Would a prime Roy Jones Jnr and a prime Bernard Hopkins have beaten Joe Calzaghe ?

Discussion in 'World Boxing Forum' started by trampie, Mar 22, 2009.


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  1. trampie

    trampie Well-Known Member Full Member

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    Hopkins and Roy Jones Jnr were both afraid of Joe Calzaghe when they were in their prime, Hopkins agreed to fight Joe only to demand DOUBLE his purse the next day, Roy Jones Jnr take Chris Eubanks advice and had nothing to do with Calzaghe.
    They both knew Calzaghe was good and the risk of fighting him was too great.
    Yes both Hopkins and Jones may have beaten Calzaghe, but they would not take the chance as both Americans realised there was a fair chance they could have lost, they only fought Calzaghe when the risk/reward suited them, Joe having cleaned a division out and was then looking to move up in weight and make some serious money and cement his legacy, Hopkins and Jones both thought they could beat Calzaghe on home soil, with home judges and a home ref, they also figured Joe was new to the weight plus Joe's punching power had long gone due to broken hands.
    Joe Calzaghe was a great head to head fighter, you could not bet against Joe from his amateur days until his retirement as he would always find a way to win.
    A prime Roy Jones Jnr was superb, the only person who would have had a chance against a prime Roy Jones Jnr was Joe Calzaghe, Roy may have had quicker feet, faster hands etc, but Calzaghe had a better boxing brain, and will to win.
    Nadal beats Federer all the time, yet the experts say Federer is the greatest ever tennis player, when they play each other the experts all agree that Federer has the better serve, the better forehand and the better volley, Nadal only has a better backhand, yet Nadal wins and that is because he has the better tennis brain and a greater will to win, the same could have applied to Roy Jones and Calzaghe, Jones the better boxer with silky skills but Calzaghe winning due to a better boxing brain and more determination ?
    Since Hopkins loss to Calzaghe he put up a fantastic performance in outclassing previously unbeaten middleweight champion Pavlik and Roy Jones put up a very good show in stopping Omar Sheika in 5 rounds, Calzaghe beat both Hopkins and Jones, and both away from home, yet he gets only limited credit, Calzaghe was also old and passed his best, yet some people only point to Hopkins and Jones ages.
    If a prime Bernard Hopkins and a prime Roy Jones had fought a prime Calzaghe, i think Joe beats Bernard and has more of a chance against Roy than most people would think, the venue of the bouts could be crucial to the outcome, Roy Jones never ever fought outside his own country and Bernard Hopkins has only had two fights away from home both going to the scorecards,with Hopkins failing to win one of them, Calzaghe could have beaten a prime Roy Jones with home advantage.
     
    trampie, Mar 22, 2009
    trampie, Mar 22, 2009
    #1
  2. Bummy Davis

    Bummy Davis Obsessed with Boxing Full Member

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    He beats them both...B-Hop is at his best at 175....Jones has seen better days but at 168 Calzage would always beat him IMO
     
    Bummy Davis, Mar 22, 2009
    Bummy Davis, Mar 22, 2009
    #2
  3. dbouziane

    dbouziane ............. Full Member

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    yes and yes
     
    dbouziane, Mar 22, 2009
    dbouziane, Mar 22, 2009
    #3
  4. bladerunner

    bladerunner El Intocable Full Member

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    both would beat him but it would always be tough fights.
     
    bladerunner, Mar 22, 2009
    bladerunner, Mar 22, 2009
    #4
  5. dbouziane

    dbouziane ............. Full Member

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    and some think that the rjj bhop fight was in their prime so...i guess that may have already happened.
     
    dbouziane, Mar 22, 2009
    dbouziane, Mar 22, 2009
    #5
  6. Kaki

    Kaki Guest

    I agree with that.
     
    Kaki, Mar 22, 2009
    Kaki, Mar 22, 2009
    #6
  7. Ed.

    Ed. Itchy Nuts Full Member

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    I don't believe that. Calzaghe is as awkward a fighter as you can get. Doesn't matter how good you are, he can spoil it. If Calzaghe did lose to either, it would be close.
     
    Ed., Mar 22, 2009
    Ed., Mar 22, 2009
    #7
  8. dannylatics

    dannylatics Well-Known Member Full Member

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    I disagree, I think JC betas any form of RJJ and BHop, RJJ's style is perfect for Calzaghe, he doesn';t fight dirty and awkward like Bhop. His workrate would just be too much.

    I think A prime Bhop vs JC would just be a repeat of the JC/Bhop fight. he was in great condition and how ould his tactics have changed??

    The only case you can make is that rjj was way over the hill which is correct, but IMO RJJ doesn;t beat any form of JC, his workrate is too great
     
    dannylatics, Mar 22, 2009
    dannylatics, Mar 22, 2009
    #8
  9. TwoFistedPiston

    TwoFistedPiston Wheres my last account?!? Full Member

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    Definatley Jones would have probaly stopped Calzaghe

    B-Hop I dunno though
     
    TwoFistedPiston, Mar 22, 2009
    TwoFistedPiston, Mar 22, 2009
    #9
  10. Godfather

    Godfather I put the G in God Full Member

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    Without a doubt
     
    Godfather, Mar 22, 2009
    Godfather, Mar 22, 2009
    #10
  11. Carnage

    Carnage KingFroch Full Member

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    Both would have made Calzaghe look stupid in the ring, especially rjj.
     
    Carnage, Mar 22, 2009
    Carnage, Mar 22, 2009
    #11
  12. ghostlybadge

    ghostlybadge Punch Drunk Full Member

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    very good thread been discussed to death a few times.

    i think JC could have beat both and if not beat then taken them very very close.
     
    ghostlybadge, Mar 22, 2009
    ghostlybadge, Mar 22, 2009
    #12
  13. Cobbler

    Cobbler Shoemaker To The Stars Full Member

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    Calzaghe beats any version of Hopkins IMO. Too fast for Hopkins.

    Prime Jones v Prime Calzaghe. 60/40 in Jones favour. Though, prime Jones is a lot easier to pinpoint than 'prime Calzaghe' (or indeed 'prime Hopkins') which is one of the problems evaluating Calzaghe against anyone.
     
    Cobbler, Mar 22, 2009
    Cobbler, Mar 22, 2009
    #13
  14. KingKrish

    KingKrish Active Member Full Member

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    Its hard to gauge how good Joe is. The Super middle division has been extremely weak since Jones Toney Benn Nunn era. Calzaghe was also very lucky he was with a RISK MANAGER like WARREN who manouvered him into a a WBO belt, where he was able to build up confidence, somethign he wouldnt have been able to do with a WBC.

    Considering Calzaghe has never faced a GREAT fighter in his prime its hard to Tell.

    All I know is he struggled to beat decent guys like RObin Reid (Split decision) etc....during those PRIME YEARS.

    Jones and Hopkins would have beaten Joe when in their prime. There is a reason why Joe was eager to go to the states late on in his career. He made sure he had all the advantages before he fought those guys.

    Warren would never have let Joe fight in the US a few years ago.

    Jones would have probably beat JC wide on a UD, Hopkins would have bust him up.

    Joes an excellent brave fighter whiuch would have made the fights interesting.
     
    KingKrish, Mar 22, 2009
    KingKrish, Mar 22, 2009
    #14
  15. Gneus7

    Gneus7 Boxing Junkie Full Member

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    Impossible to say but i'm going with Calzaghe **** it.
    RJJ & Bhop both over-rated IMO
     
    Gneus7, Mar 22, 2009
    Gneus7, Mar 22, 2009
    #15
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