This week, former 2 divisional world champion Paul Marinaji touched on an interesting topic, which is who will emerge victorious in the 175-pound light heavyweight division, Roy Jones Jr. vs. Artur Beterbiev?
Fans will have different opinions on this fantasy fight, with some supporting Jones and others supporting Beterbiev.
In recent years, Beterbiev has taken the division by storm, rising to the top of the tournament in his 12th professional bout and defending his title eight times since then, and now owns 20 fights and 20 knockouts, making him the only active champion in professional boxing to date with a 100 percent knockout rate.
Beterbiev's explosive index is obvious to all, and some media said that when a fighter stands in front of Beterbiev, it is not a question of whether he can win, but a question of being able to hold on for a few rounds. However, in Marinaji's view, if Beterbiev meets Jones, who can be called the "hand of genius", many shortcomings will be exposed.
Jones is the undisputed former light heavyweight hegemon, winning three belts in his division at his peak, and although he doesn't have the same knockout rate as Beterbiev, he has more achievements than his opponent, which is to defend the title 12 times, which is the most consecutive title defenses in the light heavyweight division to date.
Marinaji asserted that Jones would have an easy victory as the "best fighter of the decade" in the '90s, and he even felt that Beterbiev was tailor-made for Jones.
"In this matter, people might think I'm crazy because looking at Beterbiev, he's such a strong guy and he's very technical, it's just that I think Jones can beat Beterbiev very easily, and I also think Beterbiev is tailor-made for Jones," Marinaghi said. Beterbiev likes to stand up, and his skills are underestimated by many, but unfortunately compared to Jones, Beterbiev is too slow. ”
Marina further explained that Jones' ability to seize opportunities is too strong, and Beterbiev will be hit sooner or later, and stressed that Jones' power is not weak.
"Jones will preemptive, change distance, his strength will be respected, he will attack opponents, you can easily get hit by those invisible punches, Beterbiev will give you a look, Jones will catch that look, he will take advantage of this opportunity throughout the night," Marinaji said. ”
One of Beterbiev's most effective weapons compared to Jones is his own strength, but Marinaji believes that power does not work in front of Jones.
"Just having power doesn't really make a difference, because Jones also has power, but he's more about speed, and Jones will counteract your influence in every way," Marinaji said. Beterbiev had the strength, he also had the skills, it was not enough to face Jones. ”
If Beterbiev is a super-first-class master, then Jones is a master, and when a master encounters a master, who has more hope of winning? The author has always believed that according to Jones's talent and skills, no matter what era he is, he can seek defeat alone, not that Beterbiev has no chance, he can also defeat Jones, it is nothing more than a question of how sure he is.
Let the author choose, then Jones may defeat Beterbiev with a probability of 60-40 or 55-45, the process will not be too easy, Jones's speed and technology can defuse Beterbiev's offensive, Beterbiev's strength will be Jones's biggest threat, not to mention that Beterbiev's skills are not weak, and the contest is still very suspenseful and interesting.
At the moment, if Beterbiev wants to truly establish himself at 175 pounds and achieve his legendary status, he must equalize Dmitry Bivol, if he loses to Bivol, then the gap with Jones will be very obvious, but if Beterbiev wins against Bivol, his achievements will be very close to Jones, but Jones has won a total of 4 divisions, and Beterbiev's aspect is obviously not enough.