Roy Jones Jr. vs. Virgil Hill
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| Date | April 25, 1998 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Venue | Mississippi Coast Coliseum, Biloxi, Mississippi, U.S. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Tale of the tape | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Result | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Jones defeats Hill by 4th round KO | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Roy Jones Jr. vs. Virgil Hill, billad as The Real Gulf War, was a professional boxing match contested on April 25, 1998.[3]
Following his August 1997 victory over Montell Griffin, Roy Jones Jr. was linked to his WBC mandatory Michael Nunn.[4][5] However, in November 1997 he vacated his belt to move up to heavyweight with a $6,000,000 deal to face former undisputed champion Buster Douglas on the table.[6] Ultimately however Jones's father convinced him to stay at light heavyweight, telling him he was "risking his life" by fighting Douglas.[7] Instead Jones signed to fight former light heavyweight champion Virgil Hill in a 12-round non-title fight at a 177 1/2 lb catchweight. HBO had been set to broadcast a bout between Ike Quartey and Pernell Whitaker, but following Whitaker testing positive for drugs, Jones agreed to face Hill to replace it.[8]
Hill had been out of the ring since his loss to WBO titleholder Dariusz Michalczewski in June 1997.
In March Graciano Rocchigiani defeated Michael Nunn to win the WBC title that Jones vacated, with its president Jose Sulaiman installing Jones as his mandatory challenger, naming him a "champion in recess".
Jones was a 6–1 favourite to win.
The fight
Hill started the fight as the aggressor, but would be hit with accurate counters to the head from Jones. In the second round Jones landed a sharp right hand to Hill's chin over a jab. In the fourth round, a counter right to the body sent Hill down to canvas clearly in pain. He rose at the count of 8, but referee Fred Steinwinder III waved it off giving Jones a KO victory.[8][9][10][11]
Aftermath
Hill was taken to a hospital after the bout, as the ringside physician suspected that a rib might have been broken. Speaking in the ring Jones said "I hope Virgil is O.K., I don't do this to hurt anybody" before adding "Virgil came out up for the fight. He was bouncing around. His legs were strong. In the third round he started breathing hard. I knew then that I had him. I thought coming into the fight that I would go a few rounds and let him get tired. Then, I'd catch him with what I wanted to catch him with. I don't know anybody who can stand what I dish out."[12][13]
Jones would next sign to challenge WBA champion Lou Del Valle.[14]
