Who is MMA’s Roy Jones Jr?

[dead joe]

Correct once he lost his athleticism he lost his effectiveness. He wasn't a great technical boxer. Look at the difference between him and Duran, Duran was winning miles above his natural weight on his skills long past his physical prime.

Jones also used steroids, maybe anderson silva.

Nah, Duran Duran were already showing signs of decline by their third album or so.

 

[The Merchant]

The idea that RJJ wasn't technically sound is a fallacy. The reason he was able to utilize his unorthodox style is because he already had the technique as a foundation. You can't just give a great athlete a pair of boxing gloves and expect them to become a great boxer. They have to have the technique first. But once you combine great technique with other-worldly athleticism, that's where a fighter can get creative.

And to answer the question, I'd say Anderson and Jones are the closest comparisons. They both had/have the technique, athleticism, and creativity to do things most fighters could only dream of.

It's about levels. He wasn't a top class technician, he obviously won the Val Baker trophy etc. That's why i compare him to Duran who was a top class technician (though people think he was a brawler) and the difference when they both aged.

 

[AndersonSilva23]

It's about levels. He wasn't a top class technician, he obviously won the Val Baker trophy etc. That's why i compare him to Duran who was a top class technician (though people think he was a brawler) and the difference when they both aged.

A more technical fighter will fight better as they age vs a more instinctual aththletic fighter as they age. Prime vs Prime is what should be taken into context. Prime Roy Jones Jr. was God mode.

 

[puppybird]

Lolll Rory Mack is the Man

No one said that at the time lol

 

[gono btw]

Calzaghe beats any version of RJJ.

 

[gono btw]

What?? You realize Roy Jones won a share of the HW title, only weighing in at 195lbs. for the fight, while simultaneously holding the undisputed LHW (175lbs.) title at the same time. Not to mention he gradually moved up in weight through out his career, starting as a Middleweight, and held some minor titles at Cruiser Weight while in his mid-late 40's.

Not discrediting Duran, but Jones was on another level in the 90s, compared to everyone else. You can't say the guy took steroids either if he's never tested positive, but we know yes, Anderson did test + for illegal substances. Not to mention he kept fighting until he was 48 years old.

Ruiz was not a legit champ.

 

[gono btw]

The truth is that Prime RJJ is the GOAT of all of combat sports. There is no MMA RJJ and the sport will need to be around much longer to esatablish one. Prime RJJ is the GOAT of a sport that established itself for hundreds of years.

He went nearly 50 fights without losing a single round, schooling the likes of greats like James Toney and Bernard Hopkins. Dominating, clowning and destroying his opponents so badly they didn't even look like they belonged in the same sport from middleweight all the up to heavyweight.

There are other fighters with arguably better "resumes" and "accomplishments", but nobody else was as gifted and dominant in their prime.

If you took all the greatest fighters in boxing history and you somehow made them all the same size, prime Roy would blow through all of them.

B-Hop became a completely different animal later, much more experienced and knowledgeable about the technical and tactical aspects of the fight...

 

[The Merchant]

B-Hop became a completely different animal later, much more experienced and knowledgeable about the technical and tactical aspects of the fight...

Folk forget that Toney had a hellish cut for the Jones fight, but was outclassed regardless.

 

[Pain4Pain]

Prime Roy was too quick, and he has power in those hands too. He would beat the shit out of any fighter near his weightclass in their respective prime. He made Toney look slow and old.

 

[lalaland]

Why has no one said yoel.

Because he's peaking at 40?

 

[laleggenda27]

It's about levels. He wasn't a top class technician, he obviously won the Val Baker trophy etc. That's why i compare him to Duran who was a top class technician (though people think he was a brawler) and the difference when they both aged.

Agreed. There are obviously guys who rely more on being technical and focus more on the fundamentals. But as I see it, TS is implying that RJJ wasn't technical. I would suggest that RJJ fought how he did specifically because he had a great technical foundation. Hell, the guy was winning national tournaments as a 15 year old. He obviously had a great foundation. Take a great foundation, add supreme athleticism and creativity, and you get an all-time great.

 

[The Merchant]

Agreed. There are obviously guys who rely more on being technical and focus more on the fundamentals. But as I see it, TS is implying that RJJ wasn't technical. I would suggest that RJJ fought how he did specifically because he had a great technical foundation. Hell, the guy was winning national tournaments as a 15 year old. He obviously had a great foundation. Take a great foundation, add supreme athleticism and creativity, and you get an all-time great.

His skills were linked to his athleticism, leaping left hooks instead of a decent jab , throwing back-hands with no set-up, these things only work when you're fast as well.

 

[bigredmachine81666]

Don't need an mma verison of Roy Jones, I want a version of Bernard Hopkins guy that comes out of jail and goes on a near 20 year run.

 

[DragonFly Jones]

He just wasn’t. I’m not saying he had no skill but you would never put him on a list of the most technical boxers.

lmao Your initial claim was he wasnt technically sound. You realized how dumb that sounded so you tried to clean it up by saying he's just not "one the most" technical. lol Man shut man you don't know wtf you looking at if you don't think Jones was one of the most technical boxers ever. smh

You waaay late tho. The answer has come and gone. Its Anderson Silva.

 

[Black Helicopters]

lmao Your initial claim was he wasnt technically sound. You realized how dumb that sounded so you tried to clean it up by saying he's just not "one the most" technical. lol Man shut man you don't know wtf you looking at if you don't think Jones was one of the most technical boxers ever. smh

You waaay late tho. The answer has come and gone. Its Anderson Silva.

He isn’t technically sound at all compared to the high standards that great boxers are looked at. He did things no one else could do because no one else has his speed and reflexes. Relying on your reflexes to dodge punches isn’t technical, throwing huge telegraphed leaping left hooks with your chin out isn’t technical.

The best way to put it is this: if you’re a boxing coach and want to show your student what the fundamentals of boxing are, you would never show tape of Roy. End of story. I’m not saying he had zero technique, speed alone isn’t going to set up shots for you, speed alone isn’t going to let you evade every punch, speed doesn’t teach you how to throw a combination, it doesn’t give you fight IQ, but if he was anything less than a bundle of fast twitch muscle fibers he would not have reached his highs

 

[BlackPanther]

Ronda obviously