What impeded Roy Jones from reaching megastardom?

Yes but it would have been nice to not need to rely on speculation, I’d like to have seen them fight. Period. Fighters fight. I’m not sure Roy was ever a “Fighter”. Which may not be his own fault, his father abused and bullied him throughout his early life, his father MADE him get in the ring...

while I’d like to be able to say Roy was “The Greatest”, which he probably SHIULD
Be, P4P, based upon his sheer talent, it’s difficult when there’s STILL so many unanswered questions.
Another poster mentioned how an undefeated record can get in a fighters own head, and I think that’s partly what happened to Roy...abuse does things to a living being. Different things, depending on the personality involved...we will probably never figure out the enigma of Roy Jones Jr.

 

“ To me, fighting Ruiz and Tarver is proof that Roy was serious about fighting Dariusz and Hopkins. And if HBO hadn't have also thought that he was serious, they'd never have tried to have made the fights.

It's just a complete myth that Roy trod the path of lease resistance.

A guy who did that would not have fought ANY top 10 HW, or burnt muscle in order to have dropped back to LHW to fight a big, dangerous southpaw. It's illogical. “

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sorry if I pasted that incorrectly lol, lol i’m a noob...

im no mind reader but I feel Like you’re doing something that I have found my own self Doing, where Roy and other boxers are concerned, wondering why he couldn’t just FIGHT. The “eye test” tells us that Roynhas the skills to defeat ANYONE. So he shouldn’t be scared or reluctant to fight ANYONE. But the human psyche is notoriously tricky. I believe the abuse he’s suffered his entire life colored every decision RJj ever made concerning his career.

While I have sympathy for Roy - Inreally do, I think here were probably times when Roy said to himself “I’m the BEST. Maybe the best EVER. So why do I always feel TERROR?!?”

But when discussing where he falls on the “Greatest Ever” list, taking Roy’s (or anyone’s) mental health into account isn’t going to happen. His career is what it is now, and there’s no going back. And I’d be willing to bet that Roy, at some point, will look back, after coming to some peace within, and say “Why didn’t I fight him?”...

it’s one of the crueler ironies of life, that our MINDS continue to make Sense of the world throughout our entire lives, but our physical primes are over very very early...
WTF was I saying initially? Lol

 

If he was really great, he'd of pushed for the knockout and/or stoppage vs a near-dead Toney.

 

Ha!

 

He wouldn't have got it.

 

Who knows? He didn't try, he bounced around like a rabbit instead of holding his feet and daring greatness

 

Why would he have tried to have knocked him out?

He employed the right tactics.

He was facing a great fighter in a new weight class.

Also, you'd probably have lambasted him had he have stopped a guy who you claim was almost dead.

 

That's what the greats did. Risking is great. Safety is not.

 

He chose not to chase greatness. He's no Duran or Leonard or Hearns or Hagler or Louis or Robinson or Armstrong etc and that's cool

 

Laziness, consumed by his newspaper clippimgs, lack of desire and focus.

 

Nobody in his position with his skills and style would have employed those tactics.

For what?

To impress a few ignorant fans.

You’ve already noted that he was held back by his father. So he wasn’t going to take a risk like that in the biggest fight of his life. He’d waited over 5 years to get that point.

You never allow for circumstances.

 

How did he not chase greatness?

He was a MW who went up to HW and back.

The biggest omissions from his resume were fights against Dariusz and Hopkins. (rematch)

Neither of those guys were willing to face him back then.

 

Not reading that garbage. Same old.

It is what it is. Get over it.

 

Yeah.

It’s always garbage when things don’t go your way.