Tommy Hearns vs. Roy Jones (middleweight)

[Ezzard]

Hearns is simply too good.

Over 12 rounds suits him even better. Tommy by one shot blow out or wide points. Jones has a chance, just not that much of one.

[Sportofkings]

I think most of you who are voting for Hearns are forgetting that he was past his best when he moved up to middleweight. He was really vulnerable at the weight imo, even though still a terrific fighter. He was ko'ed by Barkley and Hagler and hurt by Roldan. For me the winner of Jones-Hearns is the fighter who lands with the big shots first, and im going for Jones. He was at his incredible best at 160 and had terrific reflexes, speed and power. He wouldnt be nearly as much of a hitable target as Roldan or Barkley and he would be able to find Hearns with more consistency than those two.

So Jones by ko with 4 rounds, even though I wouldnt be surprised if Roy was the victim of a huge knockout at Tommy's hands either

[SaadOffTheDeck]

Roy was at his best at 160? I've never heard that before.

[Sportofkings]

Roy was at his best at 160? I've never heard that before.

Yes, he was never quite looked as spectacular in any didvision as he did at 160. Sure most of his best wins came at other weights, but he was incredible at 160. At heavier weights while he still looked great, he had a tendency to not press the fight as much unless forced to.

[Goodnight, Irene]

Roy was at his best at 160? I've never heard that before.

You wont hear it again, either.

His best was 168, but Id still put the seasoned 175lber ahead of the greenish Middleweight version.

[Sportofkings]

Roy was at his best at 160? I've never heard that before.

You wont hear it again, either.

His best was 168, but Id still put the seasoned 175lber ahead of the greenish Middleweight version.

In what performances did he appear green to you at middleweight?

I just think that Jones was at his talented at 160, and outside of the Toney fight his level of competition isnt all that good at 168. Although there isnt much to split between his prime during his middleweight and super-middleweight days. Either way ive got him knocking out Hearns

[Goodnight, Irene]

Which credible guys did he face at 160?

I dont consider that Hopkins a viable answer.

Hearns, by the time he reaches Middle, has the big-fight experience Jones didnt have at 160 (and in fact never acquired), and I think you paint an unnecessarily bleak picture of Hearns at 160. His best was 154, but there are an awful lot of Middleweight champs who wouldve bitten the dust where Hagler didnt.

[Jaywheel]

And he almost did. With a 10/10 chin as stated above.

RJJ is indeed a killer at 160. But at that weight, Hearns is a seasoned killer. I'd put my money on the Hitman. The SMW version of Roy would definitely stand a better chance and it'd be a toss em up fight.

[Sportofkings]

Which credible guys did he face at 160?

I dont consider that Hopkins a viable answer.

Hearns, by the time he reaches Middle, has the big-fight experience Jones didnt have at 160 (and in fact never acquired), and I think you paint an unnecessarily bleak picture of Hearns at 160. His best was 154, but there are an awful lot of Middleweight champs who would've bitten the dust where Hagler didnt.

Roy also beat Jorge Fernando Castro, who later went on to win a world title and beat notables like John David Jackson and Reggie Johnson twice (although the Johnson wins are debatable to say the least). Jones also beat, and was the first man to knockout Malinga, so that has to count for something. There are a few other decent wins on his record at 160 apart from that, but not really worth mentioning. Roy's record at the weight is slightly underrated imo.

I dont think its a definite win for Jones at 160 either or anything either. I know that Tommy's attributes, skills and power didnt just fade away at the weight, but its certainly true that he wasnt able to over power some fighters at 160, like he was able to do in his 154 and 147 heyday. Jones certainly had the power to knock Tommy out, but its true that he could knocked out himself. I just see him having the edge over a slightly faded Hearns at middle. I dont that big fight experience would be much of an factor here either, Barkley was hardly anymore experienced that Roy was by the time he ko'ed Hearns. Intriguing match-up all the same, when you can crack like both of these fellas can, either could come out the winner.

[SaadOffTheDeck]

The Malinga fight was at Super Middle. If I rated Jones top 10 performances not one of them would come from his Middleweight days.

[Bricks]

yeah yeah
Theres always one at the back of the class who is slow. Let me draw it in crayons for you .

Hearns chin was dented by all time greats like SRL and Hagler, and even against Hagler he took some hellacious shots before he folded. He had a very solid chin at 160 until that crazy year from late 87 to 88 when he went up from 160 to 175 and back down and in the course was floored by the 175 divisions strongman Andries and also had his chin rocked another occasion, and than took some full blooded shots got his legs wobbled from Roldan who was u guessed it the 160lb divisons strongman,, add the hail mary Barkley punch which would have floored anyone under cruiserweight....and thats when his chin became a liability allied to his weak legs. Im not considering that fading Hearns. Im considering the peak 160lbs Hearns ie the 1985-86 vintage who had a better chin than Roy, the same Roy has been punched out more times by one shot than pretty much any all time great I can think of. In his prime his speed and reflexes and skill meant his chin was never tested because no one could land. Hearns with his speed, power , reflexes and skill would test Jones Jnrs chin at 160 mark my words and it would be a test ole Roy fails.

Nobody called his chin weak. As usual, your reading has failed you.

Yeah yeah as usual backtrack when your nitpicking has been proven by me to be nonsense.

[Bricks]

RING magazine actually had a "who beats who" page dedicated to a 168lbs matchup between Hearns and Jones jnr around early mid 1996. The 3 wise men all predicted a Jones jnr stoppage around 6-8 rounds. Obviously Jones jnr was in his prime than and the Hearns we saw at 168 was a fading force especially his legs, reflexes and chin.
This 160lb matchup is a different kettle of fish.

[SaadOffTheDeck]

yeah yeah
Theres always one at the back of the class who is slow. Let me draw it in crayons for you .

Hearns chin was dented by all time greats like SRL and Hagler, and even against Hagler he took some hellacious shots before he folded. He had a very solid chin at 160 until that crazy year from late 87 to 88 when he went up from 160 to 175 and back down and in the course was floored by the 175 divisions strongman Andries and also had his chin rocked another occasion, and than took some full blooded shots got his legs wobbled from Roldan who was u guessed it the 160lb divisons strongman,, add the hail mary Barkley punch which would have floored anyone under cruiserweight....and thats when his chin became a liability allied to his weak legs. Im not considering that fading Hearns. Im considering the peak 160lbs Hearns ie the 1985-86 vintage who had a better chin than Roy, the same Roy has been punched out more times by one shot than pretty much any all time great I can think of. In his prime his speed and reflexes and skill meant his chin was never tested because no one could land. Hearns with his speed, power , reflexes and skill would test Jones Jnrs chin at 160 mark my words and it would be a test ole Roy fails.

Nobody called his chin weak. As usual, your reading has failed you.

Yeah yeah as usual backtrack when your nitpicking has been proven by me to be nonsense.

I just had a laugh at the class lunatic as you inevitably invented something to upset you in your insane little world. You made a blanket statement based on nothing that was written. It's hardly nitpicking to laugh at that type of nonsense. You should learn some self deprecating humor or go back to Oxford and learn how to express yourself without sounding like a schizophrenic, illiterate 8 year old.

[elmersalsa]

people have mentioned hearns supposed weak chin being a factor here but what about Roy Jones jnrs weak chin

Jones has never faced a man anything like the Hitman at 160. I think Hearns is just a narrow shade below Jones in speed here, has better power and far more seasoned and battle hardened. Hearns knocks him cold around the 9th

I agree 100%...Even though, Tommy was not at his best at 160lbs, still, in a prime for prime match, I pick him to beat Super Roy. It would be a boring fight because Jones, Jr is not gonna try to trade with Tommy. Unanimous decision for the Hitman.

[Bricks]

Which credible guys did he face at 160?

I dont consider that Hopkins a viable answer.

Hearns, by the time he reaches Middle, has the big-fight experience Jones didnt have at 160 (and in fact never acquired), and I think you paint an unnecessarily bleak picture of Hearns at 160. His best was 154, but there are an awful lot of Middleweight champs who wouldve bitten the dust where Hagler didnt.

Yes and he kayoed the no 1 contender James Shuler in 1 round. Only Hagler could have withstood that onslaught Hearns unleashed. Roldan was brutally kayoed. Barkley was being systematically pulped till Tommy got careless because Tommy had no respect for him whatsoever he was treating him like a bum for 2 and a half rounds.....Tommy was getting careless during 86-87 and he took 2 just as brutal single left hooks against Andries at 175 but took them. By the time he took the shot against Barkley his once fairly sturdy chin at world class level, had been dented once too many times

No way the Jones of 160 beats Tommy of 160.

[gilgamesh]

I think Roy could catch him with a quick left hook to hurt him and finish him somewhere around the 8th or 9th round. Tommy would have the edge in the fight up until then though, winning at least 5 of the previous rounds with his superior boxing and intelligence. I don't think his right hand bomb would ever land clean enough to take Roy out though.

[AngryGoon38]

Pound-for-pound, Hearns kills Jones Jr - there just isn't anyway that Jones Jr can beat Hearns with his single shots & no jabs etc, on the other hand; in real time, at 160, it's completely different story.

Although Hearns is much taller, he would be the 'little guy' in this fight & I just think that Jones Jr would stop Hearns at some point late on.

Hearns is 6-1,Roy is 5-11,thats 2" difference in height. Hearns has 2" in reach as well,78 to 76.

This ones very hard to call actually,matter of fact,i'll conclude by saying it makes my Indecisive hypothetical list,"See my thread".

If i'd absolutely HAVE to make a bet,I would Probably HAVE to say Jones by close but clear cut UD.
And Btw,I think Jones's chin just might've been a tad bit better than Hearns at this weight as well.
I could definately see Hearns decking Jones early,maybe twice,but somehow i see Jones likely surviving the early explosive Hearns frontrunner barrage. Roldan kept getting up against Hearns,why not Jones,and Doug DeWitt got hit ALOT by Hearns but kept chuggin on,so did Randy Shields. Hearns loved to put his left hand in front of his opponents face before unleashing the killer right but i dont think this would really work all that well against the very elusive and high level reflexes of Jones Jr.
Also,for what its worth,Jones in the Castro fight in 1992 got clocked good a few times by the deceptively powerfull Castro but withstood Jorge's power punches very impressively.Castro had some heavy hands,ala Juan Roldan. All in all would be quite a match though. 8)

[Ezzard]

Not enough "juice" in the whole of Seville to make up for Hearns' skill advantage.

[Bricks]

I seem to remeber reading that Hearns was 6'2'' and a bit but his trainer Emmanuel Steward knocked down his height to 6'1'' in the stats as no one fancied fighting a 6'2'' welterweight. Certainly looking at Hearns he seems 6ft 2 more than 6ft1 imo. Look at him next to Barkley and it is apparent.

If Tarver had a style that gave Jones fits in the amateurs and pros, imagine what a faster harder punching more skilled Hearns would do ....oh my goodness

[Bricks]

Nobody called his chin weak. As usual, your reading has failed you.

Yeah yeah as usual backtrack when your nitpicking has been proven by me to be nonsense.

I just had a laugh at the class lunatic as you inevitably invented something to upset you in your insane little world. You made a blanket statement based on nothing that was written. It's hardly nitpicking to laugh at that type of nonsense. You should learn some self deprecating humor or go back to Oxford and learn how to express yourself without sounding like a schizophrenic, illiterate 8 year old.

Lol says the freak who lives alone in a piss stained bedsit sitting on boxrex all day spouting his usual bitter crap. Why does every post you make on a thread end in argument between you and someone else? The common ingrediant is it is always you involved.You seem to flip out and get rude when someone has a view different to your own. Others like me are here for the debate and to learn and appreciate others views. You on the other hand must be one sourfaced mean small hearted friendless bum in real life thats all I can say.

[Goodnight, Irene]

Yeah yeah as usual backtrack when your nitpicking has been proven by me to be nonsense.

I just had a laugh at the class lunatic as you inevitably invented something to upset you in your insane little world. You made a blanket statement based on nothing that was written. It's hardly nitpicking to laugh at that type of nonsense. You should learn some self deprecating humor or go back to Oxford and learn how to express yourself without sounding like a schizophrenic, illiterate 8 year old.

Lol says the freak who lives alone in a piss stained bedsit sitting on boxrex all day spouting his usual bitter crap. Why does every post you make on a thread end in argument between you and someone else? The common ingrediant is it is always you involved.You seem to flip out and get rude when someone has a view different to your own. Others like me are here for the debate and to learn and appreciate others views. You on the other hand must be one sourfaced mean small hearted friendless bum in real life thats all I can say.

Dont sell yourself short - you can say a lot more than that.

You are a class clown of rare persistence and inanity, Gabi. Neither Saad or I hate you, we love your work, in fact. Unintentional humour is the best kind, and you, my Oxford janitor, are a professor of the art

[meade95]

I have Hearn's winning this one 9 out of 10 times - Hearn's jab would give RJJ problems and Roy would be scared of Hearn's right. I see Hearn's by KO but if not a clear cut UD.

[Bricks]

I just had a laugh at the class lunatic as you inevitably invented something to upset you in your insane little world. You made a blanket statement based on nothing that was written. It's hardly nitpicking to laugh at that type of nonsense. You should learn some self deprecating humor or go back to Oxford and learn how to express yourself without sounding like a schizophrenic, illiterate 8 year old.

Lol says the freak who lives alone in a piss stained bedsit sitting on boxrex all day spouting his usual bitter crap. Why does every post you make on a thread end in argument between you and someone else? The common ingrediant is it is always you involved.You seem to flip out and get rude when someone has a view different to your own. Others like me are here for the debate and to learn and appreciate others views. You on the other hand must be one sourfaced mean small hearted friendless bum in real life thats all I can say.

Dont sell yourself short - you can say a lot more than that.

You are a class clown of rare persistence and inanity, Gabi. Neither Saad or I hate you, we love your work, in fact. Unintentional humour is the best kind, and you, my Oxford janitor, are a professor of the art

Urinie how predictable u run in to protect your online lover. Don't u even feel slightly embarrassed about how your girlfriend always runs her mouth off online, and than you have to run in like some bedraggled aussie tranny queen protecting her man (er by the way who is the husband and wife in your unholy partnership-a civil one i presume)....??.....The jealousy you two have for my Oxford degree is so sad....get some prozac the pair of you!! the jealousy will kill you! i mean you only mention my degree every other post.... a shame they didn't teach you any social graces down at Crocodile Billabong High or wherever it was you got your education if I can call it that!! G'day bruce!!

[Bricks]

the membership of BOTP has dwindled to a handful since this pair of trolling tits decided to camp here 24/7. Soon it will be just the pair of them, sticking their Hagler-Hearns Vhs tapes up each others Evonne Goolagong whilst they troll each other day and night!! The best pair of clowns since dumb and dumber....the Laurel and Hardy of BOTP HAHHAHAHAHAH lmaO!!! D D ok i'm off I'll let you two bitter trolls come back with an inferior comeback!

[Goodnight, Irene]

It is just striking how similar the illiteracy and general lack of Boxing is between these two thin-skinned dancing monkeys. The type who think a paragraph is composed of multiple run-on sentences, and that having Boxing on the TV (instead of observing it) constitutes knowledge.

They remind me of the old maxim about putting monkeys in a room with typewriters to, eventually and by sheer weight of work, stumble upon Shakespeare.

One of these days, one of these perennial dolts is going to spit out an accurate observation on the sweet science...or correctly spell their own name. Whichever comes first.