Terence Crawford has been one of the top 2 guys in boxing for years, Hall of Fame boxer Roy Jones Jr. says

• Two fighters have been inseparable at the highest echelon of world boxing for the last five years.
• That's according to Hall of Fame inductee Roy Jones Jr.

BOXING HALL OF FAME, CANASTOTA — American boxer Terence Crawford and Ukraine talent Vasiliy Lomachenko have been the top two fighters in the sport for the last five to six years.

That's according to Hall of Fame boxer Roy Jones Jr., who said Friday during a speech on the lawns of a boxing museum at Canastota, New York, that they've been almost inseparable in the modern era.

"I don't care if they're 1a, or 1b, that's the top two guys," Jones said at an event Insider attended.

A three-weight world boxing champion, Crawford has put together an undefeated pro record of 38 wins from 38 fights with 29 coming by way of knockout.

He is yet to secure a legacy-defining fight but has beaten the likes of Yuriorkis Gamboa, Viktor Postol, and Shawn Porter to establish himself as one of the best in the game right now.

Lomachenko, meanwhile, is a former two-time Olympic gold medal winner who may be a somewhat controversial pick to have so close to the top of a pound-for-pound discussion as he was beaten convincingly by Teofimo Lopez in 2020.

He is yet to rebound with a significant win, defeating Masayoshi Nakatani and Richard Commey in non-title back-to-back fights.

For Jones, though, what defines pound-for-pound caliber fighters is being able to "do things in the ring that nobody else can do."

Jones himself was one of those fighters when he beat Bernard Hopkins, James Toney, Virgil Hill, John Ruiz, and Antonio Tarver in his heyday.

The 53-year-old last fought in 2018 and enters boxing's Hall of Fame on Sunday as part of the 2022 class.

Speaking earlier this week, he lauded the skills of those still competing in the sport today, and said: "Lomachenko and Crawford can do things in the ring that nobody else can do."

Jones finished his pro career with a record of 66 wins and 47 knockouts from 75 fights. He lost nine times.