Roy Jones Jr Blasts Zuffa Boxing and Proposed Ali Act Changes, Storms Off Interview

Roy Jones Jr. sat with Fight Hub TV this week. He sat down to talk about Zuffa Boxing and the Ali Act Revisions but within a few minutes bro was comparing TKO to a burglar and calling fighters "slaves"

Nobody Stopped him. Nobody even tried.

What Set Jones Off

The Muhammad Ali American Boxing Revival Act of 2026 cleared the House of Representatives not long ago. Most fans barely even noticed.

But Jones did notice. The original Ali act goes back to 2000. Congress wrote it because promoters had been bleeding boxers dry for decades. Shady contracts, hidden purse splits, fighters getting locked into deals they barely understood. The law put guardrails up. Promoters had to show the money. Conflicts of interest got flagged. 

Now there pushing to change parts of it. The 2026 version would let promoters build their own championship organizations (the bill calls them Unified Boxing Organizations) with their own belts and rankings. No WBC, no WBA, no IBF, and no WBO. Just whoever writes the biggest check gets to run their own league.

TKO is behind it. Same company running the UFC and Zuffa Boxing. Jones didn't need long to figure out who stands to gain. 

"First of all, if you made the Muhammad Ali Act to save or look out for boxers, why would you go and change it for a promoter?" Jones said. "You basically change it back, saying, OK, you put these security bars on the building so no one can break in, but since he lives in the neighborhood now and we know he likes to break into stores, we'll give him the key to it and change it so he can get in.' Come on, bro. Really?"

"Look at Most of the Fighters That Retire From the UFC"

Jones went right at TKO's MMA track record. His question was simple. If these guys already have fighters complaining about pay in the UFC, why hand them boxing too?

"Even the ones that come to boxing to make their real payday. They built up a name in UFC, but they couldn't make a payday. SO, you want me to bring that same old thing to boxing? Why would I do that?"

Zuffa has been writing big checks lately and Jones knows it. Shakur Stevenson is reportedly close to signing. Conor Benn got a multi fight deal after a $15 Million debute. But Jones shrugged all of that off. 

"Yeah, you'll come in and give a few of them a bigger bag than they are used to getting. Spoiling a few of them because your trying to win your way in. But we already know what the final outcome is."

That was him being measured. And trust me it gets worse. 

"You got to kiss their a** if you want a fight. They're going to be basically slaves. They're going to be owned sheep. You don't get to decide what you wear no more, you don't get to decide who you are no more, you have no identity."

Jones also brought Crawford into it after that. Four belts across three weight classes. Crwaford could chase those titles because the WBC, WBA, IBF, and WBO all operated independently. One company running the whole show? That path disappears. 

"That's going to be gone now. So we're gonna kill the history to make it look like the UFC? Man, get out of here with that."

He was standing up when he said that last part. Camara literally lingered on the empty chair for a minute after he disappeared off frame. 

Dana Kept It Cool

Somebody brought up the clip at the Zuffa Boxing post fight press conference a day later. 

"When Roy says something like, 'You've gotta kiss their a** to do this and that,' I think that if you asked any of the fighters, they would tell you that we treat them very well, treat them like professional athletes, and any of the interactions that I've had have been nothing but respectful," Dana said. 

"I don't know where that's coming from, but I do like Roy, and everybody's entitled to their opinions. When you come into a business and you start to cause disruption, you're gonna ruffle some feathers."

He didn't touch the "slaves" line. But not the whole UFC pay comparison? Ignored it completley bro.

Boxing Fighters Backing Jones

De La Hoya has been sounding alarms about TKO for months now. Nico ALi Walsh (Muhammad Ali's grandson) reposted Jones clip on social media. He said: "Legends are speaking Out. Don't ignore it."

None of that has showed Zuffa Down. Stevenson, Benn. The talent keeps walking through the door because the paychecks are clearing. Jones sees where this ends up. He has seen it play out in MMA already. And sitting through one more interviwe about it was apperently more then he could handle. 

"it probably is going to pass, but it's gonna ruin boxing, though. It's going to ruin boxing, totally. They're going to determine if you become that superstar. Not your skills, not your ability, not your talent. They're gonna determine who becomes who."