sort of to me. If I have to say, ‘Ty, can I look at your face?’ Straight away, he does it. No ifs or buts. Honestly, he’s easy in the corner.”
Speaking in 2022, he also told BoxingNews: “I’ve been doing it for a long time and there’s nothing I haven’t seen. I’ve had fighters come back [to the corner] with their eyes shut and I remember Jazza Dickens’ jaw falling in half in my hand in the [in 2016, Guillermo] Rigondeaux fight. I kept calm and called the referee over.
“I don’t panic. I just get in there and do the job, whether it’s a four-rounder at the York Hall or a world-title fight.”
Fights at York Hall in London followed quickly after Fury-Whyte.
“I’ve got six children and 48 grandchildren and great grandchildren,” he explained. “So every Christmas, my wife says she needs £2,000 for presents. Two weeks later it’s: ‘Have you got another £2,000’ and two weeks after that she asks again.
“So you see, I’ve got to keep working.”
