Collision Course: Bernard Hopkins vs. Robert Allen III

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On a card billed to promote a superfight between himself and Oscar De La Hoya, Bernard Hopkins faces Robert Allen for the third time in defense of his WBC, WBA and IBF Middleweight Championship. Although Hopkins threatens to pull out of the fight due to the appointment of Joe Cortez as the referee, Cortez actually lectures Allen for hitting on the break in the first round and docks him a point for a low blow in the fifth without issuing a prior warning to the challenger. In the seventh round, Hopkins lands a looping right hand that spins Allen onto his face on the mat. After shaking off a brief rally from Allen in the eighth, Hopkins coasts to a wide unanimous decision victory and heads to his locker room to watch De La Hoya attempt to lift the WBO title from undefeated Felix Sturm in the main event.