Bernstein:Roy Jones is a great athlete; he’s not a great fighter

AL Bernstein Q&A RD: Do you think Roy Jones’ legacy will be hurt by his recent losses? Bernstein: Yes it will. It will because it’s proof positive of something I’ve said many, many times. Roy Jones is a great athlete; he’s not a great fighter. Never has been a great fighter. He never made himself a great fighter. He didn’t work at his craft hard enough to be a great fighter. But he’s a great athlete, and so he ended up being great in the ring. When his quickness and some of his physical skills started to fail him, he had nothing else left to go back to. He didn’t have the technique. very controversial RD: How will history view Bernard Hopkins? Bernstein: Well, I think he’s doing a lot to secure that legacy. As a businessman he could’ve hurt that legacy a lot because he did such a poor job after the Trinidad fight of capitalizing . But I think he’s one fight away from being thought of as one of the two or three best middleweights of all time. He may already be there. RD: Where do you rank Lennox Lewis on the all-time Heavyweight Champion list? Bernstein: Really high. For this reason, he’s a very big man who has a great jab and a powerful right hand and fights tall. When he’s at his best, who’s going to beat him? If I take Lennox Lewis at his best, fighting as well as he can fight, I don’t know how many heavyweights I’d pick him to lose to, simply because of his size and his physical stature and the way he fights. Who’s going to get to him? I don’t know. Not Rocky Marciano. RD: Maybe prime Tyson? Berstein: No, not Mike Tyson, in my mind. If we see Lewis at his best stylistically, he’s a tough match-up for Tyson. Would Joe Frazier be able to? I don’t know. Stylistically it’s not a good match for him. Would George Foreman be able to do it? The old Foreman would’ve had a hard time because he would have been less skilled. Foreman in later years does have that punishing jab, but that’s nullified by Lewis’ jab. Let’s go right to the biggies. Ali. Does Ali have to beat him? I don’t know. Not if Lewis doesn’t chase him and get low, if he stays tall. Why does Muhammed Ali beat him? What does he hit him with? Joe Louis, the most skilled heavyweight fighter of all time - possibly too small, Lewis can stay on the outside. Does Louis hit him? I don’t know the answer to those questions. While Lennox Lewis’ overall resumé might not rival some of those people, I’m not sure how they beat him.

Comments (20)

But RJJ beat Toney. Toney was a great boxer back when RJJ fought him was he? Didnt help him did it against RJJ? Nor did it help BH against RJJ. But you are going to say BH wasnt a great boxer back then excuses. Basically all you need is to be a great athlete to win boxing fights is what RJJ is showing. So he is a great fighter. And no its not a foregone conclusion that an old man BH would beat a young RJJ. That is just speculation gone overboard. Man, i never thought i would defend RJJ like this!!!!!

17y ago

ACHlLLES

Racists always say that about black athletes: that all they have is athletic talent, but they don't work as hard or play the game the right way. It's BS here, just like it always is. Topic has nothing to do with race you retard, Bernstein probably has Hopkins as one of the best middle weights and hagler. You're a ****ing dumb ass.

17y ago

ACHlLLES

Racists always say that about black athletes: that all they have is athletic talent, but they don't work as hard or play the game the right way. It's BS here, just like it always is. Topic has nothing to race you retard, Bernstein probably has Hopkins as one of the best middle weights and hagler. You're a ****ing dumb ass.

17y ago

MANGLER

:bigeyes: 'RJ ain't a gr8 fighter?' :wtf1:

17y ago

hishaam15

I Dont Remember this Interview but i agree with what the guy above me is saying ^^

17y ago

THE_REED

If he dedicated himslef to boxing instead of basketball.....then maybe. I think you are missing the point Bernstaien was making. He's not dissin roy, he's just pointing out something I have said many times. His natural ability allowed him to win a lot of fights. Once that was gone, he was unable to fall back on good defense, proper punching with accuracy and countering because his speed and power never made it necessary for him to do that. Like I said, Bernstein should have changed his words around. Roy was a great FIGHTER but he was not a good BOXER. That's fine... but Roy was more then just a good athlete. He thought out his moves in the ring, he had tactics. He definitely worded that wrong. He IS a great fighter, he just didn't have great technical skills.

17y ago

Cuauhtmoc1520

If we gave Kobe Bryant boxing gloves could he go from middle weight to heavyweight and back down just because hes a great athlete? NO. Because Roy was more then just a great athlete, he had skills, unorthodox skills, but skills nonetheless. He understood the game, and how to set people up, and that goes beyond just being a good athlete. And dropping from HW to LHW at the age of 34 1/2 would have a serious effect on ANYBODY. In the Calzaghe fight, you are simply watching a 40 year old man who has been in over 50 fights. If he dedicated himslef to boxing instead of basketball.....then maybe. I think you are missing the point Bernstaien was making. He's not dissin roy, he's just pointing out something I have said many times. His natural ability allowed him to win a lot of fights. Once that was gone, he was unable to fall back on good defense, proper punching with accuracy and countering because his speed and power never made it necessary for him to do that. Like I said, Bernstein should have changed his words around. Roy was a great FIGHTER but he was not a good BOXER.

17y ago

THE_REED

No, he is saying because Roy didn't have the technical skills, he was not a great fighter. Maybe he didn't mean that, but based on that paragraph... he is saying he is just a great athlete and that is it. Because he didn't have good technical abilities, he wasn't a great fighter. You need more then just being a great athlete to be GREAT in the ring.

17y ago

Silencers

How is that what he is saying? "Roy Jones is a great athlete; he’s not a great fighter. Never has been a great fighter." Where does he say Roy is not a great technical fighter? He is saying Roy isn't a great fighter... and he is wrong. Roy Jones is a great athlete; he’s not a great fighter. Never has been a great fighter. He never made himself a great fighter. He didn’t work at his craft hard enough to be a great fighter. But he’s a great athlete, and so he ended up being great in the ring. When his quickness and some of his physical skills started to fail him, he had nothing else left to go back to. He didn’t have the technique. He said he ended up being great in the ring, which means he thought he was a great fighter, just not from a technical standpoint, which is correct.

17y ago

THE_REED

It is, I didn't say he didn't have any fundamentals at all, neither is Bernstein, he just wasn't a great technical fighter. How is that what he is saying? "Roy Jones is a great athlete; he’s not a great fighter. Never has been a great fighter." Where does he say Roy is not a great technical fighter? He is saying Roy isn't a great fighter... and he is wrong.

17y ago

Silencers

See hooking off a feint isnt just pure athletic ability... it's a tactic. What Bernstein should of said is Roy didn't have fundamental boxing skills... but he's a very smart fighter, and a great fighter... It is, I didn't say he didn't have any fundamentals at all, neither is Bernstein, he just wasn't a great technical fighter.

17y ago

THE_REED

17y ago

Dynamite_Kid

Ray Leonard was a reflex fighter with good fundamentals, but he was done as fighter by his mid 30. So i guess there is kind of a contradiction there. I know Ray took cocaine that probably took a lot out of his body, but couldn't we equal that with Jones coming down in weight to?

17y ago

hugh_grant

So was SRR a great tecnical fighter? What if SRR didnt have his amazing speed and punch power? I doubt he would have as good record he has if it wasnt for being a great athlete. Ali was just a jab and long range boxer really. So he is similar to RJJ isnt he. When Ali couldnt dance anymore he just relied on his chin being solid. All ifs and butts.

17y ago

THE_REED

Yeah, he used to be great at hooking off a feint, no one was able to get past his jab effectively when he used it, I guess he just wasn't confident about it. See hooking off a feint isnt just pure athletic ability... it's a tactic. What Bernstein should of said is Roy didn't have fundamental boxing skills... but he's a very smart fighter, and a great fighter...

17y ago

hookoutofhell

bernstein makes a good point some fighters who are exceptionally physically gifted like prince naseem or RJJ often develop their own unique unorthodox style. however the problem comes when they either rely too much on their physcail gifts and become cocky (prince naz) or when they decline (RJJ). i think if RJJ fought like a conventional boxer he would still be able to beat the vast majority of LHW's out there. but it may be too late for him to learn that conventional style. as for the hopkins comments - it seems to me as though bernstein is slightly exaggerating bernards so called legacy. his wins at MW were solid but never spectacular the two out of three standout MW fighters from his era beat him (taylor and RJJ). im sorry but you need more than a list of wins over welterweights to be considered as an ATG which he frequently makes himself out to be. fighters like hopkins/DLH dont belong in the top 100. as for lewis - bernsteins comments are pretty much spot on, his size, strength, offensive arsenal, power, skills and ring IQ mean that he would be a formidable opponent for any HW from any other era.

17y ago

Cuauhtmoc1520

I understand the point he's trying to make, but Roy is still a great fighter, at least he was. Do the Spinks, Holmes and Berbick losses show Ali to be any less great of a fighter? Or was he just physically gifted as well? Ali was in much worse shape physically than Roy was at that same stage. You also can't deny the boxing SKILLS that Ali had. Roy was such an unorthodox fighter in the sense he would do things that were big time no-no's in boxing. I remember his fight vs Vinny Pazienza, he threw like a 9 punch combo, starting with the uppercut from about 5 feet away....lol. Who does that? He could only get away with that because he was as fast as a snake and couldn't be countered even when he was wide open.

17y ago

Jim_Jeffries

17y ago

Dynamite_Kid

Definitely, Jones is a very smart fighter, one of the smartest of the modern era but his fundamentals just weren't the best and it showed when he got older. Roy def is smart. He does good fight break downs, so he understands pros and cons of going into a bout and his own. I just wish he was a bit more introspective on his in ring cons as he slipped. He should've ditched the young man offense and adopted a defense that would allow him to execute a more mature jab oriented offense imo. It would've been the best thing for a man that still has hands so fast, but just about everything else is gone. In the words of the man himself.......most definitely.

17y ago

Cuauhtmoc1520

He is not the first fighter the hit a sharp decline though. Just because you decline quickly doesn't make you an ordinary fighter. He relied on his speed and reflexes for his defence, this is simply a certain type of defensive technique. Once those fail you, you are going to start to struggle. It does not mean you were never a great fighter. Actually it does mean that.... Boxing isn't about who is the fastest, strongest and quickest. If that were the case, we would never see champions like JCC, Marciano, Lamotta, JMM etc. TECHNIQUE and SKILL is what makes great boxers. I have been saying this same thing for many, many years. Roy Jones has actually been hurt because of his incredible natural ability. Once his skills diminished, he had nothing to fall back on. I think Al Bernstein should have refrased his words a little bit because I think Roy was a great fighter just not a great boxer. His speed and power won him a ton of fights but he wasn't a good fundamental boxer by any stretch. Let me put it this way, if you want to learn how to box properly, watch Oscar, Leonard, JCC.....do not watch Roy Jones Jr. because the things he does only he can get away with.

17y ago