It is often said that life is more about the journey than the destination. For Roy Jones Jr., 51-4 (38 KO’s), truer words have never been spoken.  In his youth, and during much of his prime, Roy Jones Jr. was seemingly indestructible. He had a chip firmly placed on his muscular shoulders from day one, when he unfairly lost the gold medal at the 1988 Seoul Olympics. Sometimes we forget just how dominant he was in the ring. A few losses can do that. He had the ability to make full grown men, world class fighters and championship caliber athletes, appear clumsy and amateurish. He was undisciplined, wild and completely unconventional. He did everything wrong in the ring. He often left himself open. He punched off balance and from inconceivable angles. His defense was his offense, and in the words of Muhammad Ali, he was a "bad, bad man." Early on he was trained by his father, the senior to his junior, but found it difficult to thrive in the disciplinarian's training environment. Jones was his own man and he fought and trained the way he wanted to. His uncanny natural ability made him a history making Hall of Fame fighter, but with time and fame, natural ability can become the worst enemy of an aging fighter.

When Jones met Bernard Hopkins in 1993, most avid Philadelphia fight fans believed this was the end of the road for Jones. We all know the boxing ability of Bernard Hopkins now, but in 1994, he was absolutely amazing, not only was he out boxing his competition, he was putting most of them to sleep. He was a monster in the fighting city of Philadelphia and was our little secret. We were absolutely thrilled to watch the cocky Jones, stumble right into our trap. It was that fight, nearly 14 years ago, that made even the biggest Jones detractor a believer in the ability of the fighter. He was spectacular against Hopkins, winning by unanimous decision, and in 1994 he went on to destroy another virtually unstoppable fighter in James Toney.  By 1996, Jones had won belts as a middleweight and at super middleweight. He was unbeatable and he knew it. He moved up to light heavyweight and just totally dominated the division from day one. He took home six belts from 1996 to 2004. His complacency made him take risks, once playing a semi-pro basketball game the same day of a championship fight. This began to appear arrogant to fans and fighters alike, but no one could stop him, so it was all moot, or so we thought.

In March of 2003, Jones decided to do what no one has done in 106 years. He moved up to heavyweight and challenged John Ruiz for his WBA title. He was 30 lbs. lighter, and about 30 times cockier. He won again. It was this win as much as anything that may have contributed to his eventual decline. In November of 2003, Jones fought a fast-talking late bloomer named Antonio Tarver in Las Vegas. Tarver was not incredibly skilled, but one thing was absolutely crystal clear. He was not afraid of Jones, and he gave him all he could take. He stalked Jones down, going to the body and for the first time in 14 years, Roy Jones looked human.  That fight was a gift to Jones in more ways than one. First of all, he should have lost that decision. But secondly, it should have woke him up to the fact the he was getting a little older and getting hit just a little bit more than he should have been. Jones blamed rapid weight loss from the Ruiz bout on his performance. In their second meeting on May 15th, 2004, Jones didn’t get so lucky.  Antonio Tarver caught the heavily favored Jones with a check left hook, putting him to sleep, and silencing the Roy Jones Jr. faithful with 1:04 to go in round two.

Four months later, Jones looked even more vulnerable when he was knocked out in a vicious fashion in round one by journeyman Glen Johnson. All the Superman comments faded. For all intents and purposes, the King was dead. A year later he fought Tarver again, only to lose a lopsided decision, telling the press he didn’t really want to win anyway. He thought his father with whom he had reunited with as a trainer, would get all the credit. Or so he said.  That comment, with his past commitment, or lack thereof in the gym, probably hurt him more than anytime in his career. Even his biggest fan could read the writing on the wall. By the end of 2005, he had fallen out of favor with HBO, who claimed he had not shown commitment to commentator duties and unceremoniously dropped him from their line up. Jones racked up two wins since then, but the names in those fights were not big enough to put him back were he so desperately wants to be again. It seems as though he has gained an appreciation for what he once had.

Maybe he should have cared more while he was there; maybe he should have stayed at middleweight and fought Pavlik, Taylor or Hopkins again. He claimed to be bored and uninspired in 2003. Maybe he needed to lose those few times. Whatever the case may be, he found the name that may not give him boxing credibility again, but will put him in the national spotlight. Nobody knows how to put a silk hat on a pig better than Don King. So Felix Trinidad had decided to climb back into the ring again and end Roy Jones career for good. Whether this fight is good or bad for boxing, is not the question. The real question is -after Jones wins this fight, because he almost certainly will- will guys like Bernard Hopkins or Joe Calzaghe give him a shot? How about Kelly Pavlik or Jermain Taylor? During his self-perpetuated purgatory, Jones has been actively looking for a big name bout. His, dare I say it, “legacy” is on the line. It seems as if Superman found his Kryptonite in his own complacency, and now he is looking for a way back.

Whether Don King or Felix Trinidad can do that I don’t know, but one thing is certain. Roy Jones is still dangerous, and if he is willing to fight for less money, someone will be willing to put up more of their credibility. It seems to be a common trend in boxing over the years. Maybe the winner of Calzaghe-Hopkins will give him a run, who knows. Jones seems to be right in his head, and if he trains the way he should, he can make things very interesting over the next year. He knows how to fight and he knows how to win. We are going to find out very soon if he knows how to comeback from the brink of devastation. This fight with Trinidad, good, bad, right or wrong, will be his last real chance to immerse in the national spotlight.  As Jones runs through the mountains of California, Pennsylvania, where he is training for his January 19th meeting in Madison Square Garden with Trinidad, he is dreaming of the bigger deal(s) down the road. The Nike contracts, the golden chair ringside on HBO, his Superman status, are all on the line. 

I think he has something left, whether anyone really wants to see it, we will find out on January 19th when the PPV numbers roll in.  $49.95 is a lot of money. You can almost buy a full tank of gas for that kind of money.

12-15-2007