*It wasn’t supposed to go down like it did. But hey, it is what it is. We’re talking Joe Smith Jr.‘s TKO over Bernard Hopkins Saturday night at The Forum in Inglewood, CA as you can see in the video above.
When you think about it, you shouldn’t really be all that surprised. After all, Bernard Hopkins is an old 51 and Joe Smith is a youthful 28.
In the wake of Smith’s stunning upset over Hopkins, the legendary boxer’s 28-year career came to a screeching halt when Smith punched him out of the ring and onto The Forum floor in the eighth round in a wild scene, reports WPVI-TV.
Hopkins, a month shy of his 52nd birthday, participated in the 67th and final fight in a career that began when Ronald Reagan was president and the year before Smith was born. In the eighth round, Hopkins landed on his head but complained of an ankle injury and was unable to continue.It was the first stoppage loss of his career.
Referee Jack Reiss administered a 20-count, as is the boxing rule when a fighter is ejected from the ring. When Hopkins could not get back into the ring in time, Reiss waved off the light heavyweight fight at 53 seconds to the disappointment of most of the 6,513 who turned out to see if Hopkins could go out with a win in his first fight in 25 months. On Nov. 8, 2014, the date of Hopkins’ prior fight, he lost two light heavyweight world titles to Sergey Kovalev in a one-sided decision in a unification fight.
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Here’s what Hopkins had to say after the fight:
“I was throwing the right hand and a combination and then using the rope as I’m known for, and making a mess,” Hopkins said. “He got frustrated, and I might have gotten glazed with a left hook, and next thing I know, he was throwing me out of the ring.
“I injured myself and hit my head first and hurt my ankle. I knew of the 20 seconds, but couldn’t stand up on my feet because my ankle was injured. I said I could walk but I couldn’t box. I had a choice to make, but I guess the referee made it for me. I know if I hadn’t made a mess and gotten knocked out of the ring, I would’ve come back like I’m known for and would’ve had my chin.”
Get the rest of this story via at WPVI-TV.
After the fight, Joe Smith Jr. spoke with boxing reported Radio Rahim:
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