Seriously, I know everyone thinks that this fight is going to be **** and it is just a payday. But has people have found out, fighters can get old in 1 fight. bernard is going to try and humilate roy, thats my thinking on the fight. He is going to want to try and embararss him and Ko him. I honestly think that plays right into roys hands. I expected bernard to come forward and roy to use his left hook a lot. Bernard will try and get roy to the ropes where he can hurt him. I think bernard is so confident that when he gets roy hurt, he will back off and try to inflict more pain. Roy has nothing to lose.
I've rewatched the 3 Tarver fights, G Johnson and Joe Calzaghe fight, RJ is regressing at a staggering rate. Roy is DONE, I can see him winning the 1st two or three rounds then getting completly decimated in the following round. The game is up for RJ.
I've compared the Jones-Trinidad fight to the Jones-Kelly fight and they were about 6 years apart and what clearly stands out is how stationary Jones was against Tito and how fast and mobile he was against Glen Kelly. It has been 8 years since fighting Kelly and Jones won't show the blistering speed that gave him an advantage in the first fight. Long story short his best years have past him and Jones is the only fighter not matter how shot he is people will still give him a chance to win.
his legs are gone. It's true. He's practically immobile. The other definitive pre-decline fight is versus Clinton Woods, which is a masterpiece of hitting-while-not-getting-hit. His movement was a beautiful. Roy has little chance against Hopkins. But, three things for those who hold out a sentimental hope. First is that Hopkins has been getting by on his wizard-like intelligence, his ability to out-think and outmaneuver younger fighters that have never seen anything like him. Might it be that Roy is less confused by Hopkins tactics than "green" fighters like Pavlik? Second is that Roy still has hand-speed. Could he get by on hand-speed alone? It did carry him through fights with Trinidad, Lacy and Sheika. I know, not great competition, but then again not complete pushovers. Third is the hope that Hopkins has deteriorated significantly in the last couple of years. Not implausible.
Agreed but Hopkins' decline has been far less affective towards him than Jones' decline. If anything it's Hopkins' workrate and stamina that have really visibly declined though he put on a clinic against Pavlik and he still has his smarts which can get him by. Jones was more of a natural fighter and now that his naturally quick footspeed is gone all he has is his handspeed and with pressure all he does is cover up as in the Calz & Green fights.
It's better that people realize that Bernard really wants to hurt Roy. Now, it's a whole different thing to actually make it happen... Roy Jones Jr is a very capable and talented boxer-puncher and he really has accepted this fight after the Calzaghe fight b'cause he has no where else to go and make some good money as a prizefighter, we all know that, but the thing that most dismiss and it's wrong is that Roy can use his talent and motivation to steal yet another fight and specially against another ageing fighter like Hopkins...I do disagree that Bernard wants to hummiliate Jones even tho hurting him and backing a step may look like he wants to do so. Bernard wants to win and decisively so so that he gets his ego satisfied and so that he can look up for another good payday afterwards... So when Bernard backs a step when he can go for the finish is b'cause his experience and ring smarts tell him to do so, not to hummiliate a fighter that was one of his mental drives to carry on all these years.
This fight will be interesting. Bernard might be more motivated and nervous about this fight than others because it affects his legacy compared to Roy more. So who knows, he might come out smoking and be tired at the end more than in other fights. Roy is in shape.