Roy Jones Jr names Bernard Hopkins as the smartest fighter he ever faced

Roy Jones Jr has singled out Bernard Hopkins as the smartest opponent of his career, the American beating him in 1993 before Hopkins won their 2010 rematch.

Roy Jones Jr has named Bernard Hopkins as the smartest fighter he faced as a professional, praising his former rival's ability to learn from their first meeting before winning the second.

Jones beat Hopkins by unanimous decision in Washington in 1993 to win the vacant IBF world middleweight title. When the pair met again in Las Vegas in April 2010, Hopkins won by unanimous decision in a non-title fight at 175lb.

Jones said the two-weight world champion stood out above the rest of his opponents for his ring intelligence, pointing to how Hopkins adjusted between their two fights.

He said: “He had a real good ring IQ. He was able to study the first fight and get it right for the second fight and use the IQ to keep it where it was harder to attack the second time.” Hopkins was one of several major names Jones beat during the 1990s, when he also defeated Mike McCallum and James Toney. Jones, from Florida, won world titles in four weight classes and is widely regarded as one of the greatest fighters in the sport's history.

In 2003, he moved up to heavyweight and took the WBA world title from John Ruiz by unanimous decision in Las Vegas.

READ NEXTJon Jones says Daniel Cormier could have been the greatest ever in a different eraRead the next story →

Every UK fight result and what's next, every Friday. Get the free UK fight briefing

Add Combat Sports UK as a preferred source on Google