Hopkins vs. Dawson Video: Watch Controversial TKO Finish to Title Bout

If you wanted a good fight on Saturday night at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, you were disappointed.

If you were looking for a controversial ending, however, you got exactly what you wanted.

In a bizarre end to a hyped light heavyweight title bout between the ageless Bernard Hopkins and 29-year-old up-and-comer Chad Dawson, referee Pat Russell instantly called the fight in the second round when Hopkins appeared to injure his shoulder.

The most bizarre part of the TKO was that Hopkins apparently injured his shoulder after Dawson picked him up and he fell backward onto the mat. But it wasn't like Dawson threw him to the mat; it was almost as if it happened in slow motion.

The decision was followed by Dawson claiming Hopkins faked the injury and charging his corner, surrounded by a sea of boos by the exasperated audience.

You almost expect it to be a great fight whenever Hopkins steps into the ring, as the 46-year-old has proven throughout the years when everyone was saying it was his time to go.

That's why Saturday's ending was so odd and so unbelievable. If you didn't know Hopkins all these years, you would have thought he fixed the fight...or Dawson...or the referee.

This is a fight that is surely to be talked about for a while, a fight that promised so much but only delivered confusion and tainted boxing's name.

Boxing has been overtaken by mixed martial arts in part because the sport itself appears to have died. Fights are promoted like they are going to be the next great thing, when generally they are duds.

One thing's for sure: Hopkins vs. Dawson was a dud, and the worst thing about it was that one of the most respected fighters in the sport was involved.

Where does boxing go from here?