Bob Fitzsimmons vs Roy Jones, Jr. at 168

Well, if Ruby Robert could get a job as a full time police officer or garbageman, that would go a long ways to making this match-up happen.

 

Jones wins this fight. Without many problems.

 

By the way, this fight was taken in open air in the hot sun. A sunny day which was every bit as hot as any other fight in history including the famous Johnson willard fight. The multiple reports of spectators vomitting in the heat due to walking up a hill to get to the fight are probably a little exagerated, but i am sure the point of heat is valid. I cant think of any Jones fight to take place in such circumstances. Such circumstances that actually did in the great Sugar Ray, among others.

It is often forgotten in this fight, that not only was lang a legitimate World title challenger (though admittedly he turned out overated), but he was actually behind on points until the heat got to Fitzsimmons. Given his age and size, that is nothing short of astounding.

And surely everyone agrees that Prime Fitz (or for that matter the ancient fitz that faced Lang) does to the current version of Roy Jones exactly what Danny Green did.

 

The man in the first video beats the man in the second video

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FWcY0tt0xQo[/ame]

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BOFdL5VkcQM[/ame]

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5clfV1gZV0A[/ame]

 

Yes he does...

 

Watching Fitzimmons taking that beating at 46 from a bigger man while suffering from heat exhaustion...it's clear that his chin was infinitely better than Roy's. So we can pretty much rule out any of this 'Roy KO's him brutally inside 2' nonsense. If anybody gets KO'd early, it's Roy.

Furthermore, Fitzimmons carried his power to heavyweight without gaining any weight. Roy went up into the 190's and wasn't exactly a power puncher.

Fitzimmons was fighting, beating, and knocking out the best guys out there at the time from middleweight to heavyweight. Jones was putting on circus acts against civil servants. He rarely tested himself, and even when he did, it had a catch (ok I'll go to heavyweight, but only to grab a quick title off the weakest champion, Ruiz). That's not comparable to the kind of confidence it must have taken to say '**** it, I only weigh 160ish but I might as well beat up the heavyweight champion of the world, who happens to be a future ATG. You know, just 'cause I can.'

I'm not saying Jones wouldn't win, but it wouldn't have been as easy as some people think. I do think Fitzimmons would take it. He was one of the hardest punchers of all time. Roy Jones has a pretty terrible chin. Fitzimmons had a good chin. It's reasonable to assume Fitzimmons would be able to hit him sometime in the course of the fight, and from there it would be downhill for Jones.

Best I can see Jones doing is a decision. He wouldn't stop a guy that tough. Fitzimmons would only win by stoppage, there's no way he could outpoint a guy as quick as Roy. I understand that he looks slower due to the video, but it's safe to assume Roy was considerably faster.

 

Roy gave up more weight to Ruiz than Fitz did to Corbet though, Roy certainly was a power puncher earlier in his career

 

And yeah, to Roy's credit, Ruiz is an extremely tough mother****er too...but it's still Ruiz.

I think in this hypothetical matchup you have to have Fitzsimmons as the puncher.

 

I'm siding with Fitzsimmons.

Tarver was able to time him and I don't think he was past his prime then.

Griffin was also able to time him in their first fight.

Fitzsimmons is a better counter puncher than those two and is a harder puncher as well.

Stylistic analysis based on a picture is astonishing.

There's good footage of the Corbett fight now and there's loads of write ups if his fights against other champions of his time.