Roy Jones Jr.

Lore & Background

Jones is considered by many to be one of the greatest boxers of all time, pound for pound. He won the WBA heavyweight title in 2003, becoming the first and only boxer to win the heavyweight title starting his career as a junior middleweight. This also made him the second of only two former middleweight champions to win a heavyweight title, 106 years after Bob Fitzsimmons. He is also one of only two heavyweight champions to have begun his career below middleweight, the other being Tommy Burns. From 1999 to 2002, he held the undisputed championship at light heavyweight. As of June 2026, Jones holds the record for the most wins in unified light-heavyweight title bouts, with twelve. He is the first fighter in CompuBox history to have his opponent not land a single punch for an entire round. The Ring magazine named him Fighter of the Year in 1994 and the World Boxing Hall of Fame named him Fighter of the Year in 2003. He is a three-time winner of the Best Boxer ESPY Award (1996, 2000, 2003). The Boxing Writers Association of America and The Sporting News named him Fighter of the Decade for the 1990s.

In Their Own Story

The arena lights hummed, illuminating the sweat flying from Roy Jones Jr.'s brow as he danced around his opponent. The crowd roared, sensing another masterclass in motion. With a feint that looked like nothing more than a twitch of his shoulder, Jones launched a left hook that snapped back with impossible velocity. He didn't just hit; he vanished and reappeared behind the defense, leaving only the sound of impact and the stunned silence of a man who had never seen such speed before.

Reader's Guide

Jones won the IBF middleweight championship by defeating Bernard Hopkins by unanimous decision on May 22, 1993. He became super middleweight champion by defeating James Toney by unanimous decision on November 18, 1994. He later won the WBA heavyweight title in 2003. He held the undisputed light heavyweight championship from 1999 to 2002.

Did You Know?

• Jones won the silver medal at the 1988 Olympics in the light middleweight division, despite pummeling his opponent Park Si-hun and landing 86 punches to Park's 32.
• Jones was awarded the Val Barker Trophy as the best stylistic boxer of the 1988 Games, only the third time the award did not go to a gold medalist.
• Jones and Park met in May 2023, and Park gave his Olympic gold medal to Jones as a gesture of justice.
• Jones's father, Roy Jones Sr., was a Vietnam war veteran awarded a Bronze Star for valor and was a middleweight boxer.
• Jones ended his amateur career with a 121–13 record.