Boxing: Jones' triumph carries imprint of lost era of boxing greatness

New WBA heavyweight champion considers possibility of intriguing fight against Tyson while Lewis struggles to find worthwhile opponent

Lennox Lewis was amiable enough behind his dark shades and, yes, as the "Emperor of Boxing," he was pleased to salute the gladiatorial excellence of Roy Jones Jnr with an emphatic thumbs-up.

But then, as some of the praise for Jones' historic achievement of matching Bob Fitzsimmons' 106-year-old march from middleweight to heavyweight champion lurched wildly into comparisons with the work of demi-gods like Sugar Ray Robinson and Muhammad Ali, maybe a little perspective was in order.

"Roy Jones is a phenomenon and he was great tonight," said Lewis, "but there is only so far he can go with this thing. If he said he wanted to fight me he'd have to wake up and pinch himself, throw some water over his head, and ask himself why he was trying to commit suicide."

It has taken a wearisomely long time, but Lennox can now make a remark like that in America without inviting gales of derision.

His status was underlined even in the excited coverage of Jones' undoubted tour de force against the big, strong but utterly undermined World Boxing Association champion, John Ruiz. One leading sportscaster quickly pulled himself back after suggesting that Jones might be the greatest, most exciting fighter of all time – more thrilling even than Robinson and Ali. He added: "But of course we have to remember that Jones has just taken a part of the heavyweight title, and not the one that belongs to the true champion of the world, which everybody knows is Lennox Lewis."

There, finally, it was said – and it did not seem to hurt too much as the focus was smoothly switched to another potential sportsman of the ages, basketball's new greatest player of all time, Kobe Bryant of the Los Angeles Lakers.

It left you wondering what Jones will make of his triumph – and Lewis of the rest of his life. It seems most likely that Jones will defend his share of the title against Evander Holyfield, the faded but still popular warrior who achieved a controversial win, a loss and a draw with Ruiz, the man who was lost from any future significant sight by the sheer virtuosity of Jones.

For all the praise Jones received for a spell-binding performance, the taste of the modern boxing fan – which is probably not that much different from the ancient one – plainly has a limited appetite for the brilliant ringcraft and dazzling hand-speed which made such a mess of Ruiz.

Mayhem and anarchy, we were reminded as Jones applied the final touches to his masterpiece, still remain the big draw. It was the only possible interpretation of the boos that rippled to the surface of a house which had been "papered' with free tickets, a requirement of the promoters which would not have been glimpsed if Tyson, the eternally shop-soiled Tyson, had been in the ring rather than the most naturally gifted fighter of his generation.

Indeed, Jones and Ruiz had scarcely left the ring when Las Vegas's idea of a dream fight was taking opportunistic shape. Jones, one sports book announced, would be a 2-1 on favourite against Mike Tyson. Meanwhile, Lewis who may have recalled booing similar to that heard by Jones when he brilliantly subdued the alleged menace of the hard-hitting South Sea Islander David Tua here a few years ago – was trying to keep an edge out of his voice when discussing all the possibilities of his last year or so as a fighter.

"I can't sympathise too much with the Klitschko brothers," he said. "I can remember when my route to the top was not paved with gold. They are demanding a fight with me, but I don't believe they have done that much to deserve the shot. If I did fight Vitali Klitschko it would be another Michael Grant fight (when the much heralded young American was ruthlessly cut down by Lewis at Madison Square Garden). I want to make sure my next fight is worth staging. I'm still considering my options. What Tyson said about not fighting me if Don King was involved was just rhetoric. It won't make any difference about whether he wants to fight me or not. I didn't make all the sacrifices down the years to finish up having people make decisions for me. It's not true King has made me a $40m [£25m] offer but, whatever you say about him, no matter how many fighters go into the ring, he is always there. I regard him as a working promoter."

It is the Tyson scenario which most vexes Lewis. He knows that the issue of who is the better man was settled with absolute authority in Memphis last June, but he noted the big turn-out for Tyson in Memphis 10 days ago when he fought the hand-picked victim Clifford Etienne – and he keeps being told that when you fight Tyson he always has the chance of settling matters with one punch. "As I see it, fighting Tyson would be a step backwards for me, but then there is some public appetite for the fight – if not hunger."

There were moments of great poignancy amid the splendour of the superb performance of Roy Jones Jnr. He reminded you of the great days of the 1980s, when Sugar Ray Leonard and Tommy Hearns, Marvin Hagler and Roberto Duran so superbly picked up the baton put down by Ali, and that back then there was always the prospect of another great and natural fight.

Now Jones makes a little piece of history, in the process showing off the diamond of his talent, and Lewis sits in the arena speculating on whether there is one last fight worthy of his attention. It is not the least of boxing's current misfortune that these men came in such radically different sizes. Jones, as Lewis has from time to time, reminded us of the power and the intrigue of boxing and, yes, the terrible beauty of boxing, That was the poignancy, the thundering echo of lost, brilliant days.