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Roy Jones Jr.
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There has been chatter coming from various corners of the boxing world suggesting Roy Jones Jr. may have a dance partner for this March. The much discussed, often maligned, rematch with Bernard Hopkins appears to have come up against too many impediments to reach fruition, leaving Jones' career to deteriorate from seniors tour to yet another unnecessary sequel.
Before the Tarver trilogy, before the Johnson upset and even before instructing John Ruiz on the finer points of the sport, Roy Jones spent just under six rounds painting welts and bruises all over Clinton Woods face and body. It seems the Sheffield, England native fancies himself greatly improved from those days and wants a shot at revenge against the man who so thoroughly dominated him in 2002. Of course, this has nothing to do with the fact that Roy has been effectively de-clawed and looked like a budgie in a cock fight his last four times out.
To his credit, Clinton Woods wasn’t dropped and never quit against Jones in spite of being battered relentlessly by Jones lightning fast and precise power shots. His corner threw in the towel midway through the sixth frame, well after it was clearly going to be necessary and after Roy himself motioned for someone to get involved. Woods was a decent fighter then and a game guy with a ton of heart who has indeed improved. He has just one loss since the thrashing by Jones, that coming at the hands of Glen Johnson in a closely scored rematch of their first contest, which ended in a draw. Woods last outing was in defense of the IBF light heavyweight title and he was victorious over the rugged Julio Gonzales.
With a title belt in hand, Woods has a fairly valuable bargaining chip with which to negotiate for some of the same big spotlight and scratch other Great Britain fighters have secured of late. Unlike Hatton and Calzaghe however, Woods aspires to take care of business right downtown, citing Las Vegas as the ideal venue. 2006 is the year of ambition for Clinton Woods, who says he’d like to first get rid of Jones this spring, move on to a third fight with Johnson in the summer, and cap things with a showdown against Mason “The Line” Dixon aka. Antonio Tarver.
But what about Roy Jones Jr.? The term ‘shot fighter’ gets tossed around too eagerly and too often when describing a boxer who has fallen from a pedestal. Frankly, it’s disrespectful and reduces a man to an athletic commodity, whether intentionally or not. Jones is not a shot fighter, but as a fighter it appears he is shot.
Roy’s career reached a crescendo came in 2003 when he stepped up to heavyweight and took John Ruiz’s WBA strap. (Whether the move up was facilitated with some untoward help is open for debate.) The drawing of the curtains began once he accepted Antonio Tarver’s challenge, shed the extra weight and squeaked by with a controversial decision. (Whether the move down was a by-product of discontinued pharmaceutical assistance is also open for debate, as is the pervasiveness of such measures in boxing and professional sports as a whole.) Since that debatable win, he has been brutally decked twice and badly rocked in a lackluster effort that fell far short of redeeming his once shimmering aura. There is such thing as too many encores, even for a virtuoso, especially when it is the same boring or even sad swan song each time. The house lights have come on, yet it seems Roy Jones wants to keep coming out for another bow.
It is time for fans and media to let Jones go before something bad happens. Something permanent. The one-punch knockout that Tarver rematched him with was devastating enough. The battering and finale in the Johnson fight was the hurtin’ kind. Zab Judah has his chin removed by Kostya Tszyu; Diego Corrales by Floyd Mayweather and again by Jose Luis Castillo; Fernando Vargas by Felix Trinidad and now Roy Jones by Antonio Tarver and Glen Johnson. He has no more ability to handle getting tapped and the glossy eyed, disoriented glaze he wore after the Magic Man clipped him at half throttle should be enough warning of potential things to come. When a fighter looks that fragile, there is big danger looming ahead.
For his part, Jones has always been a tough one to figure as far as the choices he makes. No one knows what Roy is thinking except Roy, and until signatures are on contracts no fight is ever a done deal. There is a little life left in the possibility of a Hopkins rematch, and Jones in on record saying he would like three or four more bouts, including either Bernard, or a tune-up before moving onto other rematches with conquerors Johnson and Tarver.
The boxing world does not need another tragedy brought on by something as foolish as ego. This is obviously not about the money, as Roy Jones has secured a fortune over his career through clever self-promotion and business dealings. Jones was one of the greatest middleweight, super middleweight and light heavyweight fighters of all time. He was one of the best period. Pushing the envelope at this stage is like playing Russian Roulette with only one empty chamber and the only payoff being the adulation of strangers. There is no need to go out like Evander Holyfield, a formerly brilliant, tough and highly respected champion who fans now pity too much to watch. These men have chosen to continue long after proving time after time that they were both the real deal.
Ironically, and perhaps ominously, it has been reported that Roy Jones has recently acquired the services of Holyfield’s former advisor Jim Thomas. With the potential consequences as severe as they can be, let’s hope he is willing to provide good advice in this role, with his client’s best interest as primary concern rather than simply becoming a ‘yes man’.
Also See:
 Roy Jones Jr vs Joe Calzaghe May Happen South Wales
Hopkins: June Bout With Roy Jones Back On The Schedule Dp
Roy Jones Jr might Face Lacy-calzaghe winner on SHOWTIME Dp
*This Article is Sponsored by http://www.healthycoco.com/
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