Former four-division world champion Roy Jones Jr. has revealed that the WBC stepped in and made a big change to his upcoming clash with former undisputed heavyweight champion Mike Tyson.
The clash, scheduled for November 28 in Los Angeles, was set down as an eight-round exhibition.
Citing safety concerns, says Jones, the WBC have shortened the rounds to only two minutes.
Tyson, 54-years-old, is fighting for the first time since 2005, when he was stopped by heavyweight journeyman Kevin McBride.
Jones, 51-years-old, last fought two years ago.
There have been concerns from the public, regarding the size disparity, age, and inactivity.
Jones believes the lack of having three-minute rounds is another advantage for Tyson.
“They’ve got me doing eight two-minute rounds now. That’s to his advantage too. Everything’s to his advantage, that’s to his advantage too.
“At this point, the fans are so excited about it, I wouldn’t want to pull the rug from under the fans… and they (Team Tyson) will try and sue me. It’s not really worth it, so I’m going to go in and do these two rounds, but I’m going to have to work a little bit faster than I expected to,” Jones told Joe Rogan.
“They decided this just last week. They change stuff on me by the week. I think the WBC came in and said they want to put up some kind of title or something, so they want to cut it back to two-minute rounds.
“They said something about the Arce and Chavez Sr fight, how fatigued they were after the fight and they feel like that’s a safety measure.
“But what they don’t realise is that the longer you keep Mike fresh, the more dangerous that is for me. I need to get Mike un-fresh quick so that I can get out this danger zone.
“(Chavez Sr) and Arce fought a ‘true’ exhibition with headgear and big gloves, but they said they were so exhausted afterwards, that they felt that is what could inhibit somebody’s health.
“I want it to be three-minute rounds, it’s safer for me.”
(Boxing scene)
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