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My seat was high in the rafters, but damn I could see Jones' swollen features even from there. A speed fighter who is almost 35 and dropped 24 pounds to make weight suddenly looked very vulnerable, hardly the best ever as some have tagged him, including myself. Plus this was a lousy handicap by Jones, Antonio Tarver a 6-2 southpaw with fast hands and no fear.
Friday night I watched Roy Jones walk thru Caesar's Palace with only one friend alongside. No entourage. No autograph hounds. No turned heads whatsoever, despite complete absence of disguise. It blew me away, given Jones' 15 years of dominance and the Las Vegas treatment I've seen for boxers and athletes of much lesser stature.
Boxing historians will assure Jones' legend into the coming generations, even if the public ignores or doubts him. But Saturday night definitely suggested a move back to small heavyweight, and no more than a few carefully selected bouts. Jones/Tyson would feature near pick-em odds and thankfully no chance I would have to pay to see it, since Tyson can't get licensed in Nevada for some silly reason.
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