'Bully' Hopkins tried to cheat his way to victory in Las Vegas, insists Calzaghe

Joe Calzaghe has accused Bernard Hopkins of trying to cheat his way out of their Las Vegas fight at the weekend by feigning injury over a low blow in the 10th round, but admits he was disappointed with his own performance.

Hopkins took a three minute time-out as Calzaghe was starting to dominate their light-heavyweight bout and had referee Joe Cortez decided the American was unable to continue, he would have gone to the three judges' scorecards to determine the winner. Hopkins had won the early rounds and, in the 10th, knew he might still be fractionally ahead.

Calzaghe said: "What a crap actor. He looked like he'd been shot in the balls, not hit. When I hit him there in the second round, that was proper deliberate. He'd knocked me down in the first so I had to give him a dig, didn't I? But the 10th — that was a lie, that one.

"I felt all along he was all mouth. He was a bully and they don't like being bullied. I could tell at the weigh-in he was worried. I said to him: 'This is your last fight, this is the end for you now' and he didn't say anything at all.

"I was worried they might say he couldn't continue and we'd get a technical draw or something. He was so knackered, I could tell he needed a rest. He was a bit surprised when I roughed him up and gave him a bit of his own medicine.

"He's a cheat. He took three minutes off when I didn't touch him and he needed a rest. Joe Cortez should have been firmer. Hopkins is just a spoilt little girl, isn't he?"

The world No 1 at super-middle and light-heavyweight will accept Roy Jones Jnr's challenge to meet before the end of the year, saying: "New York, Cardiff, Las Vegas, it doesn't make much difference to me.

"What matters to me is how much money. That's what it's all about for me. Twenty-five years of boxing. At the end of the day, cash in.

"I've just sent one guy into retirement, a so-called legend, so maybe now I can do it now to Roy Jones."

Calzaghe also criticised his own display in winning a split decision in his first US fight. He said: "I was disappointed with my performance. That was 75 per cent of me. I didn't feel 100 per cent. I think I was too relaxed. But we're not robots. He had the kind of style that makes me look not very good. When I force the fight, I get caught. I like fighters coming to me."

Reviewing his first-round knockdown, he said: "It was only the third time in 25 years of boxing I've been on the floor. It was a flash knockdown and as soon as I got up, I was totally aware. I wasn't hurt. I'm just proud that I managed to get back up and win.

"I had a bit of a shaky start. I'm normally a fast starter. Dad was getting a bit stressed out in the corner but I always felt my speed and stamina would see me through. In the round where I had the long rest, he was really struggling. In Las Vegas, he's allowed to get away with it.

"HBO were saying he got caught more in this fight than he's ever been caught before. He says he's a legend but all he did was go backwards and try to steal the fight. I wanted to knock the guy out. I'm p****d off I went down."

Calzaghe praised his 8,000-plus supporters for observing America's national anthem: "The Welsh fans, the British fans, behaved really well and I'm proud of that."