Too bad Jones didn't take on Julian Jackson or Gerald McClellan

Agreed McClellan was the biggest thread to Jones with his speed/power, but yes he was a tad basic, he had no defense, no inside game and his stamina is a weakness. We also never saw him against a mover, with angles and speed. A big threat for the first 5rounds though against any MW in history, not just Jones

 

More like JJ could starch china chin with one punch. Did RJJ get this glass jaw overnight or was it after the Tarver or Johnson one punch KOs?

This is my opinion of the RJJ career: gifted and athletic boxer, unconventional, used athleticism to evade being hit, glass jawed, avoided some potentially difficult fights, slowed down and his jaw was exposed. This doesn't take away from the fact that he was probably one of the best of his generation, it just raises questions.

 

but would jackson land such a punch ... probably not.... jones was better then drayton and graham and jackson struggled ( more like got the **** kicked out of him) with them before the KO

 

I agree that I don't think JJ would land the required punch before he himself was KOed, having a similarly shakey beard himself. However I don't see the big punching names on RJJ's resume, which is the crux of this thread.

RJJs biggest threat was G-man, and that fight could never happen. I think if RJJ had fought and beaten G-man, assuming he beat Benn on the count in the first round, then Roy's resume would be complete. He didn't face Calzaghe either but I don't see any fear in fighting Slappy, who was not a big puncher.

Beatin Calzaghe would put RJJ in top 10 ATG but after his recent KO losses he is sliding down an icy slope.

 

Yeah jones didn't fight many big punchers in super middle..... What about Marquai Sosa, or is that grasping for straws, other then that nothing comes to mind

 

The one on your avatar or someone similar .
Someone whom was anywhere near Roid's size , technically sound and not slow (so that he wouldn't be too much outsped) and a good puncher for his weight.
Thornton was 10 years older than Roid. The stoppage against Sosa was probably somewhat premature considering the way Sosa fights used to look like , and Sosa's reaction immediately after the stoppage.
Also , as I explained more than 4 times already , Roid's "win" over James means nothing.

 

Yeah but Sosa was very tough , and julian jackson wasn't the most durable either. Sosa would come right at you and be willing to take punishment, while Jackson would take punishment and give you a sorry why are you doing this to me mon, Rasta man done nutin to you look and eventually knock you out. Jacksons fragile chin/ mindset are more of a problem then anything about sosa. Jones KO 1 Jackson.... Don't worry Kopejh, jamica's still got a bobsled team,loser !

 

I can't believe I read even half of your post...so much stupid in it.

 

If I recall correctly, Jones was at 168 while McClellan was fighting at 160. I also believe that McClellans first fight at 168 was against Nigel Benn, which we all know ended tragically.

McClellan is a guy I never really thought about when thinking of guys I wish Jones would have fought.

I would have liked to have seen Eubank and Nigel Benn. Nigel Benn is one of my favorite 168 pound fighters and one of the best fighters out of Britain. I do think that Jones would beat both Eubank and Benn, but those are fights that I would have loved to have seen.

As far as Julian Jackson goes, I liked his style as a fighter but he was a couple tiers down from a guy as great as RJJ. Easy fight for Roy, by knockout.

 

I think Jackson was a little before RJJ's time. Remember he was 32 when he lost his first bout with G man. The latter defeated RJJ as an amateur which may have had a psychological impact. McClellan was such a go ahead fighter that even if he was getting caught on the counter, he would definitely have landed some shots on Roy's questionable chin.

Nigel Benn is another interesting one. Roy had a far greater skill set, but Benn was as strong as an ox, had the heart of a lion and could really bang.

Calzaghe would also have been a fascinating match up during RJJ's prime. As both were very unconventional fighters, this could have created either a very exciting battle or a real stinker.

If RJJ had fought either of McClellan, Benn or Calzaghe, probably in that order in terms of ranking their difficulty, I feel his legacy would be much improved and survive much of the battering it has taken as he declines.

 

This is the main difference between h2h and resume.

You'd hard pressed to name a fighter with more than a 60% chance of beating roy south of heavyweight.

The 4 main guys he missed imo was jackson, benn, liles and dm. Now clearly jones would be a huge favourite over all of these but being a favourite and having the victory are different things.

Had he beaten jackson just after hopkins he'd have unified the division and picked up the championship. Had he faced benn and liles after toney he'd have again unified a division and picked up the championship. Had he beaten dm instead of hill the exact same thing again. I wouldn't argue with someone putting him top 15 with those names.

As I see it, he campaigned in 3 divisions and not once faced the highest ranked opponent in the division. Not just that but looking back he never faced a big puncher in his prime either.

However his resume gets a huge boost from beating hopkins, toney, ruiz and having an incredibly dominant run against a host of lightheavyweight contenders. I think I have him between 30-35.

I feel that whittaker should have received fotd in the 90's and that both pea and hoya were greater.

The guys from that era I rank:

Pea
Pac
Hopkins
Holyfield
Hoya
Floyd
Jones
Chavez
Toney
Mosley

The sad thing is I think talent wise, or h2h, jones is second only to pea. But resume wise and legacy wise he falls short imo.

 

whatever. i'm sure what you wrote was deep and true... i couldn't make it past your avatar.

 

So was jackson really

 

Interesting really, because in my estimation it would have been the only way to beat Jones when he was at his best. Land something big and devastating on him. I'd probably like Mclellans chances better than Jackson's who was a bit more chinny. I think Jones gets both of them first though.

 

If it is established that Jones is chinny, then it is immaterial how hard his opponent punches - If anyone got a clean hit on him they should have stopped him - but no one could.
McClellan showed nothing that makes me think he would beat Jones - Benn is interesting just because he was still dangerous when badly hurt and he would be badly hurt against jones.
I think eubank would be the most interesting match up and he could win about 4 rounds and go the distance -But Jones would win