How does a fighter beat Roy Jones Jr? Using the same strike song he once did certainly helps.
Released in 2004, “Can’t Be Touched” was performed by the former pound-for-pound chart-topper, and its lyrics reflected Jones’ superiority over his opponents throughout the 1990s.
The track, however, came the same year that Jones lost his airy heavyweight titles to Antonio Tarver, marking the beginning of the end for one of boxing’s all-time greats.
Jones’ ringwalk anthem has recently been revived thanks to Britain’s Fabio Wardley, who uses the song as a tribute to Jones. The lyrics “can’t be stop” are particularly apt. The 31-year-old remains undefeated after 21 starts in his professional career and is currently the WBO heavyweight champion.
Jones was full of praise for Wardley and his October victory over Joseph Parker during the performance in Club boxing podcast.
“What a show. What a career. What a lively guy. And I like it even more because he always comes to my song. How can you not root for this guy?”
Wardley’s previous heroics against Justis Huni were Hollywood-esque, but the test against Parker marked a significant step up in the classroom.
The Up-to-date Zealander was enjoying a heated streak and was widely seen as the last credible challenger to heavyweight king Oleksandr Usyk. However, Wardley once again tore up the script, digging deep to secure an 11th round stoppage of the former WBO champion.
Jones admitted he had doubts whether Wardley had the tools to pull off such a monumental victory. But the Ipswich heavyweight’s raw power and relentless aggression made such an impression that Jones began to draw comparisons to one of the division’s all-time greats.
“I was kind of a Joseph Parker fan because I had known Joseph Parker for so long.
“When you hear my song, how can I stand up to this guy? I can’t. I just didn’t think he would be able to beat Parker, but I knew if he could catch him, he would be able to knock him out, and of course he beat him in the lane and caught him.”
“This guy is different and he’s fun to watch because he always delivers a knockout punch. To me, he’s the modern-day George Foreman.”
This is certainly high praise coming from Jones, and Foreman is considered one of the best heavyweights in history. He won two world titles during his career, and with the second of these triumphs, “Huge George” became the oldest world heavyweight champion of all time.