Why wasn't roy jones bigger (like in the mainstream)

[Lewis Black]

Like nobody remembers this dude (obviously boxing fans do). Like casuals n ish, dude had the talent and all that but why wasn't he big in the mainstream. Now im 21 and i remember back as a kid in the 90's my dad n his boys used to be amped for the tyson fights, and now as a adult people get hyped for the pac/may fights. Like jones never hit that level.

 

[datmass]

that antonio tarver fight i was pissed when he lost.

 

[Big Boss]

Probably because of the heavyweight division

 

[Black Ball]

For all the talent & physical gifts Roy had, dude could stink it up in the ring at times. Roy could really be gun shy in the ring for no reason at all in his prime. Like he could have an opponent over matched and he would still be hesitant to pull the trigger. This made Roy a boring ass PPV draw. Dude would carry cats to the distance that he should have got out of there with a little more aggression. He could be one of the most frustrating fighters to watch, but was my favorite fighter during his prime.

What makes Floyd different is that, although dude is defensive minded, he executes on his offensive opportunities and openings. Even though he aint knocking cats out like that, he puts on masterful performances that are very entertaining to boxing fans.

 

[bigbadbossup2012]

lack of superstar opponents,lack of brutal ko's at the height of his popularity (except the ones he suffered)

 

[patscorpio]

lack of superstar opponents,lack of brutal ko's at the height of his popularity (except the ones he suffered)

pretty much

 

[SuikodenII]

For all the talent & physical gifts Roy had, dude could stink it up in the ring at times. Roy could really be gun shy in the ring for no reason at all in his prime. Like he could have an opponent over matched and he would still be hesitant to pull the trigger. This made Roy a boring ass PPV draw. Dude would carry cats to the distance that he should have got out of there with a little more aggression. He could be one of the most frustrating fighters to watch, but was my favorite fighter during his prime.

What makes Floyd different is that, although dude is defensive minded, he executes on his offensive opportunities and openings. Even though he aint knocking cats out like that, he puts on masterful performances that are very entertaining to boxing fans.

Numerous hand/wrist injuries.........guys sometimes even come into the fight already injured so they're reluctant to really sit down on their punches

 

[FaTaL]

he never signed with don king, he thought he could promote himself

i wonder what his career earnings were

 

[Black_Jesus]

Roy was pretty huge from what I remember... his popularity fell after he started losing

 

[Wacky D]

roy jones was huge. only bigger name during his time was mike Tyson. plus roy jones was like the master p of boxing. he promoted himself, which can be a gift & a curse when youre gone and no machines have any interest in keeping your legacy alive. he was also like the bill Goldberg of boxing. once he finally lost a match, he lost a lot of steam.

he didn't have many big pay-per view fights because he rarely had any big ppv opponents. but he was the face of hbo boxing, had his own video game, his own record label, everybody still remembers his videos, was always a fixture at the source awards, and I believe he played in the USBL.

 

[Big Boss]

roy jones was huge. only bigger name during his time was mike Tyson. plus roy jones was like the master p of boxing. he promoted himself, which can be a gift & a curse when youre gone and no machines have any interest in keeping your legacy alive. he was also like the bill Goldberg of boxing. once he finally lost a match, he lost a lot of steam.

he didn't have many big pay-per view fights because he rarely had any big ppv opponents. but he was the face of hbo boxing, had his own video game, his own record label, everybody still remembers his videos, was always a fixture at the source awards, and I believe he played in the USBL.

Bigger than oscar?

 

[Scottie Drippin]

Yeah, MASSIVE reach. Roy was not bigger than:

Tyson, Lewis, Oscar, Shane, or Tito.

Roy's problems were:
Beat B-Hop in '93, Toney in '94....and then fought no one. Not entirely his fault. Between Middleweight and Heavyweight is typically a vacuum in star power and is the most euro-centric divisions in boxing. Roy's steadfast refusual to go to overseas to fight Michalczewski (given what happened to him in the Olympics, you can feel where he's coming from) reflected poorly on him during final years of his dominance as well. Mich was dominating some of the same people Roy was at the time and it was the only fight in the division that anyone had any interest in watching.

A rematch with Toney at cruiser (after he got back buzz post-Jirov) and a rematch with B-Hop after the Trinidad fight never came through. If you think the media give Floyd shyt for his opponents, with Roy is was X1000.

He was Joe Louis Bum of the Month status.

And then as someone else mentioned, he wasn't exactly killing these guys either. He stopped throwing combos. Stopped trying to finish fights. Even dudes he finished he kept around in borefests for what felt like forever. There was honestly no reason to watch a Roy Jones fight.

 

[Big Boss]

Yeah, MASSIVE reach. Roy was not bigger than:

Tyson, Lewis, Oscar, Shane, or Tito.

Roy's problems were:
Beat B-Hop in '93, Toney in '94....and then fought no one. Not entirely his fault. Between Middleweight and Heavyweight is typically a vacuum in star power and is the most euro-centric divisions in boxing. Roy's steadfast refusual to go to overseas to fight Michalczewski (given what happened to him in the Olympics, you can feel where he's coming from) reflected poorly on him during final years of his dominance as well. Mich was dominating some of the same people Roy was at the time and it was the only fight in the division that anyone had any interest in watching.

A rematch with Toney at cruiser (after he got back buzz post-Jirov) and a rematch with B-Hop after the Trinidad fight never came through. If you think the media give Floyd shyt for his opponents, with Roy is was X1000.

He was Joe Louis Bum of the Month status.

And then as someone else mentioned, he wasn't exactly killing these guys either. He stopped throwing combos. Stopped trying to finish fights. Even dudes he finished he kept around in borefests for what felt like forever. There was honestly no reason to watch a Roy Jones fight.

u probably could add holyfield on that list.

 

[Scottie Drippin]

u probably could add holyfield on that list.

Yeah, blanked on that. Definitely Holyfield. Roy being a PPV liability was a constant discussion.

 

[Majestic Pape]

For all the talent & physical gifts Roy had, dude could stink it up in the ring at times. Roy could really be gun shy in the ring for no reason at all in his prime. Like he could have an opponent over matched and he would still be hesitant to pull the trigger. This made Roy a boring ass PPV draw. Dude would carry cats to the distance that he should have got out of there with a little more aggression. He could be one of the most frustrating fighters to watch, but was my favorite fighter during his prime.

What makes Floyd different is that, although dude is defensive minded, he executes on his offensive opportunities and openings. Even though he aint knocking cats out like that, he puts on masterful performances that are very entertaining to boxing fans.

No, what makes Floyd different is he (and Al Haymon) has marketed himself better than probably any fighter in history.

If Roy had Floyd's marketing team/acumen behind him, he would have probably been a bigger star than Floyd (and obviously time period accounts for that, and Floyd learned from Roy as well).

Roy was the more exciting fighter IMO.

Besides, Jones was a HUGE star as was anyway.