| |
|
|
Mike Jones:
Climbing To The Top Of The Welterweight Heap
By Tim Donaldson
Mike Jones is riding a wave that appears to be taking him
straight to the top of the welterweight division. After a
year that seemed to be defined by an injured left bicep and
last minute changes in opponents, he appears to be getting
the recognition that everyone in Philadelphia knew he
deserved. And why shouldn’t he? Just look at his record. In
December of 2008, with an injured hand he knocked out
Luciano Perez, who by the way came in overweight, in the
third round. In March of 2009, he knocked out Dairo Esalas
in the second round. In August, still having trouble with
his bicep, he defeated Lenin Arroyo by unanimous decision.
In November, he knocked out Raul Pinzon in the fifth. For
all of this, Mike was rewarded with an opportunity to show
the country what type of fighter he is. February 27, he
headlined a night of fights at Bally’s of Atlantic City,
which was carried by Fox Sports Net. Mike won the unanimous
decision over Henry Bruseles.
After the fight, Mike said that he gave himself a C for his
effort. When I recently asked trainer Vaughn Jackson about
the grade, he agreed. “I would definitely give him the same
grade on that. I can’t make no excuses for the fight. The
guy [Bruseles] was real game. He came to fight. I know
everyone was looking for Mike to knock the guy out. We just
wanted to show everyone that Mike can box. He’s not just
that puncher. There’s no sense going in there brawling with
the little guy. So he outclassed him and out boxed him. He
did what he had to do to win the fight.” Manager Jim
Williams saw the fight much the same way. “He caught that
guy [Bruseles] clean a few times. That guy wasn’t going
anywhere. He decided to box him, but that wasn’t his best
performance. I think on the 17th you will see him do his
stuff.”
On April 17, Mike Jones will be fighting Hector Munoz, as
the co-feature for the Pavlik-Martinez fight at Boardwalk
Hall in Atlantic City. Mike’s NABA title, as well as the
vacant NABO title, is on the line. I recently caught up with
Mike, trainer Vaughn Jackson, and manager Jim Williams at
Joe Hand Gym in Philadelphia. Mike was here to spar, and he
appeared one hundred percent focused on the fight at hand.
If you watched the fight from Bally’s, you saw a Mike Jones
who had a slow start in the first two rounds. This was not
the Mike Jones that climbed into the ring this day. He
wasted no time attacking his opponent. The second the bell
rang, he was in the center of the ring trading shots. Even
Jim Williams noticed this difference, saying that normally
Mike takes a few rounds to warm up and get to know his
opponent. But Mike noted that this was a change that he had
to make after the Bruseles fight. It appears that he has
made that change.
Vaughn stood at the side of the ring, watching as Mike
sparred, yelling instructions when he felt the need. Vaughn
is not one to give away secrets. When I asked him whether or
not they were working on anything new, he answered, “same
old thing. Getting Mike in shape. Getting him sharp for the
fight.” But Vaughn is one to study the tapes and find an
opponent’s weakness. He has done this for Munoz. He has
found that weakness, and he is working with Mike to
capitalize on that weakness. Vaughn also made a prediction,
something he has never done when I asked him about a fight.
“I give it like 5 rounds.”
Now the only question left in my mind was whether or not all
the attention, being the co-feature, and the size of the
crowd, would have any affect on Mike. Jim Williams is sure
that the crowd will not have any negative effect on Mike.
“He goes in there he blocks all that stuff out. If there is
one person there or a full house, he goes out there and does
his thing. I imagine when he’s walking into the ring, he’s
got to get pumped up when everyone is screaming at him. He’s
fought in Vegas. It’s not going to bother him.” Vaughn
basically echoed this idea. “We both block them out of our
head, even the little title that he’s going to fight for.
Right now, he’s just defending his title and that’s how
we’re looking at it.”
And after the fight on April 17? The rumors are already
flying as to whom Mike will fight and where. Two things seem
to be certain. As long as Mike wins, the next fight will be
televised, and his opponent will be a recognizable name.
|
|
|
