Fifty-one-year-old Bernard Hopkins hoped to end his boxing career Saturday on a good note, but his opponent, Joe Smith, had other plans for the longtime boxer’s final match before retirement.
After going seven solid rounds, Smith landed a flurry of hits on Hopkins in the eighth round that eventually knocked him out of the ring.
When Hopkins took more than 20 seconds to get back into the ring, the fight was called.
He claims Smith pushed him out of the ring after landing one of the blows.
“I might have got hit. Next thing I know he shoved me out of the ring. I hit my head first and my ankle got hurt. Between the ankle and the back of my head hitting the ground, I feel worse now than I felt when I was 25,” said Hopkins after the fight.
The loss was Hopkins’ first via knockout in his professional career, and moved his career record moved to 55-8-2.
(h/t CBS Sports)
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