NEW YORK -- About midway through the fight, the hot air of Bernard Hopkins' boasts became the cold wind of reality.

	Bernard Hopkins wears the three belts after knocking out Felix Trinidad. His next bout is Feb. 2

Felix Trinidad Jr. -- Puerto Rico's beloved Tito -- had met his match and most everybody in Madison Square Garden early Sunday morning knew it.

They knew it well before Trinidad was knocked down and stopped in the 12th round. In a late round, a chant of "Hopkins, Hopkins" was not answered by "Tito, Tito" which has signaled the end for Trinidad's previous opponents.

The 36-year-old Hopkins had repeatedly said he was the best middleweight in the world. When he walked out of the Garden, he was the undisputed middleweight champion of the world.

"I stand by what I say, I mean what I say," Hopkins said.

Trinidad, who had won his first 40 fights and championships in three weight classes, was impressed.

"Hopkins is a great champion, a good fighter," he said.

Hopkins was a dominant fighter against Trinidad.

"I said before that this would be the easiest fight of my whole career," Hopkins said at a postfight news conference that was not attended by Trinidad.

"If I had lost, I would have been here," Hopkins said. He, however, was gracious in victory, apologizing for prefight demonstrations in which he twice threw down the Puerto Rican flag.

"First of all, I want to apologize to the Puerto Rican people," Hopkins said. "We're all the same."

Hopkins, a natural middleweight, had said he had too much experience against top-level competition and too much strength and power for Trinidad, a former welterweight and super welterweight champion from Puerto Rico, who was fighting as a middleweight for the only second time. He won the WBA 160-pound title by stopping William Joppy in the fifth round May 12 in the Garden.

Hopkins, the IBF middleweight champion since 1995, who won the WBC title on points over Keith Holmes on April 14, fought brilliantly -- moving, jabbing, counterpunching. The 6-foot-1 Philadelphian, the biggest opponent ever faced by the 5-11 Trinidad, was not fazed by the Puerto Rican's vaunted power (33 knockouts) and hurt his rival on several occasions. Hopkins (40-2-1, 29 knockouts) nearly finished the fight at the end of the 10th round.

"I felt the fight was more or less even until the end," Trinidad said.

It was more or less even for the first six rounds, before Hopkins won the next five rounds on all three officials cards.

"We'll sit down and discuss what to do next," Trinidad said. "I'm not really thinking about the future. I am a great champion and I don't feel bad with one loss."

If he had won, Trinidad was expected to move up in weight yet again and fight Roy Jones Jr., the undisputed light heavyweight (175 pounds) champion.

Hopkins is talking about fighting Oscar De La Hoya, the WBC super welterweight champion.

"Roy Jones is not on my radar," Hopkins said. "He disrespected me back in February. Of course, $20 million would change my mind quickly."

Hopkins lost a decision to Jones for the vacant IBF middleweight title in 1993. His only other defeat was in his pro debut in 1988 after he had served five years in prison for what he said "was all kinds of stuff."

Before the fight, which was postponed from Sept. 15 because of the terrorist attack on the World Trade Center, a group of New York City firefighters drew a standing ovation.

While basking in his successful quest for recognition he felt was long overdue, Hopkins put things into perspective:

"What they do going up steps when the building is coming down is more important than any championship fight," the champion said.