How much credit do you give Jones Jr.

[PanamaJack]

For beating Ruiz?

[SevenSamurai]

It was a massive achievement to go up to heavyweight and win a belt for a fighter who started at middleweight. We all know Ruiz was not the greatest but he was still a heavyweight champion and Jones absolutely shut him down and dominated him completely.

I was very honoured and proud to see Roy win that title.

I was gutted that he moved back down in weight, as I knew he should have stayed at that weight.

He was never the same fighter after that night, and it is all because he made the wrong decision and moved down in weight rather than continue at Heavyweight.

It was Roys last great performance. He was already just on the slide when he fought Ruiz but he completely destroyed his physical ability by draining himself so intensely to move back down when he had nothing to prove at the lower weights anymore.

[justaboxingfan]

I've always like Jones. He had a flashy style and though his opposition wasn't always high, he did give us a great show everytime. Had he retired after the 1st Tarver fight, I'd have Jones as one of the greatest. Remember that Ruiz also beat Holyfield(though somewhat shot) Rahman, Oquendo, Tucker and Golota, so for a 'middleweight' to beat him the way he did, was a great feat nonetheless.

[SevenSamurai]

:huh You think Roy should've stayed at Heavyweight?

I dont see why it sounds so strange!

Roy should have stayed at heavweight after moving up to heavweight, because all of the money was there and he made the move so stick with it. I wanted to see him take one title defence and then retire as champion to never return!!!!!!

Roy should also have stayed at heavweight because when he moved back down he destroyed his body in doing so, and he did so at the expense of his legacy by getting iced by two fighters who were not even fit to tie up his laces just a year earlier before the move.

Roy moving back down was the biggest mistake of his entire career.

[sandwichsurgeon]

This begs the question - who would have won if Jones had fought Tyson as opposed to moving back down in weight?

He would have made one hell of a lot of money and shot or not Tyson is one great name to have on the resumé of a 'middleweight'.

[A-50]

For beating Ruiz?



None, he handpicked the WORST beltholder in the last 35 years, then went running back to Light Heavyweight after talking of fighting Sanders, Byrd, etc. :lol:

[unitas]

None, he handpicked the WORST beltholder in the last 35 years, then went running back to Light Heavyweight after talking of fighting Sanders, Byrd, etc. :lol:

ruiz was better than byrd and sanders. just look at the record:hi:

[Sweet Jones]

Roy should've probably retired after his first Tarver fight when he should've realized he didn't have what he used to, but he shouldn't have stayed at HW because he would've been beaten up by any good HW most likely.


Roy had some real opportunities for some money fights at HW after beating Ruiz.

The 'legends' fights would have both sold and RJJ would have probably been the favorite in each. Holyfield fight would have sold and Evander was pretty much done (see his lost to Toney later that year). A Tyson match up was discussed also, and as much as it pains me to say it, RJJ probably 'frustrates' the hell out of Mike.

A Toney rematch was available at HW also.

He still had a unification bout with Byrd, who RJJ would have beat in a boring but close UD fight.

And then, why not go out in a blaze against Lennox. By then RJJ, much like Evander, would have been more comfortable at the weight (probably up to about 210-215 lbs).

Roy probably left at least 40 million on the table by going back down in weight.

[Jose FM]

He should have probably fought at Cruiser, or fought Tyson at heavy, but not go down to light heavy it was a huge strain to his body.

[Jose FM]

Oh i give him alot of credit btw.

[Fab2333]

Roy had some real opportunities for some money fights at HW after beating Ruiz.

The 'legends' fights would have both sold and RJJ would have probably been the favorite in each. Holyfield fight would have sold and Evander was pretty much done (see his lost to Toney later that year). A Tyson match up was discussed also, and as much as it pains me to say it, RJJ probably 'frustrates' the hell out of Mike.

A Toney rematch was available at HW also.

He still had a unification bout with Byrd, who RJJ would have beat in a boring but close UD fight.

And then, why not go out in a blaze against Lennox. By then RJJ, much like Evander, would have been more comfortable at the weight (probably up to about 210-215 lbs).

Roy probably left at least 40 million on the table by going back down in weight.

agreed, Roy should have stayed at Heavyweight, their was a lot ofmoney for him to make in that division. I give him a lot of credit for doing it. I give him credit also for droppin abck to LHW. When you a fighter and some1 is callin you out, that you know you can beat, Its kinda hard to sit back and stomach it. And Fightfans, and media is not going to help the situation. I dont agree with Roy droppin muscle to fight Tarver, but i respect him for it. Wat he should have done after he won the heavyweight belt. Since he never really had no aspirations of stayin at that weight. was take some time off, and gradually come down, give his body time to rest up properly. then took a tune up fight, and then fought Tarver just to shut him up.

[brooklyn1550]

A lot of credit

[Marnoff]

Roy should've probably retired after his first Tarver fight when he should've realized he didn't have what he used to, but he shouldn't have stayed at HW because he would've been beaten up by any good HW most likely.

To me, he should have either stayed at Heavyweight, or at least after returning to Light Heavyweight, retired after the first Tarver fight like you said. He was clearly not what he was, and needed to pack it in.

[Jennifer Love Hewitt]

1. I don't believe this "dropping weight put a strain on his body" Roy weighed in for his heavy weight fight at about 197lbs. That was fully clothed and with boots on. So he was probalby about 190 or so. That's about the normal walking around weight for a light heavy. Tarver just had the style and got to him at the right time.

2. I do think Roy should have stayed at heavyweight.
A. If he would have goten knocked out cold by a heavyweight, no one would discredit him for it.

B. Not defending the title he won took away from the achievement. It made it seem like he handpicked the easiest belt holder just to put a notch in the HISTory books, rather than be a real champion.

C. There were some credible heavyweights that I think Jones could have beaten. I think he would have beaten Chris Byrd, and won 2 pieces of the splintered title. From there he could have challenged Lewis, gotten KOEd, but been honored for the bravery of stepping in the ring with the greatest big man of all time, and made a crap load of money! Jones also could have beaten the worn out Holyfield for some good $$$. Moorer, Sanders,Tua..other names I would have given him decent chances against.
D. Jones talked big about making heavyweight fights but nothing came of it. This, again, hurt his reputattion.

3. Moving back down hurt Jone's legacy more than anything. It made it seem like he was running away from his new heavy weight responsibilities. Then. he stunk up the place against Tarver, then got KTFOed twice in a row by light heavy's. If Heavy's KOed him, no one would discredit the smaller man for getting stopped by 200+ lb fighters.



In hindsight, Jone's move up to heavyweight hurt his legacy more than helped it. Add to this that Toney also beat Ruiz for a belt though he cheated, and it was rightfully reversed it still diminishes Jone's accomplishment. Though at the time, when Jones schooled the Quietman, I thought Jones was top notch. I gave him heeps and bounds of credit. I still think Jones was one of the best ever, but his half assed "campaign" at heavyweight was sort of a disgrace and ultimately his biggest mistake.

[fightking12]

He deserve alot of credit for beating the best

[Fab2333]

1. I don't believe this "dropping weight put a strain on his body" Roy weighed in for his heavy weight fight at about 197lbs. That was fully clothed and with boots on. So he was probalby about 190 or so. That's about the normal walking around weight for a light heavy. Tarver just had the style and got to him at the right time.

2. I do think Roy should have stayed at heavyweight.
A. If he would have goten knocked out cold by a heavyweight, no one would discredit him for it.

B. Not defending the title he won took away from the achievement. It made it seem like he handpicked the easiest belt holder just to put a notch in the HISTory books, rather than be a real champion.

C. There were some credible heavyweights that I think Jones could have beaten. I think he would have beaten Chris Byrd, and won 2 pieces of the splintered title. From there he could have challenged Lewis, gotten KOEd, but been honored for the bravery of stepping in the ring with the greatest big man of all time, and made a crap load of money! Jones also could have beaten the worn out Holyfield for some good $$$. Moorer, Sanders,Tua..other names I would have given him decent chances against.
D. Jones talked big about making heavyweight fights but nothing came of it. This, again, hurt his reputattion.

3. Moving back down hurt Jone's legacy more than anything. It made it seem like he was running away from his new heavy weight responsibilities. Then. he stunk up the place against Tarver, then got KTFOed twice in a row by light heavy's. If Heavy's KOed him, no one would discredit the smaller man for getting stopped by 200+ lb fighters.


In hindsight, Jone's move up to heavyweight hurt his legacy more than helped it. Add to this that Toney also beat Ruiz for a belt though he cheated, and it was rightfully reversed it still diminishes Jone's accomplishment. Though at the time, when Jones schooled the Quietman, I thought Jones was top notch. I gave him heeps and bounds of credit. I still think Jones was one of the best ever, but his half assed "campaign" at heavyweight was sort of a disgrace and ultimately his biggest mistake.

I h8 when people say that dropping the weight doesnt affect him. And when people say things like that, I know they dont box, or take sports period. Even if he was "190pounds as you said" He dropped MUSCLE not fat. remember Roy was a solid 197, not a fat out of shape one. So dropping muscle and not giving your body proper time to heal properly, and get use to the weight, is sure as hell going to affect you. People just dont want to give Roy the benefit of the doubt b/c he was so confident in his ability. And 1nce he lost people wanted to hang it over his head. The man is still human. Ne1 lose that much muscle without giving their body proper time to heal, is going to be weak. So lets be realistic, the weight affected him physically, after he got knocked out, it was more of a pshycholigical thing with him.

[Vantage_West]

Roy should've probably retired after his first Tarver fight when he should've realized he didn't have what he used to, but he shouldn't have stayed at HW because he would've been beaten up by any good HW most likely.exactly staying at hevy when your a 5'11 barely 200 pounder,who hadnt had the speed ,the power and the ring movment he had before. there is a reason why he fought ruiz and ruiz only


ok anyone got a problem with cruiserwieght?

if he did he would be one of the the few champions who have won a title form middlewieght to heavywieght.
at cruiser it would be a stepping stone to go back to light heavyand given him some more credentials.

[Imperial1]

Considering where he started at hell yeah I give him credit ..I'd love to see any of today's current fighters do that ..

[JoeyP]

I give him a ton of credit. I don't like him anymore but it will be a long time before we have someone that has any where near the natural physical gifts he had.

JoeyP

[Jennifer Love Hewitt]

I h8 when people say that dropping the weight doesnt affect him. And when people say things like that, I know they dont box, or take sports period. Even if he was "190pounds as you said" He dropped MUSCLE not fat. remember Roy was a solid 197, not a fat out of shape one. So dropping muscle and not giving your body proper time to heal properly, and get use to the weight, is sure as hell going to affect you. People just dont want to give Roy the benefit of the doubt b/c he was so confident in his ability. And 1nce he lost people wanted to hang it over his head. The man is still human. Ne1 lose that much muscle without giving their body proper time to heal, is going to be weak. So lets be realistic, the weight affected him physically, after he got knocked out, it was more of a pshycholigical thing with him.

Okay, so he dropped the muscle weight. I still don't buy it as an excuse. But, let's assume you are right... Hell, he beat Tarver the first time! The time he got sparked was in the rematch. Was that not enough time to adjust? Was his victory in the first fight an accident? He simply got caught in the rematch with a perfectly timed punch. Sure, it can happen to anyone. It's how you deal with it that makes a true standout. After that punch, Jones was a broken fighter. He lost his belief in himself. It's a shame because he really was a sopecial fighter before. One of my favorites.
I think if it was a heavy weight who starched him, he could have thought, "well it was a bigger man who did me in" and kept his confidence. The public would have bought that too. Getting brutally KOed by smaller men twice in a row really does hurt the public's perception of Jones. Especially after the man went up to heavy.

[john garfield]

Not much, because he took on the weakest of the heavyweights and a guy who stylistically made for him.



That's easy to say in retrospect, DB, because of what RJ accomplished. But in Vegas before the fight, I spoke to a ton of veteran fight people (boxers and trainers) in gyms and hard-core fans all over town.

Fans opinions were split along rooting lines. About 70% of the fighters and trainers picked Ruiz by KO -- too big, too strong.

As one heavyweight put it, "Ruiz's jab is like a light heavy's right hand."

[Illmatic]

:huh You think Roy should've stayed at Heavyweight?

well, at the time I hated Roy, so i was glad he went down and got beat. But in retrospect, for the good of his career, he shouldve unified with Byrd (this fght was 50/50 i.m.o, and then challenged Lewis. Sure, he wouldve lost, but he wouldve went out trying to achieve ultimate greatness, not losing to Johnson and Tarver. Plus, once the fight starts, who knows what wouldve been the outcome, maybe Lewis wouldve threw out his shoulder or something...:D

[Tim]

it looked good till a out of shape toney was able to do it. it showed ruiz was just that bad.

[achillesthegreat]

Ruiz has been a top 10 boxer/ titlist for OVER TEN YEARS! Who else in the division can say this? Not many, IF ANY!

[hipnusol]

I think he should've retired after the Ruiz win.

[the_what]

A lot. Ruiz is a great fighter. And for Roy Jones to come up. Take Ruiz' killer right hand. And come back at him with a wicked bolo punch that hurt the Quietman was great. One of my most memorable fights of the 2000s. I was the edge of my feet watching it live because I knew at any moment that one Ruiz shot and Roy JOnes could have been KOed.

[the_what]

qXweeQC4H24

Great action in the first round.

[BoxingGod387]

Not to much cause i thought he matched up well vs Jonh Ruiz.

[Illmatic]

qXweeQC4H24

Great action in the first round.

wow, I didnt remember how much Nady kept Ruiz from fighting his fight