Think every aging fighter is talking retirement? Think again. Roy Jones, Jr., is thinking about 2009 as he prepares to face Joe Calzaghe on November 8.

According to BoxingScene.com, Jones would love to face the winner of Pavlik-Hopkins or the winner of Dawson-Tarver, should he get by Calzaghe.

The 39-year old Jones should be a heavy underdog against Calzaghe, 36, when they meet on November 8. A lot of folks are talking like Roy has a great shot to beat Calzaghe, but I just don't see it. Calzaghe has been top five in the pound-for-pound for years now, and currently has a fair claim at being the man in the P4P ranks.

Meanwhile, Jones hasn't been a serious contender in ages, it seems, and hasn't won a fight against a top opponent since beating Antonio Tarver in 2003, a loss that Tarver twice avenged, and a win that many didn't think Jones deserved, period.

Roy's career has still not rebounded since he jumped to heavyweight and beat John Ruiz in March '03. In that same timeframe, Calzaghe has gone 10-0 and become a legitimate, global superstar.

He's younger. He's fresher. I'll guarantee he's faster. Though Joe isn't a big puncher, it's been a long time since Roy has seen fists flying at him the way Calzaghe can open up offensively.

Still, I think it's great that Roy isn't looking at the Calzaghe fight as a payday or way to pad his record, which it seems Joe is doing. Jones is looking at this as a way to make a couple more big fights. Good for him. He clearly still cares about boxing, his reputation, and his career, and that's refreshing.

You know, Joe Calzaghe doesn't get many mentions when the sport's top talkers come up, but he ought to.

Speaking with Sky Sports, Calzaghe again got his jive talk on in the direction of middleweight champion Kelly Pavlik.

But while Calzaghe believes The Ghost will beat Bernard Hopkins in October, he also thinks the man from Ohio would struggle against stronger opposition.

He said: "I'm surprised Hopkins has agreed to fight Pavlik as he's getting that old now he didn't even know what corner to walk to when I fought him.

"He walked to the wrong corner four times and although he fought a very good tactical fight against me, I think he should retire.

"Pavlik will win the fight, mainly due to his youth, although Hopkins still has the ability to make it very messy.

"But he is definitely overhyped and I think Mikkel Kessler would beat him."

He also again brings up the claim that he challenged Pavlik to fights before, only to get turned down. My favorite is still the claim that Calzaghe challenged Pavlik directly after the Lacy fight, a point in time when no one on earth would've bought middleweight, unproven Pavlik as a challenger for super middleweight champion Calzaghe.

But Pavlik has finally answered, in an article at Setanta:

"Calzaghe's pops keeps throwing shots out," Pavlik said on Steve Bunce's Boxing Hour. "He has Roy Jones and the chances of him getting past Roy Jones are slim.

"There might not be talk of me fighting Calzaghe if he can't get past Jones.

"No, they never offered a fight. They did everything but offer a fight with us. They didnt have to take the fight with Jones, it could have been with us.

...

"There wasn't talk of Calzaghe until I beat Taylor twice. There is a great chance of Roy Jones beating him. There might not be any talk of me fighting him in the future."

...

"I would like the fight. I've said that on every interview I've said. It is what it is. It would be a great fight. I've got October 18 to worry about."

It's getting to be that there's far, far more attention paid to the media back-and-forth between Calzaghe and Pavlik than on either the Calzaghe-Jones or Pavlik-Hopkins fights, which are real, and are really happening this fall. And neither is a gimme win for either man.

I think Calzaghe-Pavlik would be an excellent fight, too. But it's time for these guys to do a little less talking about each other. If they don't, they might have to fight each other out of necessity while two old men talk about their recent triumphs.

Somethin' gone wrong...

Dan Rafael's weekly must-read Notebook is up, and the biggest story this week is about the first Pavlik-Hopkins press conference for their October 18 pay-per-view bout in Atlantic City.

So what did Bernard do this time? Did he pie-face Pavlik? Bring his "last meal"? Rip up an Ohio State flag? (If only.)

No.

He complimented Kelly Pavlik.

According to Rafael, Hopkins said, "I have nothing bad to say about the guy. I'm a fan of Kelly Pavlik's. ... He is the rightful heir apparent to the legacy I set down in the middleweight division. One thing about this fight, I am a fan of Kelly Pavlik's. I became a fan of his and not just because he beat Jermain Taylor twice. He got the title honestly, he didn't get it on a favor or politics or because he was supposed to be the next big thing. He got it by knockout. He became the heir apparent that Jermain Taylor didn't become. Kelly earned it the old fashioned way. Nobody gave it to him. As far as I am concerned, it's his middleweight division now."

...what?

Who is this nice old man and what did he do with "The Executioner"?

I'm not saying I don't like it -- in fact, I think it's refreshing. Bernard's tactics have gotten old, and one has to think a 43-year old man with a big bankroll can't legitimately be as immature and silly as he has acted on several occasions. So when Bernard acts like an adult who has a job to do, I like that. Because that's the reality of who he is.

Was anyone going to buy this fight BECAUSE Hopkins threw a rock -- verbally, literally, whatever -- at Pavlik during this media gathering? No. You're either the type that will order this fight or you're not. Frankly, I'm more likely to order it NOW than I was before. I might be in the minority here (thought I don't think I am among serious fans), but this is more of what I'd like to see. There is a time and place for personal rivalry stuff, and no one was going to buy that Hopkins and Pavlik had any real beef.

Good for Bernard, and good for boxing. The less forced, see-through drama, the better. It's time more fighters started acting like grown men when the cameras are rolling.

Source: Dan Rafael

From the Dan Rafael story at ESPN.com:

Unable to secure a meaningful opponent to wage a middleweight championship defense against in the fall, Kelly Pavlik will move up in weight and face former light heavyweight champion and middleweight champion Bernard Hopkins, Top Rank promoter Bob Arum told ESPN.com Thursday.

Arum said he and Golden Boy Promotions CEO Richard Schaefer struck a deal Thursday for the nontitle fight, which will take place Oct. 18 on HBO PPV at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, N.J.

Pavlik, 26, will move up 10 pounds and face Hopkins at 170 pounds, five under the light heavyweight limit, Arum said.

"There's a deal, but there are a few details to be tied up," Arum said. "But the fight is happening."

Well, that seems to be that. The fight will have a 50-50 revenue split, Jack Loew is saying all the nice things ("Bernard's great, this is an honor," etc.), and Arum is even admitting this isn't exactly what they wanted, but there's just nothing else out there.

Let's kind of point-counterpoint a good-bad list for this fight.

Good: This moves Mosley-Mayorga from PPV to regular HBO, and changes its date to Sept. 27. After two straight PPV weekends, it'll feel nice to not pay 50 bucks to watch Mosley wreck up Mayorga without breaking a sweat. Seriously, they thought they were going to charge us cash for this mismatch.

Bad: Seriously, they're charging us cash for a Bernard Hopkins fight. What is the last Bernard Hopkins fight that you wouldn't have minded paying money for? Hopkins-Tito? If you had paid 50 bucks for his April fight with Joe Calzaghe, wouldn't you have been disgusted with yourself? Bernard is great. He's also a butt fugly fighter with a dreadfully dull style.

Good: More attention for the 26-year old Pavlik, arguably the greatest hope for American boxing to achieve a new mainstream sort of star with the likes of Oscar and Floyd moving on. It is a major fight, perhaps the biggest of his career.

Bad: There's a real good chance Bernard Hopkins puts a dent in Pavlik's record. B-Hop can beat anyone. He won't knock Pavlik out, but as good of a puncher as Kelly is, I don't think he's knocking Bernard out, either. That means 12 rounds, and any Bernard Hopkins fight that goes 12 rounds can be won by Bernard Hopkins.

Good: The fight being made is a decent sign that we aren't yet going to enter another Top Rank-Golden Boy Cold War, as some had feared lately.

Bad: This is the best fight we get out of the Top Rank-Golden Boy ceasefire this year? Past Pacquiao-Marquez II, anyway.

Let's think about this fight, too. 43-year old Bernard Hopkins against 26-year old Kelly Pavlik.

The best thing that can happen -- for Pavlik, for boxing, for the fans -- is Kelly Pavlik knocking Hopkins out and sending him into retirement. As a fan, I don't hate Bernard Hopkins. I have the utmost respect for his talent, for his career, and for his toughness.

But it's guys like the 43-year old Hopkins that have been construction workers on the road that has led this sport to where it is. For years now, Bernard has maintained his status as an excellent fighter, a Hall of Famer-to-be, and a shrewd businessman. He's also rarely been worth the money or even time it took to watch his fights.

Bernard, because of the way he fights, is one of those guys I would never suggest a casual fan or slightly interested observer watch. And I'm not someone that thinks only slugfests or brawls are good for those fans. I've had people watch Mayweather and they're amazed by his pure speed and the way he moves. So it's not that. It's that what Bernard does isn't obvious. And it's certainly not exciting.

With the way Hopkins tired against Calzaghe, huffing and puffing his way through the last four rounds or so, it might be in Pavlik's best interest to come out and fight Bernard fairly hard for a while, and then turn up the heat and test what the old man has left in his legs and lungs. I'm betting -- because he's 43 years old -- that it's not enough.

But you know what will matter to Bernard? This fight is more money for the bank account. Once again, he's landed the big fight. Whether the paying public is interested will be another story.