Bernard Hopkins vs. Segundo Mercado I

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When Roy Jones Jr. vacates the IBF Middleweight Championship, Bernard Hopkins gets a second crack at the title in a bout with Segundo Mercado held at high altitude in Quito, Ecuador. After falling behind on points early, Mercado becomes the first man to knock Hopkins down, putting him on the seat of his pants with a right hand in the fifth round. Hopkins rallies and hurts Mercado badly in round six, but Mercado comes back to knock Hopkins through the ropes in the seventh. Hopkins finishes strong down the stretch but cannot convince the judges that he has won the fight and settles for a draw instead.