How Good Was Roy Jones Exactly?

incredible handspeed and reflexes made it almost unfair when he fought guys, the only question mark is what would have happened had he had a fab 4 to fight which would have tested him at that upper upper level. I am not sure he was tested properly at that high level for an all time great, and he is an all time. But there are question marks as to his lack of fighting the tops, but maybe he didn't have them to fight. Hearns, Hagler, Leonard, Duran, Benitez had the greats to fight, so they were lucky, and then maybe not so lucky since they were tested.

 

He didn't beat any greats but he outclassed Toney, who was very good.
He outclassed Hopkins who developed into a great fighter a couple years later.

 

In his prime, at his weight unbeatable. People who yap about resumes are being dishonest.

 

I agree that Roy’s opp. wasn’t so great but whatever they were, Roy’s natural gifts could make them look that much less than they actually were.

This same observation can be made for Mayweather and his level of comp. You need to see the opp. in question against other opponents to appreciate their nullification against the likes of Roy and Floyd.

Personally, I think Roy’s chin was never all that but his skills in combination with the quality of the opp. he faced made it a moot point for the better part.

While it appeared Roy was sometimes so in control that he eased on the pedal and clowned a bit I still think he was well aware of the limitations of his own beard and given his uncommon speed and reflexes, it could be still concluded that he was exercising a fair measure of caution over guys he was already clearly dominating. .

I don’t know if people forget that Roy was clearly wobbled and hurt by Ruiz in the first rd. At 226 lbs, Ruiz came in a bit lighter than his previous 2 fights. I know that’s still a fair weight pull but the couple of punches that hurt Roy were clubbing and totally unremarkable.

No, Ruiz was not at all great but more importantly, stylistically, it was reasonably expected that he would use his size and weight to maul and work Roy over in close.

Instead, we saw Ruiz inexplicably try to out box Roy early, ala Hags v Leonard. Then when Ruiz tried to revert to his usual MO, the ref. was having absolutely none of it. Let alone clinching, the ref baulked at Ruiz even trying to move in and punch in close.

Remember, Roy made a deal out of the employment of any so called dirty tactics etc - such concerns are voiced to influence refs.

So really, you take away the mauling and such, what challenge was Ruiz suppose to present otherwise? Master boxer? LOL, no.

Roy knew exactly what Ruiz had to offer and with it nullified by Ruiz himself initially trying to box and then by the third man who forbid any infighting, the challenge that Roy overcame wasn’t the challenge that many had projected for.

Ruiz, of all boxers, standing off clean, trying to outbox Roy? In that frame, the outcome was none too surprising or exciting.

Roy was a great fighter but he might have a few more question marks on average than other deemed greats.

 

No, not the best chin. Nobody would ever say that it was great. But again, it was his lack of defence which saw him take flush shots off of naturally bigger fighters that was the main issue.

 

I don't tend to cut guys slack if one half of their career is amazing and the other half is ordinary. It's all Roy Jones' boxing career.

Roy Jones was good enough to shut out a prime James Toney (a Hall of Famer) at Super Middleweight, knock out Virgil Hill (a Hall of Famer and longtime Light Heavyweight Champ) with a single body shot, win a heavyweight title from John Ruiz ... and Roy Jones was bad enough to get stopped in one round himself by Danny Green, stopped in two rounds by Antonio Tarver and stopped in four rounds by Enzo Maccarinelli.

So, somewhere in the middle there.

 

His Leonard and Duran were Hopkins and Toney. It’s just a shame that Toney was drained and Hopkins was pre-prime when they first met.

A 2002 rematch with Hopkins would have told us more. But Hopkins wouldn’t entertain it.

 

No. Not at all.

As well as rewatching the fight, you only have to look at Tarver’s demeanour along with Buddy McGirt in his corner.

McGirt was giving Tarver instructions in-between the rounds, before then quizzing Tarver on why his instructions weren’t being carried out. He kept asking Tarver what the matter was. And Tarver looked completely despondent, just answering with: “nothing”

Tarver knew he’d been beaten, but put on an act after the final bell.

You can look at his body language.

Buddy McGirt knows who won the fight.

It was never a robbery.

A close, clear win for Roy, who was absolutely exhausted in the final 3rd of the fight. IMHO, due to the circumstances, it’s his best win.

 

The McCallum fight doesn’t discredit Roy, as nobody sees that as an impressive win.

I honestly wouldn’t put it in Roy’s top 10 wins.

Hopkins was pre-prime, but he went undefeated for 12 years and wouldn’t rematch Roy in 2002. Roy was also injured in their first fight.

Again, Tarver was never robbed. You need to go and watch it again, and take note of what I’ve said regarding Buddy McGirt.

 

As is probably pointed out somewhere in this thread, Roy relied heavily on his reflexes and athleticism... and why not? No one could touch him if he could make the fight about those dynamics. But once those assets slipped a tiny bit, fractions of inches disappeared in exchanges and he started getting caught. With him, it was just so obvious when he started to slip. His style was never made for a long career but his ego demanded it still. He fought at the top for a long time and took down some top-notch HOF names in the process.

 

People are so unfair to Roy its sad.
Hopkins isn't in his peak vs Roy but a YEAR latter he captures the title?
Did Hopkins improve with time? Yes he did but not enough to beat a Jones.
And people forget- Roy injured his hand in that fight and fought one handed and Hopkins STILL couldn't win.
Toney is beating everyone in his path. Says he's gonna knock out Roy.
Fight is made. Roy wins almost every round and drops Toney. But wait. Toney didn't do good because of his weight issue so Roy didn't beat the best Toney ?
Wasn't the hand speed of Roy that gave Toney problems.
Tarver was a close fight and Roy WON. And Roy was no longer at his best.
Roy was one of the most amazing fighters to ever lace up the gloves. EVER.
I shudder to think what he would have done to Canelo or a Cotto.

 

No his competition really WAS terrible. Even the best names on his resume during his prime, Hopkins, Toney and Ruiz had bad nights. Calzaghe was actually a faded fighter, too, when he met Jones, and didn't present the normal threat that troubled faded Jones: power.

But that don't really matter. Jones was a phenomenal fighter. Top 50 P4P - if that kinda claim really means anything anymore.