Bernard Hopkins retained his IBF light heavyweight title after earning a unanimous decision against Karo Murat, 117-110, 119-108, 119-108, via Showtime Sports.
The 48-year-old Hopkins runs his record to 54-6-2, while Murat falls to 25-2-1. The win also makes Hopkins the oldest person to ever defend a world title, via ESPN Stats & Info.
Hopkins was the deserved winner, especially when you possibly take into account any sort of champion's advantage. Murat didn't do enough to take the fight to the champ and often found himself on the back foot. It's shocking to think that a fighter 18 years his opponent's junior would be timid in the ring.
That probably speaks more to the longevity of Hopkins, though, and the respect he received from Murat. Or perhaps the talent gap between the two was just that large.
One of the more surprising aspects of the fight was how aggressive Hopkins was. This is a fighter whose last knockout came all the way back in 2004. "B-Hop" has proven so successful by dragging out fights and relying on his defense.
Hopkins looked to be feeling out Murat in the early rounds and then devised a game plan for how to go on the offensive in the second half of the fight.
Sports Illustrated's Chris Mannix thought the champion had one of his most aggressive performances in years.
Mixed in with the actual boxing were some of the more surreal scenes you'll ever see in a ring.
When one guy (Hopkins) wears an alien mask into the ring, you have to know you're going to be in for a long night, via The Guardian's Alex McClintock.
Apparently, Hopkins has changed his name from "The Executioner" to "The Alien," which makes sense because you have to wonder if he's actually of this world.
B-Hop was doing his best to throw Murat off his game. He stuck his tongue out after getting tagged to try and show that he wasn't phased and shoved Murat in the face for no other reason other than to rile his opponent up. He also kissed Murat's head at one point, via ESPN's Dan Rafael.
As you'd expect, the 30-year-old German had had it up to here with Hopkins' antics. When the champion's momentum took him down in the sixth round, Murat saw an opportunity to get a couple extra blows in.
Boxing writer Ryan Songalia was astounded by how crazy this fight turned out to be.
The antics between the two fighters helped to make the spectacle that much more entertaining. The early rounds lacked much drama and excitement. Then, at about the fifth round, when Hopkins kissed Murat, the flight took a turn toward the bizarre and didn't come back.
At least after that, both guys started going at one another, and this turned into an actual fight.
Hopkins deserves all the plaudits, though he should be criticized a bit for some of his unprofessional behavior. At the end of the night, he's still the champ.
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