Roy Jones-Bernard Hopkins 2 May Finally Happen, 17 Years Later

After a long, long wait, Roy Jones vs. Bernard Hopkins 2 may finally be close. Multiple media outlets are reporting that Jones and Hopkins, the boxing greats who first fought each other in 1993, have finally agreed to fight again in 2010, after 17 years of bitter arguing over the terms of a potential rematch.

Dan Rafael of ESPN.com reports that Jones and Hopkins have agreed to a 50-50 revenue split with a twist: If the bout ends in a knockout, the winner will get 60% of the revenue. So expect these two 40-somethings to come out swinging.

Of course, the fight isn't yet a sure thing. Jones first needs to beat Danny Green in Australia on December 2. That should be a relatively easy fight for Jones, but an upset by Green is not outside the realm of possibility.

Jones beat Hopkins by unanimous decision on May 22, 1993, to win the IBF middleweight title. At the time, Jones was undefeated and a 24-year-old up-and-coming star in boxing, while Hopkins was a 28-year-old who impressed boxing observers just by giving Jones a competitive fight.

In the time since then Jones has risen to the top of the boxing world, fallen to the point when many thought he should retire, and has now enjoyed something of a career renaissance in his late 30s and early 40s, winning five of his last six fights. Hopkins has had an absolutely amazing late-career run and is still widely regarded as one of the best pound-for-pound boxers in the world, even though he's 44 -- and he'll be 45 before he fights Jones.

Jones-Hopkins 2 should have happened when the two boxers were in their 30s, and boxing fans everywhere will view this match-up as bittersweet because it took so long to arrive. But it appears to be close to happening at last, and even thought these two warriors are now in their 40s, it'll be one of the major fights of 2010.