Roy Jones, JR: From Legend to Side Show Freak, but I Still Prefer to Remember The Legend

By Donald “Braveheart” Stewart

When I was a kid there was a patch of ground between my home town and the neighboring town. Now my memory does not always serve me well but I do remember that each year there were two significant events on that patch of ground.

The first was when the waltzers and the travelling fairground would come and I would be mystified by candy floss and strange concoctions offered to drink with more sugar in them than is healthy. The second attraction that came visiting was the circus.

As a poor kid from just along the road I had to wait till I was old enough to go to the funfair on my own; I was never able to get to the circus.

This is much in my mind as I looked at the legacy of a boxer that entertained, thrilled and knocked more than a few guys out in his time – Roy Jones, JR. is his name…

As I never got to that circus, I could never attest to there being a boxer and ring available to take on passing trade who would try to knock the boxer out and make money from him. It is a place, however, that in the recent past, many of Roy’s fights would sit comfortably in.
And that is a great pity.

This was a man who was a phenomenal boxer and his feats are legendary; almost as legendary as his demise is becoming. Jones, JR. fought at an incredible 6 different weight categories – and he aint finished yet.

To date he has fought 73 times professionally, winning 64 with 9 losses.

A Silver Medal at the 1988 Seoul Olympics announced him on our stage and it only took until 1989 for him to turn professional – that marks an incredible 27 active professional boxing years.

His move into the professional ranks came after a controversial loss at the Olympics with the referee astonished, his opponent, Park Si-Hun embarrassed and the world appalled that he would lose the Gold Medal. Such controversy seems to have been the watchword by which his time in the pro ranks may be assessed.

After an initial 17 wins (Anthony Joshua 17-0, 17 KO’s, style…), by stoppage or knockout, his name was mentioned on the lips of seasoned observers as the guy to watch. In 1993, he was in the ring against another giant of the game to come – Bernard Hopkins, 55-7-2, 32 KO’s, for the IBF middleweight championship. Hopkins was beaten by a unanimous decision and Jones, JR.’s arm raised – this was his first world title. Afterwards he claimed he managed the win with a broken hand; on such claims legends are made.

Jones, JR.’s progress continued and in 1994 he went in against the undefeated IBF super middleweight champ, James Toney, 76-10-3, 46 KO’s whom he dropped in the in the 3rd round and beat by a UD.

1995 and 1996 saw him continuing to win and defend his title with, on one occasion playing basketball in the morning and then defending his belt in the evening. Jones, JR. was phenomenal.

The move to light heavyweight came in 1996, in November, some 20 years ago. Winning the interim WBC light heavyweight title he got made the full champion when the holder of that belt moved to cruiserweight. There seemed to be very little Jones, JR. could do wrong. It certainly looked like not winning that Gold had galvanised him into being the phenomenal boxer he was always going to be. The world watched and ere in awe of this unbelievable athlete.

Then came 1997…

Montell Griffin, 50-8-1, 30 KO’s, inflicted Jones, JR.’s first loss when he was disqualified for hitting Griffin when down in the 9th round. Jones, JR. was ahead on the scorecards and had made up ground after Griffin had managed to get ahead in the early rounds.

Jones, JR. licked those wounds, demanded a rematch – got it – and five months later knocked Griffin out in the very first round. A WBA/WBC unification fight saw him take both light heavyweight belts, though frailty was beginning to creep in; Jones, JR. had to get up from being knocked down to win them.

This one-time monster of the boxing world was looking as though he could, and should, be beat again.

He took no heed…

In 1999, onwards he carried on, he added the IBF belt and as the Millennium had us worrying about bugs in our computers, he was riding the crest of his very own wave. In 2002, he beat Glen Kelly, 31-3-1, 17 KO’s, by putting both hands behind his back, goading Kelly to punch him, when he did – Jones, JR. knocked him clean out.

Jones, JR. took the WBC World, WBA Super World, and IBF World belts.

Having already released his own CD of rap songs he then went on to sing his own entrance music when he faced and beat Clinton Woods, 42-5-1, 25 KO’s to retain his titles.

Jones, JR. then moved into the heavyweight division in his very next fight and in 2003, won the WBA title against John Ruiz, 44-9-1, 30 KO’s, making him the first fighter to start as a light middleweight and win a heavyweight title in 106 years. He then retained 4 of his light heavyweight titles against Antonio Tarver, 31-6-1, 22 KO’s.

And now let us stop…

The story of his conversion to being a joint Russian/American citizen, fighting fans for money and generally being the type of booth fighter rather than the giant he was makes this point in the story the heights from which true falls can occur. I prefer to think of him in the early part of this century than the guy who has become someone who could be ridiculed by commentators.

I know that many have called for him to quit and I am one of them. The story from 2003 to 2016 is 13 years of pain and agony and I am sure some very heavy paydays. But for boxing fans they pale into insignificance against the story up till 2003 of a guy we should remember and not forget – no matter how fast he seems to want to rub that history out.

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