Roy Jones Jr loves Ben Whittaker’s showboating but gives British sensation a word of advice

Roy Jones Jr has admitted he loves Ben Whittaker’s showboating, but has urged him to ‘tone it down a little’.

‘The Surgeon’ is building a reputation as one of British boxing’s most exciting stars, boasting a record of 7-0 with five wins coming by knockout.

As well as his explosive nature, the 26-year-old is one of the most entertaining stars to watch due to what has been labelled as ‘showboating’ – something that has divided opinion within the boxing world.

One man who knows exactly what it takes to put on a show is Roy Jones Jr, who secured 66 wins in a decorated career that saw him become a four-weight world champion to become a true legend of the sport.

Speaking about Whittaker on talkSPORT Drive, Jones Jr said: “I love what I see Ben Whittaker doing.

“He’s just got to tone it down a little bit because sometimes you can make people hate you by doing a little bit too much showboating.

“For me, I understood when to do it and when not to do it. I love it though because it’s a beautiful thing to see because we don’t get entertainment in boxing anymore, so to do it is great – you’ve just got to be careful because there’s a thin line between love and hate when it comes to showboating.

“But I love it because I love to watch him do it. I love that he’s got the nerve and the heart to go out there and even try it – he doesn’t care who he’s fighting, he’ll go out there and do it with anybody and that’s a beautiful thing.”

“You’ve got to tone it down a little bit. I didn’t want to do it until I knew that I had the guy beat. Once I had them beat I could show the fans a little bit and get you out of here, but I’m not going to showboat in the first round or two because that could backfire on me.

“I’m never going to do it when I don’t have you beat.

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“Either I’ll do it when I have you beat or if you’re a real top ten kind of guy then I’ll show it against you because that’s who I’m meant to be able to do it against.

“So when I fought James Toney I did. Why? Because James Toney was pound-for-pound the best fighter in the world. If you’re going to shred on anybody, that’s who you shred on.

“The first fight with Bernard Hopkins I did very little showboating. Why? People didn’t really know Hopkins. They knew he was ranked number one but he wasn’t know so if I show out against Hopkins who is a nobody, what does that prove?

“But if I showboat against James Toney, the one who they’re all scared of, that’s when you’re doing something.

“You’ve got to know when to put it in and when not to put in.”