ROY JONES JR hailed Manny Pacquiao’s 'absolutely marvelous' legacy, and stated that Floyd Mayweather's defeat was NOT a regret.
After Pacquiao announced his retirement, Jones lavished praise on his fellow boxing icon.
Manny Pacquiao beat Floyd Mayweather in 2015
PacMan is a legend, having won titles in an unprecedented eight divisions.
The biggest of his 72 fights, however, was against Mayweather in 2015. It ended in a loss by points.
The settlement ended five years of long-running negotiations and led to a record American pay-per-view of 4.6 million.
After suffering a right shoulder injury, Pacquiao (42), sought a rematch against Mayweather (44) after seeking one.
Jones said that even though he never got revenge, the PacMan legend can still enjoy retirement no matter what happened.
Sky Sports quoted him as saying: "It's his regret. He wasn't the only one trying to make it happen.
"He tried to make it happen, but couldn't until Mayweather agreed. He won't regret it.
Pacquiao enjoyed memorable trilogy bouts with Erik Morales (45), Timothy Bradley (38), and even FOUR fights against Juan Manuel Marquez (48).
His three victories over Adrien Broner, 32-year-old, Lucas Matthysse and Keith Thurman, respectively, ensured that he was unbeaten going into August.
Errol Spence Jr., a southpaw star, was then scheduled to challenge the superstar southpaw for the WBC/IBF unified Welterweight titles.
American Spence, however, was undefeated and pulled out after suffering an eye injury. In replacement, Cuban Yordenis Urgas, 35, was elevated to the top of the card.
Ugas won a point decision, and Pacquiao was sent into retirement to focus on his bid for the presidency of the Philippines.
Jones was a commentator on many PacMan fights for HBO, and like many boxing fans worldwide, he was grateful for his career.
He stated, "He leaves an absolutely marvelous legacy in boxing. He left behind a whole nation and continent.
He brought a lot to the game, entertained for a long while, it was beautiful to see.
"It was like one nation against the world - that is what he represented.
"It was an amazing career, and I'm glad that I had the opportunity to experience it. It was also a pleasure to have known him.
He was an amazing person with a great career. He was a fighter for anyone who came his way, even if it was someone close to him in weight.
He had a great time with a few guys. He was able to fight with many Mexican men.
"He had great fights and fought every name that was available at the time."
