Roy Jones Jr. doesn’t want you to forget

Roy Jones Jr. once pleaded with the world on his own rap song that “Yall must have forgot” about him.

And well… that’s the problem. Roy never gave us a chance to salute him in the first place.

Jones Jr. has a Nov. 28 8-round exhibition bout with former Heavyweight champ Mike Tyson, in Los Angeles. It seems Jones is determined to solidify a legacy that’s already there, even it means potentially dying in the ring.

The fighters will use 12 oz gloves instead of the 10 oz that professionals use.

Not to wish malice or sound morbid, but Jones has had near brushes with death, inside and outside the ring. After losing by TKO to Antonio Tarver in a 2004 rematch, four months later, Jones jr. returned to fight Glen Johnson, who knocked him out by the 9th round. The back of Jones’ head landed so violently on the canvas, that there was legitimate concerns that he needed to be forced into retirement.

He proceeded to either fight washed up stars like Tito Trinidad or end old beefs with legends like Bernard Hopkins. He fought internationally late in his career. Jones Jr. even became a citizen of Russia in 2015. He continued fighting men he would’ve destroyed in his heyday, but unfortunately had some embarrassing performances.

He got into an altercation with Fat Joe and his goons because Jones was upset at being used as a punchline on Ja Rule’s “New York,” that featured Fat Joe and Jadakiss. Joe explained the situation on ESPN’s “Highly Questionable.”

“First of all, Roy Jones is the only guy in the world whoever came to deliberately to knock Fat Joe out,” he said. “Roy Jones is crazy. Lets’s be clear. I had a 100 guys with me. I just told Roy, I said ‘Listen, bro, it’s just Hip-Hop. It was just a line. I didn’t mean to totally disrespect you like that.’ I had to tell Roy, ‘There’s 100 guys there, Roy. There not going to just let you knock Fat Joe out.’”

Jones Jr. is one of the most stubborn super star boxers ever. A former deity in the ring, who wanted to remind the world of his god-like abilities, but could never accept he is now a mortal. His hubris was his toughest opponent.

In Greek mythology, Antaeus was a giant in Libya. He was an unstoppable wrestler, and anyone that entered Libya would be challenged by the colossus. He was blessed with this strength from his parents Poseidon (god of the seas) and Gaea (goddess of the earth). Because of who his mother was, Antaeus would gain his powers from the earth, essentially making him invincible.

Hercules went to Hesperides for an apple. On the way back, Antaeus challenged Herules to a wrestling match. Despite taking the giant down, it wasn’t enough to defeat him. The god would come back rejuvenated. Hercules was frustrated until he figured out the source of his strengths.

He lifted Antaeus off the ground, put him in a body lock and crushed him to death.

A fight with Mike Tyson, at the age of 54 and 51, respectively, is a vanity match. Tyson and Jones Jr. were slated to fight back in 2003. Negotiations were at high stakes, with reportedly $42 million on the table that Jones turned down.

It’s fascinating to think what would have happened.

Jones Jr. earned the WBA World Heavyweight title after defeating John Ruiz in a unanimous decision in 2003. He made history. The first boxer to earn the the Heavyweight title after debuting his career as a Middleweight. A feat that hasn’t been done since 1897.

He could have defended the title in a risky fight with Tyson, earned the biggest purse of his career and sit down and chill somewhere.

Instead, Jones took on fruitless bouts with bums. Continued to look for future fights despite being concussed by some of these journeymen fighters. I’m sure his HBO colleagues were perplexed and concerned with Jones’ decisions. Jones Jr. retired from boxing in 2018.

George Foreman warned about the dangers of returning to the ring this late in both men’s careers.

“There’s a time when you gotta worry about your health, but it’s a beautiful thing that they would even come out,” Foreman said to TMZ. “Maybe they can even name a charity or something for the recipient of the funds. I think it’s good to come out but its gotta be a fun thing, but I hope one does not hit the other.”

Both Tyson and Jones Jr. said they would look for the KO if it’s there.

“This is search and destroy and I’m looking forward to recapturing my glory,” Tyson said. “If he don’t kill quick, he’s got problems on his hands,” Roy said to TMZ Sports. “If he don’t get it quick, his ass belongs to me!”

It’s fun to think about what ifs in the past. Hopefully both men can engage in this exhibition without hurting each other. Most Greek mythologies end sadly.

Hopefully Jones can end his story without tragedy.