Boxing legend Roy Jones Jr.’s toughest foe isn’t who many fight fans and pundits are led to believe.
Roy Jones Jr. is regarded by many as one of the greatest fighters to ever step foot into the boxing ring. During his Hall of Fame career, he won belts in multiple weight classes, battling with all-time greats like Bernard Hopkins and Joe Calzaghe.
Jones’s multiple title reigns set him up to face some of the toughest battles in the sport’s history. He began his professional boxing career with a 34-0 record before a controversial disqualification loss to Montell Griffin in 1997.
But one name stands above the rest when reflecting on Jones’s slew of foes inside the ring.
Roy Jones Jr. picks James Toney as his toughest rival
In an interview with talkSPORT, Jones tabbed James Toney as his all-time toughest rival.
“As far as skill goes James Toney is definitely the best fighter I have ever been in there with and it will never change,” Jones said. “James had everything: he had offense, he had defense, he had movement, he had everything. The one thing he may have lacked was footwork because I had that too…
“So when you talk about a complete fighter there are not many complete fighters being built every day. You rarely come across fighters like Terence Crawford, Andre Ward, Roy Jones Jr, even Canelo Alvarez and Dmitry Bivol. These are all complete fighters. James was a complete fighter…He could stay in the pocket all day long and not be harmed. Not many guys can do that.” (h/t talkSPORT)
Jones defeated Toney by unanimous decision in 1994, but despite the decisiveness of the judges’ scorecards, it was a competitive battle from start to finish. The win gave Jones the IBF super middleweight championship, holding two IBF belts simultaneously.
Roy Jones Jr. outpointed James Toney during their physical primes
Toney, one of the top defensive boxers in the sport’s history, retired with an astounding 77 professional wins after a victory over Mike Sheppard in 2017. He won the WBF heavyweight title to snap a two-fight losing skid.
Jones’s admission is surprising given his lopsided defeat to Hopkins later in his career. He most recently fought former UFC champion Anthony Pettis in 2023 at 54 years old, losing by majority decision.
Since the Pettis fight, Jones has repeatedly teased another appearance in the boxing ring, invoking Jake Paul’s name and others. He competed against fellow boxing legend Mike Tyson in a 2020 exhibition fight that went the distance.
Toney’s toughness and gameness can’t be questioned after his storied fighting career. He fought UFC legend Randy Couture in his lone MMA fight in 2010, losing by first-round submission.
Jones and Toney fought one another during their physical primes with Jones getting the upper hand. Despite getting the win, Jones believes Toney gave him the perfect test at the perfect time in his career.