What Roy Jones did in the ring was nothing short of spectacular throughout his career. With a record of 49-3, with 38 knockouts, titles in four divisions, and the distinct honor of being the first middleweight champion in 90 years to win the heavyweight title (albeit a portion of the title and not the legitimate heavyweight championship held by Lennox Lewis), his place is secure in the Boxing Hall of Fame.
Despite Roy Jones’ achievements, I have reservations about mentioning him along side the other greats like Joe Louis, Ray Robinson, Ray Leonard and Roberto Duran. Or even along side contemporaries like Oscar de la Hoya, Bernard Hopkins and Evander Holyfield.
One of the things that cause me to hesitate in mentioning Roy Jones along side these other great fighters is that throughout his career Roy avoided serious competitors. Despite winning a close decision against Bernard Hopkins in 1993, Roy Jones never gave Hopkins a rematch. And, despite bragging about his exploits, Roy never wanted to fight the top competitors of his era, Joe Calzaghe, Vassily Jirov and Dariusz Michalczewski. In truth, we will never know how great Roy Jones was during his prime because those fights were never made. Instead, the fights that will remain in my mind are those against lackluster mandatory opponents like Clinton Woods.
Another aspect that causes me to hesitate mentioning Roy Jones among the very best in boxing is how he ended his career. The end came suddenly for Roy. One day it seemed he was on top of the boxing world, the next he was sitting on a stool with an ice pack on his swollen face wondering what happened.
What happened was Roy Jones grew old, and when his lightening reflexes and speed were no longer faster than everyone else’s, his career came to an “end” as suddenly as his knockout losses. Without his superior physical advantages, he could not compete … the skill level was just not there, the mental toughness was not there.
Roy never had to discipline himself throughout his career; he would break all the rules in boxing because his athleticism allowed him to get away with it. Roy would allow his left hand to wander at or around his waist, fire straight right hands without setting the punch up, and jab to the body without getting hit in return. But once his great speed was gone, he didn’t have great skills to fall back on.
Roy Jones is perhaps one of the best physical athletes boxing fans have had the privilege of watching, but I don’t think he will be remembered as one of the sport’s best boxers, or best fighters.
--Mighty Moe
2 comments:
I have no idea why Roy Jones avoided certain fights, he would have beaten any of those guys! Other than Sugar Ray Leonard and a few choice others, as a middleweight he was pretty much unstoppable. A Roy Jones vs Ray Robinson would have been a two round fight with Roy Jones knocking him out. Ray Robinson was more slugger than boxer and had questionable opponents. Most people that I know describe his opponents as tough…umm I wonder how they came to that conclusion! Perhaps it because they used limited skills and for the most part simply slugged it out until someone was in a coma. A Ray Robinson by today’s standards would be pretty much a robot, he was fundamentally sound, but that’s it. If we are really true to our selves and stop following the mainstream biasness of boxing we would open our eyes and realize that a lot of the greats are not so great. Reading a boxing magazine is like talking to your great uncle who believes that everything 50 years ago was better simply because it happened 50 years ago. Rotary dial phones were great in their time but they have clearly been transfixed by the push button phone…think about it.
Sincerely yours,
THE TRUTH
Anonymous,
I agree with you, I think Roy Jones should have taken those fights. I also think he could have won ... but we will never know.
I also have to agree with you, a lot of the fighters today would have beaten the fighters of yesteryear. I think Roy Jones as a middleweight would have made quick work of Ray Robinson's opponents too, but then there are the intangibles in boxing: heart. I think the big question will always remain about Roy Jones, "Did Roy Jones have heart?" We know he had athleticism and skill, but could he pick himself up off the mat and make big things happen?
They call Arturo Gatti a throwback fighter, and I think that is a fair assessment and a good comparison to how fighters from that era would compete in today’s competitive climate. With the right handpicked fighters, Gatti can still win titles, but against top-tear talent like de la Hoya and Floyd Mayweather, Gatti looked like an amateur.
Having said that, I think there are some old-time fighters that are still impressive to watch and could have beaten most anyone fighting today.
--Mighty Moe
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