Who was the more skillful fighter - Prime Roy Jones Jr. or Floyd Mayweather Jr.?

[turnedup]

I think it really comes down to who was better as a fighter period. Roy would've been good at just about any sport he put his mind to whereas Floyd was born a fighter and has been around it since his birth so he has a better mind for boxing but not sure about his abilities outside of boxing, whereas Roy played multiple sports and was pretty good at them all.

[DreamFighter]

money is more skillful, his defensive skillset is the best I've seen, with few comparisons viable.

not to say that roy hadnt an outstanding offensive set.

[HarvardBlue]

Mayweather was more skillful. He's probably the best boxing mind I've seen. Roy relied more on athleticism to the detriment of his skills. When his body failed him he couldn't rely on his mental abilities. Prime Roy would be hard for Mayweather to beat. Even a mind like Mayweather couldn't process what Roy was able to do fast enough.

[j.razor]

He's called T.B.E. for a reason.

[Metho_4u]

In my opinion Roy Jones was better when both were in their prime. Mayweather had a much longer prime. Jones was a real KO puncher with either hand and any punch. Mayweather was a sharp puncher but not a killer puncher like Jones. They both fought good opposition in their prime. Mayweather had some close fights in his prime. Nobody came close to beating the prime Jones. He lost once on a DQ for hitting a downed opponent.

Steroids, unnatural couldn't beat Montell fairly.

Steroids? Which ones the andro 6?

[KingHippo]

I always thought Jones was fun to watch, but his inability to adjust was always unbearable to me.

I'd rank Mayweather, Hopkins, Ward and Calzaghe above him skillwise.

[siablo14]

What are you talking about that he couldn't beat Montell fairly? He lost the first fight for hitting Montell when he was down. He BEAT Montell FAIRLY by first round knock out in the rematch.

Let that ignorant **** know.

[siablo14]

Close controversial win either way, I believe. I am leaning with Mayweather though.

[boliodogs]

He's called T.B.E. for a reason.

Yes. He called himself that first and then some of his more devoted fans started calling him that. He even has TBE hats and tea shirts. He was a great fighter but the best ever takes in a hell of a lot of territory and over 100 years of some very great fighters. I doubt the majority of fans and boxing historians consider him the best boxer who ever lived.

[robertzimmerman]

I always thought Jones was fun to watch, but his inability to adjust was always unbearable to me.

I'd rank Mayweather, Hopkins, Ward and Calzaghe above him skillwise.

Roy had great skills that went hand in hand with his incredible athleticism. His unorthadox style was built around his incredible speed.

It was sad watching his demise.

He needed to retire early, or change his style to compensate for his age. But unfortunately, he didn't.

If you analyse his fights where he was prime, his technique, timing and accuracy were off the charts. And that's skill.

It wasn't a lack of skill that cost him when he aged, it was the fact that he couldn't refine his style. I don't know if that was ego, or just not realising he was faded when he was, as it's so difficult when you're living in the moment.

Personally, I believe that if he had have implemented a new style, he could have had some success.

You can't rate a guy like Joe as having had more skills. Joe's game plan was to overwhelm guys with volume. And although he did have great ability, he didn't have more skill than Roy when Roy was prime. In many of his fights, he concentrated more on volume than accuracy. He didn't possess the same level of technique, timing and accuracy that Roy possessed.