Ahead of Saturday’s exhibition fight between boxing legends Mike Tyson and Roy Jones Jr., it was impossible to predict what would happen in the ring. At a combined 105 years of age and with uncertainty over the rules ahead of the event, an already unpredictable situation felt even harder to figure out. But once the men got in the ring, they went as hard as could be asked for over eight, two-minute rounds leading to a split draw on the WBC-assigned judges scorecards.
The fight was rough and tumble, with only one or two punches being thrown by either man in most exchanges before the fighters would clinch and work short punches until broken up by referee Ray Corona. Tyson would occasionally land his trademark left hooks at distance as Jones showed flashes of his old style, dancing and showboating in between popping off no-look jabs.
Can’t get enough boxing and MMA? Get the latest in the world of combat sports from two of the best in the business. Subscribe to Morning Kombat with Luke Thomas and Brian Campbell for the best analysis and in-depth news.
Tyson seemed to pile up most of the early rounds, landing the cleaner punches and muscling Jones in the clinch. Jones was the more visibly fatigued man in the corner between rounds, but he continued to try to gut out the fight, turning up his volume in the later rounds. This despite Tyson being far more removed from his time as a professional fighter.
Jones’ late work served to score him enough late rounds to earn the win on one scorecard and a draw on the other. With Tyson winning the third scorecard, the fight was left a somewhat unsatisfying draw.
While Tyson said he was happy with the result, Jones was less thrilled, saying after the fight, “I wear draws, I don’t do draws.”
After the fight, Tyson told interviewer Jim Gray that he planned to move forward fighting more exhibitions and even seemed interested in running it back with Jones.
“I’m used to doing it for three minutes,” Tyson said of the rounds. “Sometimes, that two minutes felt like three minutes. I’m happy I got this under my belt to keep doing this and go further.”
Jones was less committed to fighting again, stating simply that it was “hard to say.”
Tyson did shut down any idea of coming back to the ring as a professional, however.
“This is bigger than fighting and winning the championship,” Tyson said of competing in exhibitions where he donates money to charity. “We’re humanitarians and we’re helping people.”
Fans who tuned in to watch the pay-per-view event from Staples Center in Los Angeles were treated to an extra layer of absurdity, with Snoop Dogg joining the commentary team — as he had done one fight prior for Jake Paul’s vicious knockout of Nate Robinson. Snoop was loudly cheering on Jones through the fight and inserting one-liners that helped take the edge off an exhibition fight that saw a battle between promoters, fighters and the California State Athletic Commission over whether it was a “real fight” as the promoters and fighters claimed, or a “hard sparring” session as the CSAC said would be the limitations.
The lightness provided by Snoop’s commentary carried over into the post-fight interviews with Jones and Tyson, with the once feared fighters joking with each other while they basked in the bright lights of the sport’s biggest stage decades after being two of the biggest stars of their era.
CBS Sports was with you throughout the entire way on Saturday, read on for our live results and highlights below.
Fight card, results
- Mike Tyson vs. Roy Jones Jr. results in an unofficial split draw
- Jake Paul def. Nate Robinson via second-round TKO
- Badou Jack def. Blake McKernan via unanimous decision (80-72, 80-72, 80-72)
- Jamaine Ortiz def. Sulaiman Segawa via seventh-round TKO
Tyson vs. Jones scorecard, live coverage
|
Tyson |
10 |
10 |
9 |
10 |
10 |
9 |
9 |
9 |
76 |
|
Jones |
9 |
9 |
10 |
9 |
9 |
10 |
10 |
10 |
76 |
