Jermain Taylor Ends Bernard Hopkins Reign

Jermain Taylor won the undisputed middleweight title at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas with a split-decision victory over Bernard Hopkins, who had successfully defended the title 20 times.

Judges Duane Ford and Paul Smith scored the bout 115-113 in favour of the 26-year-old, while Jerry Roth had it 116-113 for the former champion.

A draw was averted when Ford gave the final round to Taylor, while the other two judges gave the round to Hopkins.

A 2000 Olympic bronze medalist, Taylor (24-0) was the aggressor throughout the first eight rounds, despite a cut at the top of his head because of an accidental head butt in the fifth.

He attacked the 40-year-old Hopkins with his jab and continually kept the champion on the defensive.

The only offense Hopkins mustered in the early going was to hold with his left while punching with his right, a tactic that referee Jay Nady warned would cost him a point in the eighth.

However, the wily veteran became the aggressor in the ninth round by penetrating Taylor’s defence and continually hitting the challenger with his right, wobbling him in the 10th.

In the end, it was not enough for Hopkins, who had not dropped a fight since losing to Roy Jones Jnr in 1993.

Taylor is looking forward to the rematch already and said: “I burnt too much energy in the first rounds. I knew he was going to come out slow and I wanted to jump on him.

“He never hurt me. He got some good shots in, but he never hurt me. I got winded in the later rounds, but for the rematch I will try harder. I wasted a lot of energy chasing him around. I should have cut off the ring.”

Hopkins did not agree with the judges’ decision and said: “From the fifth or sixth round on, I dominated the fight.

“I had him hurt twice. The only thing I didn’t do was knock him out.”