BOXING:ROY JONES Jr, once described as the best fighter on the planet, has said he wants to be the next to face Joe Calzaghe after watching at ringside as the undefeated Welshman battled to a split-points decision victory over the 43-year-old American Bernard Hopkins at the Thomas and Mack Center in Las Vegas in the early hours of yesterday.
Calzaghe, 36, was floored in the opening round but went on to grind out victory by scores of 116-111 and 115-112, with the third judge awarding the verdict to Hopkins 114-113. But Hopkins gave Calzaghe arguably the sternest test of his career.
Jones, 39, who has held world titles at middleweight, super-middleweight, light-heavyweight and heavyweight, believes he can succeed where Hopkins failed, and points to his win over Hopkins in a world middleweight title fight in May 1993 to underline his obvious credentials.
Although he has slipped from the pinnacle of the sport and has suffered defeats against Antonio Tarver and Glen Johnson, Jones remains a box-office draw and in January scored an emphatic points victory on a Don King-promoted bill at New York's Madison Square Garden against the Puerto Rican superstar Felix Trinidad.
"It's on if Joe wants it. I'll fight him anywhere. I'll go to Wales, England, wherever. I'm in," said Jones. "But it would only be fair if a fight in Cardiff in November was followed by one in the US."
The promoter Frank Warren was guarded over his intentions, saying no decision would be made regarding Calzaghe's future until the fighter had taken a well-deserved holiday.
But it seems likely Warren will have to assess the relative attraction of Jones and the world's No1 middleweight, Kelly Pavlick, who is due to face the Welshman Gary Lockett in his next title defence in Atlantic City on June 7.
Calzaghe had said he would take only one further fight before retirement, probably at Cardiff's Millennium Stadium.
But the lure of more lucrative paydays will prove tempting with the prospect of home and away fixtures with Jones, against whom Calzaghe would be favoured to win.
While he got the verdict against Hopkins, Calzaghe was not at his best and admitted: "He was very wily and I just couldn't tie him down. I was wary of his right hand, especially when he caught me in the first round - and I knew it was never going to be a pretty fight. But a win is a win and I'm still undefeated after 45 fights."
Hopkins was angered by the verdict, saying: "He was throwing punches and missing and I never got hurt. I hit him with big punches but never got hit with any big shots from him. I'm unmarked, and not hurt. The fans know, the whole world knows - other than the Brits - I won the fight."
