• Light-heavyweight

Hopkins eyes 'one more fight' after Kovalev defeat

ESPN staff
November 12, 2014
Bernard Hopkins failed to win a round on the judges' scorecard in his 12-round defeat by Sergey Kovalev © Getty Images
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Bernard Hopkins will fight at least one more time after being comprehensively beaten by Sergey Kovalev in their light-heavyweight unification bout.

The 49-year-old failed to win a round on the judges' scorecards against the Russian, who added the IBF and WBA titles to his WBO belt.

But while Hopkins, who has never been knocked out in his 26 years as a professional, admitted the fight had taken its toll, he was adamant that it would not be his final appearance in the ring.

"Who will I fight? I don't know," Hopkins told Sky Sports. "But it will be somebody I will be an underdog against because I want to be the underdog.

"If this is the last time I'm going into the ring, I will not cheat myself. It will not be a freak show. I will never short-change myself and my dignity.

"It will be somebody that's a champion. It will be from a division beneath me but where they're comfortable and I'm comfortable. It will be someone that's dominating today."

Nicknamed the Alien, Hopkins has a 55-7-2 record with 32 knockouts since turning pro in 1988, including a decade-long spell from 1995 to 2005 in which he defended the middleweight title 20 times, a testament to his extraordinary longevity.

"Physically, if you see me today, you'd think I didn't have a fight. But inside, trust me - my arms, the back of my head and the top of my head - oh yeah, I was in a fight. I've been in the hot tub for the last 48 hours.

"I had the most underrated chin in boxing but I think that changed on Saturday. I've never been in this business to prove I can take a punch - that's why I've been around so long.

"People said I was crazy to fight him. Whether it's in boxing, sport or even in life, you just have to man up.

"And you know what I've been hearing? People who started off rooting for the young guy ended up rooting for the old guy."

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