Comments Thread For: Roy Jones: When I Won Heavyweight Title, Only Fight I Wanted Was Mike Tyson

[BIGPOPPAPUMP]

Roy Jones Jr, 51-years-old, captured world titles in four different weight classes. Jones, who captured his first world title at middleweight, achieved a career dream in 2003 when he moved up to heavyweight and defeated John Ruiz for the WBA world title.
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[BodyBagz]

RJJ didn't want any other HW but Ruiz

[muzzo]

Why didnt Jones fight Tyson after winning the WBA belt?

[markther]

It’s quite possible if Roy would have fought Tyson after beating Ruiz, it would have been a very competitive fight for “Roy” around that time, maybe Roy would have pulled off the win also. Here is why. You have to look at the time frame.

Roy beat John Ruiz for the title in March 2003. Roy talked about in a lot of interviews how one of his goals was to win the light heavyweight belt, go up and win the heavyweight title, and then go back down and win the light heavyweight belt again because it was never done in that order in the history of boxing. Win LHW, win HW, win LHW again.

In November 2003, Roy went back down and won the light heavyweight belt again by majority decision against Tarver. He admitted a few times after he retired in 2018 in retrospect that he should have called it quits after that accomplishment if he couldn’t fight Tyson, instead of fighting Tarver again when he got knocked out early. Roy said he accomplished everything he wanted to accomplish after wining the HW title and LHW title again and should have retired on top like Mayweather and Andre Ward did and history would probably remember him much differently minus all the brutal knockouts that happened later on, starting with the Tarver rematch.

But the same year Roy won the title from Ruiz in March 2003, Tyson knocked our Clifford Etienne a month prior in February 2003. That Tyson win came after Lennox Lewis destroyed Tyson. So after Roy went back down to light heavy weight and grabbed the title from Tarver by majority decision, that was the perfect time for Roy Jones to fight Tyson and then possibly retire after that, because Tyson was on the decline.

The reason why Tyson was in decline is when Roy beat Tarver in November 2003 to win the LHW title again, 7-8 months AFTER that win against Tarver could have been the time for Roy to fight Tyson instead of taking a rematch with Tarver. And we know who Tyson fought around that time he could have fought Roy, Danny Williams, who stopped Tyson. And after that lost to Danny Williams, McBride forced Tyson to retire a year later. Roy should have had one of those wins that Danny Williams and McBride had because he was still good enough coming off the Ruiz and Tarver wins and had never been knocked out in his career. Instead of Tyson fighting Danny Williams, a fight with Roy Jones would have been both competitive and compelling. But Tyson wasn’t motivated arounf the time Roy beat Ruiz, that’s why I think Roy would have won. People would have still paid for it because it’s Tyson.

Can you imagine if Roy would have fought and possible beat Tyson AFTER winning the LHW belt again from Tarver after winning the HW belt from Ruiz. His record would have been 50-1, with 40 KO’s and NO knock out losses. How would have history remembered Roy IF he retired with a Tyson win on his record, abeit a declined Tyson?

[champion4ever]

Why didnt Jones fight Tyson after winning the WBA belt?

It's because Mike turned the offer down for $40 mil at the time.

[wrecksracer]

It's because Mike turned the offer down for $40 mil at the time.

I heard that Roy turned it down, thinking it would still be on the table after he fought Tarver. He thought he was going to beat Tarver then go back up

[Roberto Vasquez]

yes lies. Jones picked a HW he thought he could beat in Ruiz. He never would have fought anyone genuinely good.

[edpboxing]

I heard that Roy turned it down, thinking it would still be on the table after he fought Tarver. He thought he was going to beat Tarver then go back up

You are correct, Jones is the one who turned it down, wanting more money & to fight Tarver.

[texasboi15]

That's the only fight we wanted too Roy

But instead your ego let a loud mouth upstart nobody bait you back down to light heavy to be crushed along with the dreams of millions and millions of your fans

I was one of em ol******assboy

[The Old LefHook]

Jones was never going to fight anyone dangerous, but always blabs a good game between licking his lips a hundred times.

Guys like him blow it during their careers and then wish they had a legacy, when they see they are barely mentioned in the same breath with real fighters like Pep and Robinson.

Tyson will have to carry him. If he just taps him, he will go out, they way he did against the Russian who merely tapped him.