«[Antonio Tarver presented a formidable challenge. He was born in Orlando to a single-parent mother who raised him and three daughters on her own.] She and my father never lived together, ... He was a Vietnam vet. It's hard to say he was my father because he was never there. Biologically, he donated but that's about all. We never saw much of each other, just a phone call here and there, so I never had that male figure in my life. That was a void I had to live with.»

«[Tarver and Jones met in the ring for the first time as 13-year-olds at the 1982 Sunshine State Games.] I won the first round, ... Roy won the second. The third round was close and he got the decision. Then, when I was fourteen, my mother moved us to a better section of Orlando that was thirty miles from the Boys Club. There was no way for me to get to the gym, so I gave up boxing and concentrated on other sports. I played quarterback and wide receiver in football and shooting guard on the high school basketball team. In my mind, I was good. But I wasn't as good as I thought.»

«I got a question, ... Do you got any excuses tonight, Roy?»

«I thought about it the night before,»

«Good things happen when you believe, ... A long time ago, I had a vision. I don't just want to be a champion. I want to be a superstar. I have the ability to be spectacular every time out. I did without for a long time. I struggled; I came up on the dirt road of boxing. I'm a hard worker; I'm goal-oriented. When I set a goal, I'm totally consumed by it. Failure isn't an option.»

«That remains to be seen, ... Roy didn't give himself enough time off before he fought Glen Johnson. Now he's had time to rest, physically and mentally. He looks good; we know he's serious. A desperate fighter is a dangerous fighter, and Roy is desperate now. If he loses this fight, it's all over for him so he's going to prepare like he's never prepared before. I'm training for the best Roy Jones ever. If he's less than that, so be it. If he's a shot fighter, I'm the one who shot him.»

«I am after the big killers in the heavyweight division. I want to retire as the heavyweight champion of the world,»

«The fight will give me what I want. It brings about the luster of boxing our sport is missing. If I can't beat Mike Tyson, I can't run with the big boys.»

«I met Sylvester Stallone back in 1995. He flew me from Atlanta to Orlando and my entire family met him and his wife at Planet Hollywood. We sat down and talked boxing. He loved boxing and all the things I had overcome. He really took a liking to me,»

«His words to me were: 'I wrote the script with you in mind.' I am truly excited about the possibility of playing Mason Dixon, and we're getting ready to work an entirely different stage, baby.»