Once known as “Superman”, Roy Jones Junior says: “I’ve got to be the best ever”

BN: How important was what occurred at Seoul ’88 in shaping your profession?

RJ: It was very important, as a result of if that didn’t occur to me the relaxation could not have occurred. But what occurred, occurred. It drove me for a very long time. It drove me an entire lot, as a result of being that I had gotten robbed, it pushed me to a spot that I didn’t need to go – that I wouldn’t have gone if it was me on my own. You really feel me?

I got here to peace with it after I turned heavyweight champion of the world [by beating John Ruiz in 2003]. When I turned heavyweight champion of the world I made historical past, so I used to be good

…I most likely by no means got to peace.

BN: How a lot do you owe your father Roy Snr on your success? 

RJ: Quite a bit. He taught me about nice foundations, so I owe him loads. Those nice foundations carried me a good distance, so I owe loads to him.

BN: What’s your relationship with him like as we speak?

RJ: Not too good as we speak. We don’t have a relationship as we speak. It made me loads completely different [as a father] and me and my [six] children are loads nearer [than me and my father were] due to what I went by means of. It made me higher as a result of I knew what to do and what not to do with my very own.

[But] what is supposed for you might be going to be, so if God’s got that plan for you, you’re going to get it.

BN: How a lot of your success was due to his successor as your coach, Alton Merkerson?  

RJ: Quite a bit too. An entire lot, as a result of his navy background gave him a type of self-discipline, which is what I wanted to achieve my professional profession. He didn’t know what I knew, boxing-wise, however he had self-discipline. All I wanted was self-discipline. It wasn’t the boxing abilities – it was extra the self-discipline.

BN: When you had been turning skilled you had wished wished to work with the nice Emanuel Steward…

RJ: It wouldn’t have labored, as a result of he had too many fighters already and I wanted my very own workforce. I might not have been the identical if I used to be a Kronk fighter. [Maybe] it could have gone fairly good, however he had too many different fighters round him at that time.

BN: How do you replicate on the truth that you just for therefore lengthy resisted working with the world’s main promoters?

RJ: Well, it was the best factor for me, as a result of I wanted my very own area; my very own workforce. I used to be in solitary – I wished somebody who was going to commit their time to me. Me, solely me and nothing else. I wished someone who was going to commit their time to me and my workforce. The principal two [promoters, Bob Arum and Don King] – they’d an excessive amount of happening already. It was so me and my workforce [Jones Jnr was instead guided by Stanley and Fred Levin] may turn into a participant.

I grew up round recreation roosters and pitbull canines, they usually had been two warriors – and that was what God wished me to be. He knew my finish objective.

BN: Who was the best you fought?

RJ: James “Lights Out” Toney [at middleweight in 1994]. He was 44-0 [and 2] after I fought him; undefeated; the best shoulder-roll fighter that I’ve ever seen. He had energy. He had pace. He had defence. He had all the pieces. He may knock you out from spherical one to spherical 12, so, he’s positively the best fighter I ever fought. He’s in the corridor of fame now.

Just, technique [was the key to beating him with such ease]. You got to have technique, to beat that.

As a shoulder-roll fighter in my view he’s and at all times will be a greater fighter than Floyd Mayweather.

He can knock you out in any spherical. Any battle he fights goes to be an thrilling battle as a result of he knock you out from spherical one to spherical 12, and he has mixtures; he has pace; he does all of it. And he ain’t going to fear about enjoying it protected; he believed in his defence so he ain’t got to fear about enjoying it protected.

BN: What was your best win?

RJ: That’s laborious to say. The night time I gained the heavyweight title, as a result of I made historical past. Nobody [in 106 years, since Bob Fitzsimmons] by no means turned professional at middleweight and have become the heavyweight champ.

BN: What night time had been you at your very best?

RJ: That I don’t know. It’s very laborious to say. I felt actually good in opposition to everyone I fought – James Toney; Richard Hall… Above 35 [years of age], would positively have been the night time I fought Jeff Lacy [in 2009], however under 35, I don’t know. I felt higher in that battle than I had felt in a very long time. I used to be 40, however I felt actually good that night time.

BN: What, with the advantage of hindsight, would you do in a different way?

RJ: I might have taken two years off after I misplaced all that weight and beat [Antonio] Tarver the first time [in 2003]. After I went to heavyweight and got here all the approach again down, my physique wanted a two-year break. [Maybe] retire after the first Tarver win, as a result of I’d sacrificed my physique – my physique went by means of a lot. I gained the heavyweight title, got here again, I recaptured the light-heavyweight title, and my physique wanted a break. I had been pushing my physique laborious – for years on prime of years – and after that weight acquire, after which weight reduction, my physique wanted a break and I didn’t give it to it, so my physique failed as a result of I didn’t give it to it.

BN: How essential was it for you to avenge your first defeat, through disqualification, by Montell Griffin?

RJ: It was extremely essential as a result of it was my first loss and I by no means had plans on shedding. It was very tough, particularly after being robbed of a gold medal in Seoul, Korea. [Former opponent] Vinny Pazienza hit Dana Rosenblatt and the referee [Tony Orlando] after the referee advised him to cease – he didn’t get disqualified. Riddick Bowe hit Jesse Ferguson a number of occasions whereas he was down and never get disqualified. But after I do it by chance – understanding the coronary heart I got, that I don’t wanna harm no person – I get disqualified [Tony Perez was the referee]. It harm me dangerous, as a result of I by no means deliberate on shedding.

BN: The tradition round boxing generally locations an unhealthy obsession on fighters remaining undefeated. Do you assume you’d be much more admired than you already are when you’d retired with out shedding one other battle?

RJ: Of course. If I’d retired after the first win in opposition to Tarver I’d go down in historical past as the best fighter to ever battle. I retire after that first Tarver battle – I’m undefeated, they’re nonetheless speaking about me being the best fighter in the historical past of the recreation. But if I’m that very same individual, then I’ve nonetheless performed that. I simply didn’t let my physique get well. So if I’m nonetheless, at that time, the best fighter ever, why am I nonetheless not the best fighter ever? Because I’m nonetheless the identical one who did all that.

They don’t say Michael Jordan ain’t the best basketball participant ‘cause he’s misplaced just a few video games. He wasn’t the identical when he got 40 years outdated, or 35 years outdated – they’re nonetheless going to say he’s the best participant ever. They don’t say Joe Montana ain’t one in every of the best quarterbacks ever, as a result of he’s misplaced a recreation or two right here and there. They don’t say Tom Brady ain’t the best quarterback ever as a result of he didn’t win the Super Bowl in his final season. So why can’t I nonetheless be what I’m? If I can get the accolades due to what I did in my prime – however as a result of I went past my prime I can’t get the accolades? Bullcrap. But, …

What occurred, occurred. What I can’t change, why waste time occupied with it? The truth of the matter is I’m nonetheless the identical person who did all that. Why am I not the best fighter? Because I put my physique by means of great terror simply to go to great heights? Because my physique went by means of that at the time, meaning I’m not the best fighter that ever lived? Bullcrap. I gotta be.

BN: Why do you continue to battle on?

RJ: I actually don’t. I retired. I’m concentrating on being a coach now, but when a battle comes alongside and that appears prefer it ain’t unhealthy for me, and I really like to entertain – I’m in the fitness center doing stuff anyway – why not?

I ain’t preventing no extra, however I liked it. I liked it. It’s laborious to stroll away from due to what I did, and I liked to problem myself. Even at 54 – to be in a position to go eight rounds at 54 [as I did earlier this year, against Anthony Pettis]. That weekend I stated [to one of my fighters], “Listen, you’re 31 years old – I just did eight rounds at 54, and you’re telling me I got more energy than you? No I don’t. So don’t give me that, let’s go”. It gave me much more to work with. Now, as an instance, I did an eight-round battle at 54 years outdated and also you telling me you’re drained? No, I don’t need to hear that.

BN: Where do you rank amongst the very most interesting of all time?

RJ: I gotta be proper up there with [Muhammad] Ali. Nobody had the fashion, charisma or class that I had. I might solely put Ali above me – and that’s at all times. He’ll at all times be there, as a result of with out him I might by no means have got to turn into who I used to be. But on the market no person else had the charisma; the fashion; the defence; the offence; the motion; the banging; the physique photographs; the head photographs. Nobody else had that complete bundle, ever in the sport of boxing, like I did. Nobody. I don’t care – no person had the mixtures. Nobody had the complete bundle.

You’ve got to look proper now – that’s why my YouTube movies are the highest. My YouTube movies are the most fun. Nobody ever introduced the full bundle to the capability that Roy Jones did in his prime. I ain’t got to say it. Go take a look at YouTube. Go present me someone that meshed [all of that together] – you ain’t gonna discover no person.

[Ali is] the best of all time due to what he went by means of inside and outdoors of the ring. Without what he did inside and outdoors of the ring – he at all times was, and nonetheless is gonna be, my inspiration beneath God. God impressed me as a result of he gave me life, however Ali is my second inspiration after God.

BN: Who’s the best fighter you’ve seen in the years since your victory over Antonio Tarver?

RJ: It’s laborious to say, as a result of there have been loads. The best fighters on the market since the Roy Jones Jnr interval is slightly of a mixture. You put Tyson Fury, [Vasyl] Lomachenko and Terence Crawford collectively, you got it. They’re the prime three since me, as a result of they’ll battle anyone – they ain’t afraid of preventing no person. They battle the best of the best. Really, you possibly can put [Manny] Pacquiao in that too, as a result of Pacquiao fought all of them.

BN: Do you assume we’ll ever once more see a fighter win titles at middleweight and heavyweight?

RJ: I don’t know. I’m not God. I can by no means let you know. God created me so God can create higher than me so I can by no means know. I don’t know whether or not we’ll or not.

It’s very tough to do, and it’s very tough to come again down afterwards and recapture the light-heavyweight title as properly. That’s why my physique took such successful doing it. People telling me I’m not the best pound-for-pound fighter ever don’t admire what I did, you perceive? If you admire what I did you’d know with out query that I’ve got to be the best pound-for-pound fighter ever, however they don’t give it to me as a result of they don’t care that I did it. They give it to a person [Mayweather] who ain’t taken no probabilities; who campaigned his complete profession undefeated as a result of he ain’t actually taken no probabilities. They all say, “That has to be the best fighter ever because the 0”. That can’t be the case, you perceive me? The 0 – you’re telling me that’s the best fighter ever? No approach.

I’m going to say Michael Jordan ain’t the best basketball participant ever as a result of he misplaced video games? No. He’s nonetheless the best basketball participant ever. In soccer, you gonna say the best quarterback ever ain’t the best ‘cause he ain’t the primary on the yards checklist? No, that’s not the case. LeBron James is the highest scoring NBA participant, however try this make him the best NBA participant of all time? No.

You don’t choose the losses. You choose any fighter – who was higher? You return to my prime – no person. Simple.

BN: Are you at peace in 2023?

RJ: Yes, I’m at peace.

BN: Given the risks of your occupation and the truth that you just had 76 fights, do you ever fear about your well being?

RJ: No, I don’t fear about my well being. If I used to be preventing and taking probabilities – however I’m not doing that.

Of course I do [monitor my condition]. Always.

BN: What else do you hope to obtain?

RJ: To coach a world champion. Not but [close to doing so], however I’ll be. It’s a course of and it takes time.