Editing Félix Trinidad (section)

===Middleweight===
====Trinidad vs. Joppy====
{{Main|William Joppy vs. Félix Trinidad}}
Following his fight with Vargas, Trinidad moved up in weight – this time to participate in [[Don King (boxing promoter)|Don King]]'s middleweight unification tournament featuring IBF champion [[Bernard Hopkins]], WBA champion [[William Joppy]], and WBC champion [[Keith Holmes (boxer)|Keith Holmes]]. Trinidad was matched with Joppy, whom he defeated by technical knockout in the fifth round of a contest that took place on May 12, 2001.<ref name="Joppy">{{cite web| author=John Gregg|  url=http://www.boxingtimes.com/analyses/2001/010512trinidad_joppy.html| title=Trinidad Triumphs TKO's Joppy| publisher=The Boxing Times|  date=2001-05-12|access-date=2007-08-13 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20070630030636/http://www.boxingtimes.com/analyses/2001/010512trinidad_joppy.html |archive-date = June 30, 2007}}</ref> Joppy opened the first round on the offensive, but late in the round Trinidad scored a knockdown with a combination of punches that came close to throwing Joppy underneath the ropes.<ref name="Joppy"/> Trinidad subsequently scored a knockdown in the fourth round, during this stage of the competition he was using combinations of left hooks and right punches to the head.<ref name="Joppy"/> In the fifth round Trinidad scored another knockdown, Joppy attempted to continue the fight, but while he was using the ropes to help him stand, the referee stopped the fight. When the contest was over, Trinidad explained his strategy by stating: "I knew he wanted to impose his will, his weight, and I wouldn't let him do it".<ref name="Joppy"/>

====Trinidad vs. Hopkins====
{{Main|Bernard Hopkins vs. Félix Trinidad}}
The middleweight unification fight between Hopkins and Trinidad was originally scheduled for September 15, 2001, at the [[Madison Square Garden]]. On the morning of September 11, [[September 11, 2001 attacks|terrorists attacked]] the [[World Trade Center (1973–2001)|World Trade Center]]. Following this incident, the fight was postponed indefinitely. After receiving assurances from Madison Square Garden officials and the City of New York, Don King rescheduled the fight for September 29. The pace of the fight in the early rounds was slow, with each boxer studying his opponent.<ref name="Hopkins">{{cite web|author=Steve Gregg| url=http://www.boxingtimes.com/analyses/2001/010929hopkins_trinidad.html| title=Destiny Denied Hopkins Humbles Trinidad| publisher=The Boxing Times| date=2001-09-29| access-date=2007-08-13 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20070808144900/http://www.boxingtimes.com/analyses/2001/010929hopkins_trinidad.html |archive-date = August 8, 2007}}</ref>  In the second round, Hopkins connected some combinations, while Trinidad pursued the offensive in the fourth round and both boxers traded sequences of punches.<ref name="Hopkins"/> This pattern continued in the fifth round, with Trinidad showing an aggressive style while Hopkins relied on jabs. In the sixth, Trinidad continued an offensive stance and won the round after trading several combinations.<ref name="Hopkins"/> Both fighters continued to exchange punches in the eighth and ninth round, with Hopkins connecting three consecutive solid punches.<ref name="Hopkins"/> In the twelfth round, Hopkins scored a knockdown, but before the contest could continue Trinidad's father entered the ring, which led to the referee stopping the fight by technical knockout.<ref name="Hopkins"/>

Prior to the fight, members of Hopkins's team visited the Trinidad dressing room in what is considered a normal boxing custom, to watch the taping of Trinidad's hands. The Hopkins camp claimed that Trinidad's hands were wrapped incorrectly, and threatened to cancel the fight unless they were rewrapped correctly. Nazim Richardson, who was part of Hopkins corner for the Trinidad fight, clarified that Trinidad's wraps were not wrapped in accordance to the New York Commission laws, but his hand wraps did conform to the rules of other States.<ref>{{Cite web |title=NAAZIM RICHARDSON RESPONDS TO JOPPY'S COMMENTS ON TRINIDAD'S WRAPS: "IT AIN'T LIKE THE MARGARITO THING" {{!}}{{!}} FIGHTHYPE.COM |url=http://www.fighthype.com/news/article17202.html |access-date=2024-06-14 |website=fighthype.com}}</ref>