ROY JONES JR will lace up the gloves one last time when he fights Mike Tyson – and only a ‘legend’ could convince him otherwise.
The American four-division champion faces Tyson on November 28, in an eight-round exhibition spectacle.
It comes 15 years on from Iron Mike’s last fight, when he quit after six rounds against Irishman Kevin McBride.
Jones on the other hand only retired in 2018, ending his career with four straight wins in America, but against unfamiliar opposition.
Now aged 51, he was convinced to make another comeback with the opportunity to finally fight the one who got away after he won the heavyweight belt in 2003.
It will be his 76th, and possibly final, career bout unless an opponent of Evander Holyfield or Bernard Hopkins’ calibre steps up to challenge the American icon.
Jones’ trainer Tom Yankello told SunSport: “I don’t think he would fight to just fight again.
“It would have to be a very presentable challenge to spark his interest again.
“There’s been talks, like Bernard Hopkins and Antonio Tarver were saying they would want to fight again.
“He didn’t really comment on it too much but I just know if one of those guys were to present that challenge, I don’t see him turning it down.
“I know those two guys, and he hasn’t said this before but someone like Evander Holyfield, they would spark his interest to box again.
“I don’t think there’s anyone else out there, it would have to be a legend.”
Jones beat Hopkins at middleweight in 1993, but lost their light-heavyweight rematch 17 years later.
Similarly, he beat Tarver in 2003, but would lose the other two in their trilogy series.
Tarver, 51, Hopkins, 55, and Holyfield, 57, revealed they would come out of retirement following the news Tyson will fight again.
Jones is the most active of the fighting legends, beating Scott Sigmon only two years ago.
Trainer Yankello – who runs the World Class Boxing Channel on YouTube – had stopped working with the former pound-for-pound great in 2014.
But they linked up once more after Jones announced he would be welcoming Tyson back to the ring.
The pair have been switching between their respective homes in Pittsburg and Florida.
And Jones has been rolling back the clock in the gym, leaving pad man Yankello in shock at the speed of his punches.
He said: “His hand speed is still incredible.
“I don’t think his hand speed has decreased at all, he’s as fast as he was when I worked with him nine, almost ten years ago.
“His mobility is not maybe quite the same but he still has great agility, he’s kept himself in great shape.”
Yankello believes the qualities that first made Jones a legend at middleweight and super-middleweight also provides him the ‘blueprint’ to beat Tyson.
He said: “A lot of the things he did in the lighter weight classes, at middleweight and super-middleweight, those will be the things that he will bring to the table for this fight.
“Knowing the blueprint that has given Mike Tyson trouble in the past are things Roy does very well.
“This fight is at heavyweight but he has the skillset of a middleweight or super-middleweight and heavyweights are bigger guys that carry more power but the skillset of the guys at the lower weights have and still are better.”
