No Prime SMW in the last 20 years Beats Prime Roy Jones...Nope

If you see things from that perspective, fair enough mate.

Joe certainly had an iron chin, and he also had great recuperative powers. But despite all of his great attributes, he was always relatively easy to hit. There's a world of difference between being caught by Mitchell and Salem, and being caught by a peak version of Roy. Joe simply didn't have a good enough defence to keep Roy away.

Also you talk about Joe's mental state. But we know that Joe didn't want Roy, when Roy was prime. We've all seen his quotes that say, he wasn't chasing Roy, that he didn't want tough fights, and if they ever did fight, he'd have wanted the crown jewels etc. He also said, that he knew what his capabilities were. So I love these types of debates, it's good fun, but the reality is, he'd never have fought Roy at his best.

As for Kessler, he is a very good fighter. But prior to facing Joe, he hadn't beaten any elite fighters. Mikkel caused Joe all sorts of problems in the first half of that fight. While I have to give Joe huge credit, for taking his shots, and turning the fight back in his favour, you have to be realistic and say, if Kessler could hit him at will like he did, then Roy at his best, would of had a birthday. Like I say, Joe had a great chin, but his open defence couldn't have kept Roy away. A guy with possibly the fastest handspeed pound for pound of all time, against a guy who's relatively easy to hit, doesn't end well.

Bika was a tough opponent, there's no doubt about that. Robin Reid was also a good fighter. But again, you have to be realistic. Joe was 27/28 when he struggled with Reid. If you have that much trouble with a guy like Reid, you're simply not good enough to beat Roy Jones at his best.

The fight couldn't of realistically happened when Joe fought Mitchell. Because he wanted the crown jewels, and he wouldn't move to 175, and he was reluctant to fight in the U.S. At the time, he wasn't known outside of Europe. There was no call for the fight. It simply wasn't viable. Even before Roy moved up to heavy, the fight was a non starter.

Ruiz wasn't a great heavy, and I'm not going to pretend otherwise. But he wasn't a complete bum either. He'd beaten and knocked down Holyfield, and Roy had started his career at 154. A lot of people tipped Ruiz because of the size and strength advantages. Roy went up to 200 pounds, and was still outweighed by another 30 plus pounds. He won every round. I guarantee if Joe had have done something similar, his fans would have gone crazy. That was a dangerous fight for Roy to take at 34.

Montell Griffin was a very good fighter back in the day. It wasn't a set up at all. He had a very effective style, and he caused a few good fighters lots of problems.

Regarding Roy not wanting to fight DM, that simply is not the case. Roy was the unified 175 champ. DM had the WBO belt. Roy wanted the fight, due to fan pressure, but he wasn't willing to go to Germany. He'd had his fingers burnt in The 88 Olympics, and some of the judging in Germany at the time, was nothing short of disgraceful. Look at some of Sven Ottke's wins. Nobody in 2001 could expect Roy to travel to Germany. DM turned down two opportunities to go to the States for the fight. The onus was on DM, not Roy.

Apart from DM he fought everyone who was relevant at 175. He fought Harding, Gonzalez, and after Ruiz, dropped weight to fight Tarver. If he'd have been that reluctant, he'd have never have dropped back for Tarver. You're not giving him enough credit.

I don't see it as a coin flip at all. I think a 2002 version of Roy would have won a competitive fight, and got a clear decision or possibly a late stoppage. But I think Roy at his absolute peak, in 94/95 at 25/26 would have scored a definite TKO. Too much speed and power against a weak defence. But again, I respect your opinions Jordan.

Great debate!

Regards, Loudon.

 

Agree completely. Some posters here may need to watch all of his previous fights and then come back and reconsider their hate and deluded opinions.:yep If you have not watched all of his fights like I have, then go back and do so and then come back and reconsider.

 

i think u and mcv are the same guy on alt accts.

welcome to eastsidetrolling

 

Sven Ottke in Germany beats any smw champion:good

 

Nigel Benn(prime) and Gerald McClellan both would have had very good chances of getting to Jones, who was vulnerable. With their combination of power and speed, they could have hurt him and stopped him

Steve Collins, Joe Calzaghe and Chris Eubank would have all been very difficult fights as well, all three had iron chins and would have made Jones work hard. Collins would have pressed him for 12 rounds, but ultimately isn't good enough. Calzaghe was awkward and could adapt, that would be a tough fight. Eubank had an awkward style, where he was excellent at catching fighters coming in, and Jones was renowned for leaping and reaching with his shots.

Ultimately though, as Loudon said, you have to favour a 26 year old Jones (from the Toney fight) over all of them

 

Hi mate!

Sven in Germany would beat anyone! Ha!

Where's Bailey these days?

 

Hi pal!

How's it going?

Are you all set for tonight? Do you think Sergio is definitely going to stop him?

 

No one. How do you deal with that speed AND power? You just can't.

 

Have to agree. Although I think McCellan def had a real shot at being able to stop Roy. And think Roy's chin was good in his prime.

 

Agreed. But I also think Ward is still getting better and if he keeps improving the way he is he could beat Roy. Ward right now I think would give Roy more problems and a tougher fight then anyone else in his career did..... And maybe the most at of anyone at 168. The kid is good.

 

Like who?

 

No body puncher like Ottke.
Your only chance was a KO.

Impossible as he had jabbed your shoulder to oblivion by the 8th round.

 

Too much bull**** hatred in this post I don't even know where to start..

Not worth my time anyway, debating with someone like you is pointless.

Later.:good

 

Ward is fast himself and has timing. He's quick enough and smart enough with good enough timing to catch Roy coming and going.

 

yeah debating with me is pointless because it's an undeniable fact:deal