Watch Former Champion Bernard Hopkins Get Knocked Out of the Ring

This is definitely NOT the way former champion Bernard Hopkins wanted his boxing career to end.

During his final fight Saturday night, December 17th, Hopkins was knocked out by Joe Smith Jr. in the eight round of a twelve round fight.

He wasn’t just knocked out in the way you’d think, though. He was actually knocked clear out of the ring, which you can see in the video above.

According to ESPN, the referee began the 20-count, which is the rule when a fighter is ejected from the ring. Hopkins was not able to get back into the ring before the count was up, ending an otherwise storied boxing career.

[YouTube I ESPN]

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