19.08.07 – By Vivek Wallace: Never in a million years did anyone expect to see a boxing headline with the names Roy Jones Jr. and Felix ‘Tito’ Trinidad but five years after initial talks died, it took the act of a King – Mr. Don King – to not only resurrect the names, but succeed in bringing together two men who will go down as nothing less than boxing icons. The skeptics, haters, and all in between will argue that this fight is years too late and that both men need to retire, but the voice of reason in every true fight aficionado out there would easily beg to differ with good cause.
In Roy Jones Jr. (51-4, 38KO’s), you have a man who is arguably one of, if not the – according to trainer Emanuel Steward – most talented fighter of this era. Being such an outspoken individual gave many fight fans something to rave about when Jones was unfortunately knocked out by Glen Jones and Antonio Tarver, but all that said was that he’s human.
In no way shape or form did it come remotely close to saying that he no longer has talent. Here stands a man who did the near impossible by going up in weight from the middleweight ranks to gain a piece of the sports heavyweight crown, a feat that hadn’t been accomplished in over 100 years. His last two efforts saw him slowly regain the form that allowed him to accomplish that history.
In ‘Tito’ Trinidad(42-2, 35KO’s), you have a man whose talent was not as refined as Roy Jones’, but his power and ferocious straight ahead style left few room for era as 35 of his 42 opponents failed to see the final bell, and his only losses came to two fighters that will go down as a couple of the best in history.
It is somewhat of a head-scratcher to some to see Felix Trinidad return to the ring to face such a ‘great’ without any type of tune up fight – especially considering how it worked out the last time against ‘Winky’ Wright – but this once again I see as a tribute to a man with the heart of a lion. There’s probably never been a challenge that ‘Tito’ viewed as too big, and rather than looking for some ‘cupcake’ to toy around with, he plans to literally go from the couch in the basement to the top of the mountain.
Although it’s way too early for predictions, when we compare the two men things get awfully intriguing and a few questions arise. Some think this is a ‘KO’ waiting to happen if Trinidad can land early and often to the dome of Roy Jones. I highly beg to differ. Never would I count out the talents of Trinidad but it would be quite ignorant to think that a man as accomplished as Roy Jones Jr. would be an easy target for any fighter – power puncher or not. When you think of the fight between ‘Winky’ Wright and Felix Trinidad and the fact that Trinidad was barely able to penetrate the armor of Wright’s defense, in many ways that fight gave clues to how this fight may go. It will all come down to the reflexes of Roy Jones Jr. The same reflexes that allowed him to get hit by shots that he didn’t used to get hit by. If the reflexes of Jones move slow, the results of the fight may come fast. On the other hand, if Tito fails to connect and is constantly peppered with the various combinations in the arsenal of the aged, yet still highly talented Roy Jones Jr., the proverbial ‘pendulum’ will shift very fast.
Either way it goes, the end will produce vastly different futures for the two men as the loser will probably be in position to permanently solidify a spot on that basement rocking chair, while the winner will probably have an offer waiting on the table at the victory press conference. Of course that offer will be from Golden Boy Promotions’ Bernard ‘The Executioner’ Hopkins who always has one of two things on his mind and both men fit that equation. Those two things being either unfinished business (in this case with Roy Jones Jr.), or another big payday, (in this case a rematch with Trinidad). There you have the first ‘scripted’ moment in the sport of boxing. Remember where you heard it first, and stay tuned.
(Got feedback?: Write Vivek Wallace at vivexemail@yahoo.com or show some love at myspace.com/anonymouslyinvolved)