[DUlrich1227]

ANTONIO TARVER vs. ROY JONES III

Jones, 36, an underdog (9-5) for the first time in his 16 ½ year, 52 fight career in rubber match vs. Tarver, also 36, with only 26 professional fights ( 23-3-0, 18 ko’s. Jones is 49-3, 38 ko’s).

The 4-1 favorite Jones won the cautiuos first round of their rematch ( 5/15/04), as Tarver didn’t land a single power punch in the first 3 minutes. That all changed midway through round 2 when Tarver landed the perfect left hand that Jones never saw. Roy beat the count, but was in no condition to continue- Tarver a tko winner at 1:41 of round 2.

Jones went through hell to make the 175-lb limit for the first fight ( 11/8/03), losing 18-lbs of muscle following his history-making decision win over John Ruiz eight months earlier. He weighed 193 lbs. when he took home Ruiz’s version of the heavyweight title. Forget one judge’s card that had Jones ahead 97-93 after ten rounds, the fight was up for grabs in the last six minutes. (The other two scorers had it 95-95 and 96-94 Jones). Roy found the strength to outpunch Tarver in rounds 11 & 12. He threw 46 punches in round 11 and 56 in round 12, his highest totals for the fight, outlanding Tarver 26-17 in power shots in 11 & 12. Tarver, maybe thinking he already had the fight won, threw just 35 punches in round 11 and was outpunched 56-51 in the 12th. If Tarver had won the last two rounds on two of the cards, the fight’s a draw and he retains his title.

Tarver probably would have liked to kick himself in the ass with a size 12 Everlast after getting a look at his stats from rounds three, four, five and nine. After landing 20 of 81 total punches in rounds one & two, including 15 of 41 power shots, to just 12 of 61 for Jones, Tarver landed just 2 of 12 power shots over the next three rounds- all scored for Jones, as was the sixth round. Roy began scoring to Tarver’s body with single shots and it visibly slowed his fellow-Floridian. Tarver came to life in rounds seven & eight, averaging 60 punches per round, winning both rounds on all cards. He went stiff again in the ninth, throwing just 33 punches and getting outlanded 10-3 in power shots by Jones, who threw 40 punches in the ninth after throwing just 24 in the eighth, his low for the fight.

Tarver was the ninth southpaw Roy had faced in a title fight. Jones had won 173 out of a possible 186 rounds (93%) vs. the previous eight, outlanding them 1459-586. It was the first time Jones had been outlanded in total punches (120-111) in 22 fights tracked by CompuBox (Jones did have a 94-73 edge in power connects, the difference in the fight). Jones averaged 35 punches per round vs. Tarver, the same number he averaged vs. Ruiz, only five less than he averaged vs. the previous eight southpaws. Tarver’s numbers, as do all Jones opponents, dropped significantly. After averaging 61 punches per round vs. Eric Harding, Montell Griffin and Reggie Johnson, all common opponents of both, Tarver averaged just 42 per round vs. Jones, who was there for the taking. Tarver did average 21 jabs per round in the first fight, a weapon he used to swell and discolor Jones’ left eye. He averaged 31 jabs per round vs. the three common opponents.

Four months after the shocking ko loss to Tarver, Jones challenged journeyman Glen Johnson. Johnson won a share of the light heavyweight title in February with a decision win over Clinton Woods, whom Jones destroyed in four rounds in September of ’02.

Jones was a 7-1 favorite over Johnson, who was 8-9-2 in his last 19 fights. Johnson won the first round on all cards, getting off 84 punches that kept Jones pinned on the ropes the entire frame. Jones won rounds two and three on 2 cards, as Johnson’s work rate dropped. Jones had his best round in the third, landing 23 of 57 total punches- again, with his back to the ropes. It was all downhill from there for Jones, who landed in single digits in rounds 4, 6, 7 & 8- averaging just 24 punches thrown in those rounds. He rallied somewhat in round 5, landing 13 of 53 total punches, but Johnson responded by landing 21 of 62. As Jones continued to linger on ropes, his production dropped, as he was outlanded 77-35 in rounds four thru eight. A single right hand by Johnson :49 into round 9 put Jones down for the count, his head hitting the Memphis ring canvas with a sickening thud. He remained on a stool in the ring for some 30 minutes before exiting under his own power- for the last time his fans and those who care about him assumed.

Tarver and Johnson then met three months later in Los Angeles with Johnson coming away with a somewhat controversial split decision win. Tarver outlanded Johnson 296-217, including 220-140 in power shots. Tarver also averaged 71 punches per round, but fought in spurts, throwing 36 punches in round 5 after getting off 87 in the 4th. He dropped to 38 in round 10 after throwing 80 in the 9th. Enough to lose the fight? Don’t think so, but two of the judges did, scoring it 115-113 Johnson, the third had it 116-112 Tarver. Maybe because Tarver wasn’t consistent enough with his jab, landing just 76 of 356 to 77 of 425 for Johnson.

That wasn’t the case in the rematch last June. Tarver totally took away Johnson’s jab, landing 69 of 313 to just 14 of 173 for Johnson. Overall, Tarver went 218 of 851 (26%), again averaging 71 punches per round, this time fighting a more consistent fight. Johnson, a former middleweight, showed some wear and tear, landing just 149 of 564 total punches. Tarver got the nod 116-112 twice and 115-113 on the scorecards.

Following the Leavander Johnson tragedy and Jones’ apparent deep concern over the condition of Gerald McClellan following his ko loss to Nigel Benn 10 years ago, the question is: Why fight on, Roy? And the answer is: the extraordinary drive and ego that made Jones the great fighter he once was is the same drive and ego that will not allow him to exit boxing following two consecutive ko losses. The reality is, Jones at his best would have trouble with Tarver’s long, southpaw style.

To have a chance to win this fight, Roy needs to stay off the ropes and keep the fight in the middle of the ring, where he had success in the first fight. Will his 36 year old legs allow him to do so? Tarver needs to stay consistent with his punch output. Take a page out of Glen Johnson’s playbook and jump on Jones from the opening bell and keep Jones on the ropes. When they are in mid ring, Tarver needs to move, make Roy use his legs.

Roy says he’s refocused despite a reported injury to his right hand. He’s also brought his father back to assist in training with longtime trainer Alton Merkerson in the mix as well. Still, it’s hard to imagine how Roy can turn back the clock effectively enough to win this fight. Tarver and his trainer Buddy McGirt are no fools. They’re expecting the best Roy Jones possible. It’s just not going to be enough to pull off the upset. Roy may go the distance, but he’ll lose a less than scintillating decision in the process.

[naught33]

Tarver weighs in at 175, Roy at 173....lets get it on, this is gonna be a classic, i think Roy gets back to his slick boxing and uses his speed, which he hopefully still has and will frustrate tarver

[bad gambler]

Tarver to win for me, and will also play him to win by KO as well

good luck

[DUlrich1227]

just put tarver in my self.. @ -230

LET GET THIS ONE

[naught33]

boo, im on roy tonight dave, hope its a good fight...think roy feels he has something to prove tonight and will do it...supposedly in the best shape in the past 5 yrs of his career

[Tommy]

Im on Roy myself payback is a bitch LOL Like the Live Dog here

[naught33]

you were right dave...whats so frustrating is roy could have won that fight, he just didnt do enough, wasnt punching in the last half of the fight....he didnt look tired so i dont know what it was...he started out cautious in the fight then he had those 2 rounds where he let loose and caught tarver w some good shots, but then he stopped fighting, i dont know what he was doing...congrats on the $$