WASHINGTON -- Bernard Hopkins made some more boxing history, and did it in rather easy fashion. Then, the 49-year-old boxer showed his age, referencing a TV character that might have gone over the heads of many young fans. "I was so in my living room watching Archie Bunker," Hopkins said, playfully comparing himself to the main character from the 1970s series "All in the Family." "I was so relaxed, so relaxed." Already the oldest boxer in history to hold a world championship, Hopkins became the oldest to win a unification bout Saturday night as he captured a split 12-round decision over Beibut Shumenov of Kazakhstan. Afterward, the Philadelphia native sounded far from finished -- or satisfied. "The pound-for-pound best fighter in the world right now is Floyd Money Mayweather," Hopkins said. "Ill tell you, behind Andre Ward, who I believe is second and should be, Im not that far from the top three. My age and the way Im doing it. "Im just telling you, Im not done yet." Hopkins was in complete control Saturday and it was reflected in the statistics. Of the 608 punches thrown by Shumenov, only 20 per cent landed. Of the 383 punches Hopkins threw, he landed 49 per cent. "I didnt do that when I was 30," Hopkins joked. "He was really surprised the way I could stand there and let him miss." When the split decision was announced the pro-Hopkins crowd of 6,823 jeered its disapproval. Two judges scored the fight 116-111 for Hopkins. The other judge gave the nod to Shumenov 114-113. "I shut him out," Hopkins said. If there was any doubt about the outcome, it was removed in the 11th round when Hopkins rocked Shumenov with a chopping overhand right for the only knockdown of the fight, igniting chants of "B-Hop! B-Hop!" from the D.C. Armory crowd. It was a reminder for Hopkins of 20 years ago, when he fought for the first time in Washington, losing a decision to Roy Jones Jr. at RFK Stadium, right across the street from the venue where Saturdays fight took place. "It motivates me every time I come to D.C. The dressing rooms, it took me back," said Hopkins, who improved to 55-6-2. After a slow start, in which he fought defensively, Hopkins controlled the action, growing confident, aggressive and playful as the fight progressed. The fourth round saw Shumenov moving forward, but Hopkins landed the two best shots, both right-handed counterpunches, to secure the edge. In the fifth, Hopkins was doing more than counterpunching. A straight overhand right landed squarely to the cheek of Shumenov. By the sixth round, it was clear that Hopkins confidence was growing as he became the aggressor, initiating the action and landing a big combination. In the seventh round, Hopkins was feeling so good that he alternated leading with his right and left hands, befuddling Shumenov, who fell to 14-2. "Im kind of angry that I lost the fight," Shumenov said. "I am a true warrior." Hopkins-Shumenov was one of three world title fights on Saturday. In the first, Peter Quillin of Brooklyn, N.Y., retained his WBO middleweight belt and improved to 31-0 with a unanimous 12-round decision over Lukas Konecky of the Czech Republic. In the IBF welterweight title match, Shawn Porter of Cleveland also remained undefeated with a fourth-round knockout of Brooklyns Paulie Malignaggi, who took time off from his job as an analyst for Showtime, which carried the nights action. Nyheim Hines Colts Jersey . Hes recovered from a scary injury and cleared to play. Mingo, who was hospitalized with a bruised lung he sustained in an Aug. Braden Smith Jersey . CNN and Gazzetta dello Sport reporter Tancredi Palmeri broke the news via Twitter Tuesday afternoon. Italian Football Association President Giancarlo Abete has also resigned, according to Palmeri. http://www.coltsofficialstore.us/authent...n-colts-jersey/. Bryant underwent an operation in December to correct an irregular heartbeat. His season ended with four games left because of a rapid heartbeat, a condition he has known about for several years and had been treated for in the past. Darius Leonard Colts Jersey ... as usual. Even with the salary cap being set lower than many general managers expected and hoped for at $69 million and whats considered a shallow pool of top-end players available, this unrestricted-free-agent period figures to follow the familiar script of teams bidding up prices to keep up with each other. Colts Jerseys . "Last year didnt go the way we wanted it to, but we need to look at what went well and what didnt go so well. Hopefully this year we will be better," Brendan Gallagher said after practice. This year, the Canadiens have a little more depth to work with by adding players like Daniel Briere, Dale Weise, Mike Weaver, Douglas Murray and arguably, the biggest addition to this playoff roster, Thomas Vanek, who the Canadiens were able to land at the trade deadline.RALEIGH, N.C. -- Ron Francis wasted little time putting his stamp on the Carolina Hurricanes. One week into his new job as general manager, Francis fired coach Kirk Muller and most of his staff. Now leading a franchise that has made the playoffs just once in eight years, Francis cited the need for a "fresh start" and warned that nobody on the roster -- from the marquee names, to the grinders at the end of the bench -- is untouchable. "I dont think changing the coaches lets the players off the hook," Francis said. "I think there has to be a lot of responsibility on their shoulders as well to turn this thing around. Hopefully we can do that going forward." Francis, a Hall of Fame player and former captain and assistant coach with the Hurricanes, took control of the team last week when Jim Rutherford stepped aside after a two-decade run as its GM. As part of his first big housecleaning move, assistants John MacLean and Dave Lewis also were fired and goaltending coach Greg Stefan was reassigned back to the teams pro scouting department. Rod BrindAmour, a third-year assistant who was the captain of Carolinas only Stanley Cup-winning team in 2006, was retained because Francis said "Roddy really didnt have, in my estimation, a prominent role on this staff." Francis says its "an open search at this point," is looking for "a guy whos a teacher" with strong communication and leadership qualities and ideally would like to hire his new coach before the June 27-28 draft. "I dont really have anybody in mind," he said. "Well start (with) a few names were putting on the list, and well go forward looking at that list and see who is the best fit for our team going forward." Muller was 80-80-27 in three seasons with the Hurricanes, who havent made the playoffs since 2009, the llongest active drought in the Eastern Conference.dddddddddddd Carolina finished 13th in the 16-team East this season. "The biggest thing was our inconsistency," Francis said. "Some nights we looked like a great team and other nights, we really struggled, looked like we didnt know how to play the game at times." Muller, 48, made six All-Star teams during a 19-year career with six clubs, most notably New Jersey and Montreal. He had never been a head coach in the NHL and was in his first season coaching the Milwaukee Admirals of the AHL when he was hired during the 2011-12 season to replace the fired Paul Maurice. The relentlessly positive Muller spent the past month in limbo, saying in mid-April that upper management had not told him anything about his job status and that he was going about his business as if he would remain the coach. While owner Peter Karmanos Jr. said late in the season that he liked the coaching staff, he added last week that it would be entirely Francis call whether to retain Muller. During his formal introduction as GM, Francis said his impending decision on Mullers status "needs due process." Mullers final year was plagued by subpar years from the four highest-paid players on the roster -- forwards Alexander Semin and Eric and Jordan Staal, and goalie Cam Ward. When Ward was asked during his exit interview if it was tough for Muller to get his message across in the dressing room, the goalie said "for me, obviously, Im going to avoid that one." Francis said he didnt sense much friction between Muller and the players. "You look at our team, theres guys who didnt play well. They were told that by us in the exit meetings," the GM said. "Theres always going to be situations where, as a player, if you dont like the coach, youve still got to perform." Blackhawks Jerseys StoreCheap Wild JerseysCheap Red Wings JerseysCheap Maple Leafs JerseysPenguins Jerseys StoreCapitals Jerseys For SaleBlues Jerseys StoreCheap Kings JerseysAdidas Lightning JerseysStars Jerseys For SaleCheap Predators JerseysDucks StoreSharks Jerseys For SaleCheap Sabres JerseysRangers Jerseys For Sale ' ' '