‘Tag me in Champ!’: Shannon Briggs volunteers to replace Roy Jones Jr in fight against Mike Tyson with eight-round exhibition in November set to be boxing legend’s first professional bout in 15 years
- Mike Tyson is preparing for his first fight since 2005 and will face Roy Jones Jr
- The fight was initially set for September but has been postponed to November
- Jones has since admitted he may come to regret his decision to fight Tyson
- And that has led Shannon Briggs to claim he would be ready to step in for Jones
Shannon Briggs has volunteered to replace Roy Jones Jr and face Mike Tyson in November.
Former undisputed world heavyweight champion Tyson, 54, is preparing for his first fight since 2005 and signed to box Jones, 51, in an eight-round exhibition.
The pay-per-view spectacle was originally supposed to take place at the Dignity Health Sports Park in September but was pushed back to November 28 to attract a greater audience.
Shannon Briggs has volunteered to replace Roy Jones Jr and face Mike Tyson in November
Tyson is preparing for his first fight since 2005 and signed to box Jones in an exhibition
And while Tyson has continued to show off his incredible speed and sparring skills, Jones has admitted he may come to regret agreeing to the fight due to his inferior power and physical strength.
That has led Briggs, 48, to respond by putting his name into the hat to take his place by writing on Instagram: ‘They say Champ having second thoughts.
‘Tag me in Champ! I am from Brownsville too. Never ran, never will. Let’s go champ.’
Former two-time world champion Briggs has not boxed in more than four years since a first-round knockout win against Argentine Emilio Zarate on a David Haye undercard.
However, Jones has since admitted he may regret the decision due to his physical inferiority
His 68th fight was his UK debut and last year he applied for a British boxing license in a bid to fight in the UK.
Meanwhile, Jones had threatened to walk away from fighting Tyson following the two-month postponement but the American later retracted his comments and agreed terms to remain involved.
And speaking earlier this month to Sky Sports, he insisted Tyson is the overwhelming favourite for the fight.
‘When it comes time to fight, we’re going to fight. If it comes down to bite, we’re going to bite. Whatever has to happen, is going to happen, that’s just what it is,’ Jones said.
Tyson’s fight with Jones was originally set for September but was postponed until November
‘He’s still Mike Tyson, he’s still one of the strongest, most explosive people who ever touched a boxing ring. If anything, I made a mistake going in with him. He’s the bigger guy, he’s the explosive guy.
‘He’s going to have all the first-round fireworks, not me. I do have first-round fireworks, but he’s known for more first-round fireworks than anybody to ever touch boxing, other than maybe George Foreman.
‘With him having the first-round fireworks, he’ll be against a guy smaller than him, maybe 40-50 pounds smaller than him. But who knows?’
Tyson has not fought professionally for 15 years, when he lost out to Kevin McBride in his final bout.
Jones, meanwhile, has only been inactive since 2018, when he won via unanimous decision against Scott Sigmon.
Briggs has not boxed in more than four years since a knockout win on a David Haye undercard