Boxing: Calzaghe wins split decision

Welsh boxer Joe Calzaghe recovered from a first-round knockdown to beat Bernard Hopkins by a split decision in a light heavyweight bout in Las Vegas yesterday.

Calzaghe was awarded the bout on two of the three judge's scorecards. The 36-year-old showed little of his famed prodigious punch output in the first couple of rounds, as Hopkins gained the early initiative and knocked Calzaghe down in the first round.

By the third round, however, Calzaghe had become more active, looking to trap Hopkins in the corner or against the ropes and then unleash flurries of punches.