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Roy Jones Jr. would have to fight a pro, not a ‘random fan’

Fighters Network
23
Feb

PHOENIX – The Arizona State Boxing & MMA Commission is scheduled to review a licensing application Thursday from a digital network seeking to stage a pay-per-view bout on March 20 featuring Roy Jones Jr. against an undetermined opponent who would collect $100,000 if he beats the former world champion.

Matthew Valenzuela, executive director of the Arizona Commission, said Tuesday that the state’s regulatory agency has received all of the required documents from URShow.tv.

“Fees have been paid, everything is good,” Valenzuela said.

When news of the planned event at Celebrity Theatre in Phoenix surfaced nearly two weeks ago, there were reports that Jones would be fighting a “random fan” selected through Facebook voting.



However, Valenzuela said Jones’ opponent would have to have a proven record as a professional boxer. The three-member Commission will apply the same licensing criteria to the Jones bout as it does to any other pro boxing card, Valenzuela said.

It’s still not known who the candidates are. On its website, URShow.tv asked for anybody interested to send a video and a record of their fight history to the digital entity by Feb. 24.

The Jones bout is just one part of the planned event, which URShow.tv says will include Ken Shamrock and Dan Severn in a MMA event and wrestling with Kurt Angle vs.- Rey Mysterio and Chad Sonnen vs. Michael Bisping.

As of Tuesday, it still wasn’t known whether the proposed Jones bout would be fought at heavyweight or cruiserweight.

In the wake of his last loss, there have been calls for Jones to retire. On Dec. 12 in Moscow, he suffered a brutal knockout at the hands of 35-year cruiserweight Enzo Maccarinelli, who knocked him down twice in the fourth round. The second knockdown dropped Jones, face-first, onto the canvas. He stayed there for several scary moments.

Jones, now 47 and often a ringside analyst for HBO, was considered the world’s best fighter for most of a decade – 1993 to 2003 – with major titles at middleweight, super middleweight, light heavyweight and heavyweight.

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