By Mark Vester

Former six division champion Oscar De La Hoya is advising Roy Jones Jr. to hang up the gloves. In his recent blog on Ring TV, De La Hoya says that a fighter may sometimes need a beating, like the one De La Hoya suffered at the hands of Manny Pacquiao last December, to know it's time to hang up the gloves.

"Roy Jones Jr. has been knocked out two times. All the wear and tear, the big fights he’s been in have taken a toll. You can see it; he’s not the same. The fighter will always be the last one to say I should quit and the first one to say I can still go one more round," De La Hoya said.

"That’s why it sometimes takes fights like the one I had against Manny Pacquiao to make it clear: ‘Hey, it’s time to hang ‘em up.’ In Roy’s case, I guess he’s so competitive that he wants to prove that he can still be the pound-for-pound champion of the world. Not to himself; he still thinks he’s the best. He wants to prove it to the fans once again. He doesn’t like the fact his name isn’t on that list. This is when it gets really dangerous."

De La Hoya feels that it's the ego of Jones that causes him to continue fighting, unless there are some financial issues that everyone is not aware of. When both fighters were at the top of their game, they had quite the rivalry going on HBO. Jones was always accusing HBO of giving De La Hoya special treatment and bashed the Golden Boy a few times in the media. When Jones was knocked out by Antonio Tarver, De La Hoya returned fire by taking a few shots at Jones in the press.

"I think Roy is still fighting because of his ego, from what I’ve heard. He really feels he can get back on top. And in this sport, you never know. I think the chances are very slim for Roy to get back to where he was 10 years ago, though," De La Hoya said.

"It’s sad. You have those cases we read about all the time of great fighters who end up with nothing. I’m not saying Roy is heading down that path. There are signs, though, that indicate he might be going in that direction. As you keep fighting, you lose. Still, you say, ‘I can win the next one, I can still become champion.’ And your body keeps breaking down; you lose all the speed and power you had. Your abilities break down and then you’re left with nothing."

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