Roy Jones Jr. likely never imagined he’d find himself feuding with someone eight years his junior after all these years.
Though comfortably retired, the four-division champion has stepped back into the spotlight to fire back at Floyd Mayweather.
“Floyd Mayweather was TBE at making money, but look at his highlights and look at mine,” Jones Jr. said in a 2018 interview. “You can’t pretend it’s the same. You can’t pretend there’s ever been anyone [who] came close to doing what I did.” If that earlier jab wasn’t enough, the 56-year-old’s stance hasn’t softened with time. “To me, people don’t give him enough credit. People always say ‘Well, Floyd would have beaten Sugar.’ No baby, Floyd is not nearly as mean as Sugar was,” Jones Jr. recently remarked while comparing Floyd Mayweather to Sugar Ray Leonard on the All The Smoke Fight podcast.
Money Mayweather’s response was anything but subtle. The undefeated boxing icon took to Instagram earlier this month, posting a series of clips showing Jones Jr. being knocked out by Glen Johnson, Antonio Tarver, and others, a clear dig at the former champion’s remarks. Jones Jr. fired back quickly, but the 50-0 boxer’s antics didn’t go unnoticed. Now, one of Roy Jones Jr.’s former opponents is stepping in with a sobering take on the escalating back-and-forth.
Yesterday, Seconds Out shared a YouTube video featuring a candid interview between Radio Raheem and Bernard Hopkins. When asked who would win in a hypothetical matchup between Roy Jones Jr. and Floyd Mayweather, ‘The Alien’ offered a measured take: “It all depends on who throws more punches.” Raheem then brought up the 48-year-old’s recent antics – sitting in front of a screen watching a reel of Jones Jr.’s knockout losses, and asked the 55-8 boxer whether he found it disrespectful. Hopkins replied, “I think it was more of a show of a man vulnerability at that moment when Roy was fighting, (Antonio)Tarver, I believe or Glenn Johnson.”
Reflecting on the moment, Hopkins shared a broader lesson he’s learned over the years: “I was a villain of it to put a man down when he is down at his side or when he is down by a punch.” Despite losing to Roy Jones Jr. in 1993 and failing to capture the vacant IBF World Middleweight title, Bernard Hopkins showed respect for his former rival. He praised Jones Jr.’s unique, almost unrepeatable style and stated, “If you look at Roy Jones’ defeats and you look at his longevity of victory, and very unorthodox unusual, probably never be again style that he had, I think that good of him in his era will always, always stands now, overshadows anything that what the opposite means—defeat. Roy Jones’ rewards and his victories supersede 10 times than his defeats.”
To close out the interview, Radio Raheem asked Hopkins what he would say if both Roy Jones Jr and Money Mayweather were in the room, listening to him. Hopkins didn’t hesitate: “Make sure you get paid if you fight.” And just like Bernard Hopkins, Oscar De La Hoya also weighed in on the matter.
Oscar De La Hoya breaks down the beef between Floyd Mayweather vs. Roy Jones Jr.
In a recent interview with Fight Hub TV, Oscar De La Hoya offered insight into the mindset of retired fighters and how that very mindset might be fueling the tension between Floyd Mayweather and Roy Jones Jr. When asked about the feud, given his own history with Mayweather, the Golden Boy head honcho dismissed any personal involvement. “No, I’m good with him. I have no business,” he said. “We see all these young kids fighting. So sometimes the emotions get in the way, you know.”
While De La Hoya chalked up the feud to post-retirement restlessness, he acknowledged that Roy Jones Jr. is known for speaking his mind. “He speaks the truth,” De La Hoya noted, while also pointing out that “Floyd is Floyd, and he’ll defend himself till the end.” But while Oscar views the back-and-forth as harmless entertainment, Roy Jones Jr. clearly doesn’t see it that way.
After Floyd Mayweather mocked him on social media by sharing knockout clips, Jones Jr. initially brushed it off, asserting he was entitled to his opinion. But later, in a more pointed exchange with Seconds Out, the former champion revealed how personal things had become. “You wanna fight? Come on. I ain’t tripping. You wanna troll me, come see me,” he said defiantly. While the odds of the two actually stepping into the ring are slim, especially with the weight gap, boxing has a way of turning long shots into headlines.
