In the final fight of his professional career, Joe Calzaghe beat Roy Jones Jr.
The fight took place on November 8, 2008 at Madison Square Garden. Calzaghe – the longest reigning super-middleweight champion in the history of the sport – had made his debut at light-heavyweight with a split decision win over Bernard Hopkins earlier that year.
Though Jones started strong, knocking Calzaghe down in the first round, the Welshman recovered and would impress the rest of the fight with his relentless work rate and accurate punching. He opened a cut above the American’s eye in the seventh round, which put him further ahead, though Jones also had more moments of success.
Calzaghe won a unanimous decision with a score of 118-109 on all three judges’ cards, cementing his place among boxing’s elite. The fight marked his retirement from the sport, ending his campaign with an undefeated record of 46-0.
At the time of the fight, Jones had been competing for 19 years, or 56 fights. Whilst most believe Calzaghe would have been a tough night at the office for him at any stage, there’s no doubt that ‘Captain Hook’s prime had been and gone when he stepped through the ropes that night.
The question of how Jones would have fared in the match-up at his peak is often discussed. Speaking on his YouTube channel, another super-middleweight champion in Froch said that, despite the loss, Jones was without a doubt better fighter than Calzaghe in his prime.
“Roy Jones Jr is number one, without a doubt. Even though Calzaghe has a win over Roy Jones, Roy Jones was 41, he’d been beaten and was well past his best. And still that was a close fight – he flattened him in round one. You’ve got to put Roy Jones number one. He’s the ultimate fighting machine – skill, speed, natural talent. It’s almost like he was cheating, it was like the Matrix.”
Whilst Calzaghe – who didn’t cross paths with Froch despite fan interest – hung up the gloves at the perfect time, Jones would fight on. His latest professional bout was in 2023 – a loss to former MMA fighter Anthony Pettis.
