Boxing legends and former undisputed champions Roy Jones Jr. and Bernard Hopkins are on a collision course once again, nineteen years after they last fought.
Jones and Hopkins, who are 50 and almost 55 respectively, traded videos shared by news source FightHype.com.
Hopkins is seen first, sending a message from the World Boxing Council Convention in Cancun. ‘The Alien’ is currently rubbing shoulders with boxing royalty there.
Moments after Hopkins tells Jones to ‘get it on’, the one-time pound for pound king of the 1990’s responded in kind.
Bernard Hopkins offer
“We are one and one. You have one, I have one. Let’s break the tie,” said Hopkins.
“We can go to Russia, China or anywhere in Europe,” the Philly native added.
The only thing Jones wanted to know was the weight as he is obviously enjoying his retirement currently.
‘I’ve been waiting for something like this,” he told Hopkins. “Now tell me what weight so I can get down there!’
Jones vs Hopkins
Winning the first fight in 1993 at the height of his powers, Jones scored a unanimous decision for the IBF middleweight crown in Washington
Seventeen years later, Hopkins returned the favor at the Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas even more decisively.
Retiring in 2016, Hopkins remains the oldest world champion of all time. For his part, Jones hasn’t fought since 2018.
Victory over Scott Sigmon was due to be the Jones ‘farewell fight’, although it seems the offer by Hopkins is too good to pass up.
It’s an increasing trend for veterans in their 50’s to want some sort of comeback bout after Nigel Benn began the movement last month.
Announcing a full-blown return at 55, Benn was soon followed up by Julio Cesar Chavez, Jorge Arge and Evander Holyfield agreeing to exhibitions.
The subject is something WBN questioned years ago and seems to be coming true as we approach a new decade.