Calzaghe gets up to beat Jones Jr

Eurosport - Sun, 09 Nov 17:01:00 2008

Joe Calzaghe survived a scare to defend his Ring Magazine Light-Heavyweight Championship title from Roy Jones Jr at Madison Square Garden in New York City by unanimous decision.

BOXING GETTY Joe Calzaghe with kids after beating Roy Jones Junior - 0

Calzaghe was caught early with a clean left jab from Jones, who followed up with a right to put the Welsh fighter on the canvas and force a count.

Calzaghe, who is now unbeaten throughout a career spanning 46 fights, had suffered a similar scare against Bernard Hopkins in Las Vegas earlier this year.

"He caught me with good shot," he said afterwards. "I didn't see the punch coming: it was like déjà vu. It was a shaky start.

"It's the fourth time I've been down and come back stronger. That's what it's all about. When you are put on the floor, there is not much time to think: I tried to keep my head clear and use my footwork.

"I adapted and I think I won every round after that. I showed what a true champion is about."

Calzaghe, 36, had a cut on the bridge of his nose that caused concern among the travelling hordes of British fans, but he took the fight to Jones - now 52-5, with 38 KOs - from that moment on.

Forcing his opponent on to the ropes time after time, Calzaghe rained blows upon Jones's body as the Floridian guarded his face closely. Calzaghe kept his face just behind Jones's guard as he tried to tempt him out.

That allowed the 39-year-old American to connect with the occasional clean blow, the most notable being a deadly right uppercut in the sixth round that rippled Calzaghe's jaw.

By that point Calzaghe was clearly ahead, having adopted a loose style with his guard down - he threw nearly a thousand punches during the fight.

"That's my style: sometimes I feel more relaxed with my hands by my side," he explained. "It gives me different angles and combinations.

"It is very hard to fight my style because I have so many of them."

The pivotal moment of the bout arrived in the seventh, when a massive left from Calzaghe went straight through to Jones's eye and opened a deep cut.

Almost immediately there was blood all over the latter's face and chest, while a great deal also ended up on Calzaghe's body and gloves during the remainder of the fight, staining the white parts of his get-up.

However referee Hubert Earle allowed the fight to continue without interruption. Jones continued to battle with a slightly more attacking approach as he realised he would have to KO Calzaghe to win.

"At the end of the day Jones is a wicked fighter," Calzaghe added. "He was fighting through it, rubbing his eye - he's a warrior.

"Roy will always be my friend: I've got the utmost respect for the guy.

"I've beaten two legends in Hopkins and Roy Jones in America, in Vegas and New York - I took the risk and came out on top."

If Calzaghe, as expected, calls it a day after this latest triumph, no one could blame him. It was a monumental battle, one which had most of the fans inside the famous New York venue on their feet in homage to both fighters at the start and end of the final round.

Both responded in the final seconds by saluting the crowd; yet after the expected decision was announced - with all three judges giving it to Calzaghe by a margin of 118-109 - neither confirmed that it would be last time they would appear in a ring.

"I have to sit down and think about it," Calzaghe said as he thanked his supporters. "This could be my last fight, but I won't make a decision yet."

Jones said: "I'm not sure. I'll go and talk to my friends and family and see how I feel.

"I came and did my best, gave my all, and he won. Congratulations to him: he caught me with a good shot.

"I have found a measure of redemption, coming back from three losses in a row - that is very difficult."

Veteran Jones, regarded as one of the greatest boxers of the modern era, secured points decisions over journeymen Prince Ajamu and Anthony Henshaw in his last two fights.

He suffered two devastating knockout losses to Antonio Tarver and Glen Johnson in 2004 before Tarver beat him again in 2005 on points.

Jonathan Symcox / Eurosport

Comment 97 - 116 of 116

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  1. pond scum

    both boxers are showboaters rjj did it at the start when he had joe down the joe did it when he had rjj down it is all for the crowd or dont you know good biz when you see it

    haye

    he is a higher class then joe so why should joe step up and fight him when joe is the more recognised boxer what has he done, he beat enzo when enzo made a big mistake so what.

    i predict haye will beat monte barrett but will lose big style agsint klitschko

    From cellan j, on Mon 10 Nov 2:05AM

  2. cameron w most of what you said i agree with however calzaghe certainly is not a gentelman and most certainly doesnt conduct himself well. taunting people in fights? its a disgrace to the british public, the british people are said to be of high regard to the rest of the world other people look up to us, then you see him acting like a complete and utter fool in the ring. when i saw him doing that last night i was almost ashamed to call myself british i felt very embarassed. the british man doesnt do things like that we are suppose to act with class, integrity and respect. each of these traits joe calzaghe simply doesnt have.

    From pond.simba@..., on Sun 9 Nov 10:13PM

  3. joe calzaghe your a joke taunting old men, we can all do that i hope that hurt when roy jones floored you. floored by a grandad hahahaha even funnier floored by b-hop who is older still lol. Stop the taunting now and you might gain my respect and stop fighting has beens, you have done it through your whole carear eubank,jones jr and bernard hopkins but too name a few. Prove yourself and fight david haye oh yeah you wont do that because he would knock your block off.

    From pond.simba@..., on Sun 9 Nov 10:06PM

  4. For many years i doubted Calzaghe.
    However, year after year after year, here he was beating every single contender out there; and contrary to belief, on no occasion did he ever dodge anyone (Roy Jones Jr & Hopkins refused to fight him when both were in their prime). Slowly but surely, i was won over; i had to sit up and realise that this guy must have something, surely all these victories couldn't be flukes. I am now of the opinion that this guy is a class act and deserves all the plaudits that come his way. He is also a gentleman and always conducts himself well, a credit to Britain.
    I cannot say he is the greatest ever boxer from Britain, how can i possibly do that; but what i can say is that he is one of the best British boxers in my lifetime. I hope he retires now, simply because there is nobody left to fight - he's beat them all, and convincingly too!
    So all you Calzaghe doubters, please just get honest with yourselves and give credit where credit is most certainly due.

    From cameron w, on Sun 9 Nov 9:45PM

  5. Calzaghe is good in boxing as long as he is fighting retired boxers like. please, pair him up with Ali who is now suffering from Parkinson Disease. I am sure Calzaghe who? will win. s..t

    From Augustine A, on Sun 9 Nov 9:41PM

  6. alan

    i think you will find we have won the grand slam twice in 4 years

    you say you wasnt trying to put wales down but then in your next comment you say who really cares for wales ?, you need to think before you type

    From cellan j, on Sun 9 Nov 6:56PM

  7. JOE CALZAGHE HAS NOTHING TO PROVE HE IS UNDEFEATED ENOUGH SAID I DIDN'T SAY HE WAS ENGLISH AND DONT CARE IF HE IS WELSH,NOBODY CARES FOR WALES REALLY DO THEY ONLY OPERA FANS

    From alan.darlow, on Sun 9 Nov 6:08PM

  8. P.MARSHALL YOU @#$% IM SURE THE WELSH WILL THANK YOU FOR SAYING THEY ARE TRUE ENGLISHMAN WHICH IS NOT WHAT I CLAIMED ANYWAY IM JUST FED UP OF PEOPLE LIKE YOU PUTTING THE ENGLISH DOWN ALL THE TIME JUST BECAUSE YOU HAVE A TOP BOXER AND WON THE GRANDSLAM ONCE IN HOW LONG ? GET A LIFE YOU @#$%

    From alan.darlow, on Sun 9 Nov 6:04PM

  9. ollieboyyy,make you laugh,in what sense?Fool?please get back, your retort will astound me.

    From david, on Sun 9 Nov 6:02PM

  10. yo!

    From mcintosh584@..., on Sun 9 Nov 5:44PM

  11. all of you guy on here are f...in idiots!! haha,.. how sad!!! what a waste of effort on a sunday!!!! go to your women or read the bible!!! wheres the love?? very amusing,.. if only we could see your faces!! were the same kind!! now get a life, kiss and make up!! d.rascal for priminister!

    From mcintosh584@..., on Sun 9 Nov 5:44PM

  12. WEINMAN YOU FOOL,, YOU MAKE ME LAUGH

    From , on Sun 9 Nov 5:31PM

  13. A61971
    YOU ARE GETTING ON NEARLY EVERY ONES NERVES (ALL DAY) ABOUT JOE HEADBUTTING, RUNNING AWAY ETC, AS EVERY ONE ELSE AGREES HE'S AMAZING,JUST FACE IT SON YOUR A COMPLETE @#$%, UNLESS YOU GOT SOMETHING ELSE TO SAY GO CRAWL BACK UNDER THE STONE YOU CAME FROM.

    PAUL CAERPHILLY (S. WALES)

    From p.marshall76, on Sun 9 Nov 5:06PM

  14. I think now is the time to accept that Joe Calzaghe is not only THE best british boxer we have ever had but also has to go down as one of the greatest of all time and am sure in years to come people will talk about him with that kind of respect top man!!

    From antongregorich@..., on Sun 9 Nov 4:54PM

  15. Yes, he allways uses his head, against Jones they showed in slow motion how Joe several times "jumped" in his forehead. Trying to hit Jones's cut. Typically he launches a left right combo, if it fails, then he continiues he forward motion with a headbutt,- and then holding. It's like in football, tackling with the knobs first. And why, he would have won anyway against Jones? Jones was so "over-the-hill" that I allmost didn't want to see the fight to the end. Shame to boxing just like Holyfield trying to make a few bucks more. If Joe fought Jones 10 years ago, ....that would have been a fight. Not this. To me, the only fight worth seeing today is a rematch against Kessler. If they both keep free of injury, it would be a heartstopping match to watch.
    Equal in speed, Joe the more agile, Kessler the more powerfull.

    From a61971, on Sun 9 Nov 4:50PM

  16. a61971.Your inane ramblings astound me.why post a comment on a subject you obviously know zilch about is laughable.Boxers have limited input as to who,where,when and how much.Joe and jones were at an entirely different stage 10 years ago,weight,class,marketability,etc.As for other postings regarding nationality,personally do not give a f**k if hes welsh,irish,scottish,black,white or purple,the man is best of british.Many thanks to the man who's achieved so much.

    From david, on Sun 9 Nov 4:45PM

  17. and if you really want to know i live in blackwood which is about 8 miles away from newbridge

    From cellan j, on Sun 9 Nov 4:34PM

  18. Im English but quite simply CALZAGHE is the best ever boxer to come from these isles. british english Welsh does it matter,, the bloke is Unreal...England always been @#$% at boxing,,calzage should easily be named sports personality of the Year ,, yet they will probably give it to some 1 time chancer like hamilton,, CALZAGHE IS INVINCIBLE SIMPLE AS.......TRUTH HURTS I KNOW BUT YOU MUST ACCEPT IT FOOLS ,, HISTORY IS BIGGER THAN YOU,,,CALZAGHE IS GOD

    From , on Sun 9 Nov 4:25PM

  19. a6

    i allways thought it was hopkins was the spolier who used his head to cut boxers but joe used his hands plus threw the most punches in a fight

    can you name me the fights where he has used his head to win a fight or i will just class you as a kessler fan who didn't like it when kessler was shown to not be the better fighter

    From cellan j, on Sun 9 Nov 4:24PM

  20. No, I still don't like this Jones fight. Jones was not even at 20% from what he was 10 years ago. Old, slow, no stanima, no timing.....he was there to collect the money. We believed we should see a great fight,- I feel cheated.
    And yes, Cooper nailed Ali, history know's that. Cooper was a fantastic fighter. But to mee, and I am not from the states, then overall, Ali is the greatest ever. But Cooper is there too, and Foreman, and Leonard and and .......

    From a61971, on Sun 9 Nov 4:14PM
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