By Keith Idec

VERONA, N.Y. – Curtis Stevens’ handlers indicated early Sunday morning that the middleweight contender is OK following a devastating third-round knockout loss to David Lemieux.

Lemieux’s left hook knocked Stevens unconscious Saturday night at Turning Stone Resort Casino and forced emergency personnel take Stevens out of the ring on a stretcher. Brooklyn’s Stevens (29-6, 21 KOs) was conscious as he was leaving the ring and was responsive about an hour later at a local hospital.

Jolene Mizzone – vice president of operations for Main Events, Stevens’ promoter – stated through her Twitter account that Stevens was alert at the hospital. She also Tweeted that he underwent a CT scan as a precautionary measure.

Meanwhile, Montreal’s Lemieux (37-3, 33 KOs) expressed concern during a post-fight press conference. Stevens noticeably got under Lemieux’s skin by talking trash throughout the buildup toward their HBO “Boxing After Dark” main event.

Lemieux made it clear, however, that he didn’t want to do any permanent harm to Stevens or any opponent.

“Obviously I’m not here to hurt anybody long-term,” Lemieux said. “I just want them out for 10 seconds. I hope he’ll be OK and will go back to his family, and he’ll be OK. I’m not here to kill anybody. Even though I said I wanted to hurt him – I did, but I hope he’ll get up and he’ll be OK and everything will be OK.

“I love everybody. Me, I’m a respectful fighter. I respect every fighter that gets in the ring and has the guts to put their gloves against me. So respect and I want no harm for nobody. So I hope he’ll get up and he’ll be OK.”

Keith Idec is a senior writer/columnist for BoxingScene.com. He can be reached on Twitter @Idecboxing.