“I want it so badly and really I want Roy to be able to remember this beating I am about to give him for making me wait so long. But now the wait is over, I am going old school and back to the days of the Executioner. He delayed it too long but his days are now over, the Governor has spoken and April 3 will be the day.”
“My body and spirit still work because I always took the time to rest my body which helps me rejuvenate both physically and mentally.
“I really saw a difference in my career after I fought Oscar de la Hoya and then he gave me the opportunity to be his partner. It wasn’t the Tito Trinidad fight because they put me down and on the shelf after that fight. It was the De La Hoya fight that changed everything and if it wasn’t for my patience and discipline to weather the storms, I still wouldn’t be around.
“I look at Roy’s last fight as something different. Everyone knows how I feel about the stoppage, but I see it this way. Roy’s like a wounded animal which is a dangerous animal. Also if a guy has a chance to redeem himself, he is going to try. It would be especially sweet if he could get it against me too.
“I have to think about how I see the fight and also how he sees it. I have to try to think like he thinks, and take a look at both sides.
“Roy really has nothing to lose. That can be the toughest fight too when a guy has nothing to lose. And this fight is different as Roy would rather lose to anyone else but me. Everything is on the line for both of us.
“I have to go above and beyond. I know I can’t lose or win unimpressively. I want to win big and that has been my mindset for the last few fights like Tarver, Pavlik and now this one. I feel that I have to be near perfect to defend my longevity.
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“The Rivals: Hopkins vs. Jones II,” set for Saturday, April 3 at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, Nev., is promoted by Golden Boy Promotions and Square Ring Promotions and sponsored by Cerveza Tecate and AT&T. The event will be broadcast live on pay-per-view beginning at 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT.
Tickets priced at $750, $500, $300, $200 and $100 are on sale now at all Las Vegas Ticketmaster locations (select Smith’s Food and Drug Centers and Ritmo Latino). Ticket sales are limited to eight (8) per person. To charge by phone with a major credit card, call Ticketmaster at (800) 745-3000. Tickets also will be available for purchase at www.mandalaybay.com or www.ticketmaster.com.
The Hopkins vs. Jones II pay-per-view telecast begins at 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT and has a suggested retail price of $49.95. The telecast will be available in HD-TV for those viewers who can receive HD. The main event will begin live immediately following the college basketball semi-finals. For Hopkins vs. Jones II fight week updates, log on to www.goldenboypromotions.com.