"A lot of trainers today aren't experienced in the war of boxing. They might have fought as an amateur for a few fights, maybe a few fights as a pro, but unfortunately, a lot of guys today aren't fighters to begin with. A lot of trainers do great mitt work, and it's flashy, and that makes them a great trainer? No, you're a great mitt guy," stated world-class trainer John David Jackson, who shared his thoughts on the current state of boxing and the lack of knowledgeable trainer in the sport. You don't want to miss what he had to say about "fake trainers", Angelo Dundee, and what Muhammad Ali once told him. Check it out!
JA: So what have you been up to lately?
JDJ: Not a lot; just staying busy with these young fighters that I have. I'm teaching these young fighters the proper way to fight.
JA: Is it more difficult now John to teach these young fighters the fundamentals of boxing, whereas a lot look to train and fight like a guy like Roy Jones?
JDJ: Yeah, I tell a lot of people about Roy and that Roy's style is once in a lifetime. Roy and I talked about this. Roy was never taught to box the proper way. His skill and his youth is what got him over. Once he got a little bit older and the legs left him, he couldn't rely on his athletic ability anymore. No one taught him how to dip his waist, bend his knees, and fight off the ropes. Once he got to the later stages of his career and he didn't have the skills to fight on the inside, he was lost. You look at him now and he's had a lot of fights in which he shouldn't have lost or has been stopped. Roy has had a great career and now, it's been diminished a bit by these losses, which is unfortunate. Roy and I had a conversation at an airport in Vegas, and when I mentioned certain things, he agreed with me. It's unfortunate that he wasn't taught at some point or spoke up and said I need to learn how to fight off the ropes and develop these skills so I won't take as much punishment later on in my career.
JA: Do you think he should still be fighting?
JDJ: I like Roy, but for his health, I don't think that he should be fighting because each time you get in the ring, your body accumulates more punishment and the older you get, the more damage your body will incur long term. I told him, "You had a great career and I think you should hang the gloves up," but if he wants to fight, you can't stop him.
JA: You used to train Allan Green and Allan had a fight against Mikkel Kessler in which he took a vicious knockout. What did you think of the fight?
JDJ: Allan was never a physical type fighter in the first place. Allan got knocked out a lot sooner than I expected he would, but I knew Kessler was going to beat him for three reasons. The first is ever since Allan had his colon operation, he's never been the same fighter. Number two, you're fighting in Denmark. Number three, Kessler is moving up to 175, so he's going to be a lot stronger. Allan had those three things working against him, as well as his promoter wasn't involved in the fight, so no one was looking out for his best interest. He was thrown into the lion's den for that fight and came out with a bad knockout. Those knockouts are ones where fighters don't usually recover. Very few fighters recover from knockouts like that and the best thing for him to do is retire. I read where the fans were saying that Allan Green was talking a lot of trash, and by getting knocked out the way in which he did, it doesn't sit well with the readers I guess.
JA: One of the positives in the fight for him was when he scored the first round knockdown. Do you think that he got over-confident and thought he could do what he wanted with Mikkel?
JDJ: I don't think that he got over-confident because when he dropped Kessler, he couldn't finish Kessler. It was a good knockdown, but Allan didn't have the tools to finish him the way he was supposed to do it. Allan rushed in and tried finishing the fight. In actuality, he should have taken his time and be smart in his approach. If I can hurt you with one punch the first time I catch you, I know I can do it again. Allan didn't have the physical make up to do it, nor did he have the right people in his corner to tell him how to do it. I knew Kessler would be tough for Allan and he came back and showed it. Like I said before, I like Allan and I hope he hangs it up before something bad happens to him.
JA: You wanted to talk about "fake trainers". What did you mean by that?
JDJ: Well Jimmy, what I meant by that was you have people in the boxing game who aren't real trainers. Here's the problem, you might have a trainer who might have three amateur fighters and a few professional fighters and everyone is telling him he's a great trainer. They might say the right thing in the corner where they're encouraging their fighter and sometimes using boxing language. Now they're calling him a great trainer. No, you're not a great trainer, but what you really are is a great hype man. A great trainer is a great teacher of the sport. You have great trainers in boxing that can get you physically ready to fight, but they can't teach you one thing about boxing. A lot of trainers today aren't experienced in the war of boxing. They might have fought as an amateur for a few fights, maybe a few fights as a pro, but unfortunately, a lot of guys today aren't fighters to begin with. A lot of trainers do great mitt work, and it's flashy, and that makes them a great trainer? No, you're a great mitt guy. A lot of guys get in the sport of boxing and get a fighter who can fight a bit and wins a few fights, then they're a great trainer? Some people label me a great trainer. I tell them that I'm not a great trainer yet, but once my career is over, then that's when you can decide if I'm a great trainer or not. I know how to teach the sport of boxing and how to fight. I would compare my knowledge up against anyone out there. I can teach the sport because I've been through the battles. I've been through the grinding of training ever since I was a teenager. I've fought overseas and still came back with my title intact. Jimmy, this is the only sport where its not regulated. You can't walk in a hockey rink and be the coach of the team. You can't go up to the New England Patriots facility and tell them, "I want to be the quarterback of the team or I want to be the head coach." They would kick you out the stadium. Boxing is the only sport where you can walk in, without any experience, and be something.
JA: Do you think a lot of these trainers have not been taught the right way?
JDJ: A lot of the great teachers of the sport are either old or have passed away. They may have taught some of their pupils, but not a lot. They have taught the craft to some people, but they never actually learned or comprehended what was given to them. Also, they will align themselves with some great trainers, and I guess this guy is training me, so I know boxing. No! Look, I can teach you how to fight Jimmy, but if you never had a fight, what good does it do for you?
JA: Angelo Dundee's was probably one of the best teachers of the game, would you agree?
JDJ: I know I'm probably going to make a lot of people mad by saying this, but from what I seen and from what other fighters who have worked with Angelo told me, he never showed them anything as far fighting. When I say teaching, I mean to show you how to fight. He was great in the corner, keeping his fighter hyped up and motivated; he was very good at that. He stressed things to you and if you were behind in the fight, he would wiggle a little magic, tell you the right thing and what to do. A lot of good fighters took what message was given to them and turned it into something good. A lot of the fighters that he had were very good fighters. Those fighters, if you think of it, all had other guys training them and teaching them how to fight, and Angelo would come in the last two weeks before the fight to polish things up. As far as teaching, he didn't really teach fighters. No one I ever talked to ever told me he was a good teacher of the game, and I talked to a lot of fighters. As a younger fighter, I was curious to see how this guy was and that guy was. When I talked to fighters about Angelo, they said, "John, he never really showed me how to fight. He was great in the corner, but he never showed me how to fight." Listen, that went a long way for Angelo. He's in the Hall of Fame and I give him his respect. The first time I met Muhammad Ali was back in 1991 and he told me, "I love Angelo and I think he's great, but he didn't teach me how to fight."
JA: You know your going to get a lot of heat for saying what you said.
JDJ: You know I'm going to get it, but listen, these guys know the truth. I've given the man his props and he's a great motivator and great in the corner. A lot of guys can be great trainers, but come fight night, they get lost where they get tongue-tied, caught up in the fight. Listen, I gave Angelo his props and the recognition he deserved.
JA: Is there anything that you want to say to your fans out there John?
JDJ: Well, I would like to thank you for giving me the forum to talk, and I appreciate you and your articles. I appreciate the fans; come out and watch the fights. Thank you for everything.