PHILADELPHIA -- Former heavyweight champion Hasim Rahman fought David Tua to a draw in an IBF elimination bout Saturday night.

	David Tua, left, and Hasim Rahman dueled to a stalemate Saturday.

Rahman, who's winless since he shocked WBC champion Lennox Lewis nearly two years ago, effectively neutralized Tua's knockout power for most of the night and recovered quickly when he did get tagged.

But Rahman was unable to do any damage himself, although he bloodied Tua's nose early on. That left the judges to decide who won, but they couldn't.

Judge Bill Clancy had it 116-112 for Rahman, while Bob Grasso had it 116-112 for Tua and George Hill had it 114-114.

In the main event, held after Tua-Rahman, undisputed middleweight champion Bernard Hopkins stopped European champion Morrade Hakkar after eight rounds of a scheduled 12-rounder.

Hopkins, defending his title for the 16th time, spent the first couple of rounds chasing the Frenchman. In the first, Hakkar (29-4) circled the ring and Hopkins pursued him, leaving referee Frank Cappuccino to stand in the center of the ring, hands clasped, looking amused as he watched the chase.

Hakkar eventually began fighting, but he couldn't compete with Hopkins (42-2-1), who overpowered him with punches from all angles. Hopkins hit him so hard with a right in the sixth that Hakkar went down to one knee to stop the beating, standing up when Cappuccino reached an eight count.

But Cappuccino stopped the fight after the eighth round, on the request of Hakkar's corner.

"I was a little rusty,'' Hopkins said afterward. "I carried him. I needed the rounds. I got rounds and I didn't get cut.''

Hopkins said he wants to drop down in weight to fight Fernando Vargas or Oscar De La Hoya, if possible.

Rahman, meanwhile, who lost a disputed fight to Tua five years ago after a late hit by Tua, said he got robbed again.

"It's the same old stuff,'' he said. "I can't beat this David Tua. I beat him twice and I don't have a win on my record. I'm speechless.''

Tua (42-3-1) fought his customary fight, peppering Rahman (35-4-1) with jabs and trying to set him up for a knockout. He landed a few hard shots to Rahman's head, but Rahman managed to get out of trouble every time.

In the seventh round, Tua staggered Rahman with an overhand right to the head that prompted Rahman to step back and gather himself. Tua backed him into the ropes and unloaded four more punches, but Rahman blocked the hardest ones and got away unscathed.

"I just waited too much,'' Tua said. "I was looking to counterpunch. I was working on setting it up. I hit him with everything I had. I think maybe I was admiring my work too much.''

Usually, Tua's haymakers end fights. Last August, he finished off former champion Michael Moorer in 30 seconds. But Rahman, fighting at a career-high 259½ pounds, used his 13-inch reach advantage to keep Tua at bay.

Rahman said he was confident he could go the distance with Tua if he could avoid the Samoan's powerful left.

"I twisted my ankle this summer playing softball, and I blew up,'' Rahman said. "My body fat was down. I knew I could go 12 rounds.''

Tua thought he won, but he immediately talked about a rematch.

"It was a close fight. I thought I landed the bigger and harder punches. I thought I did enough to win. Let's do it again,'' he said.