Age is catching up to Roy Jones Jr., 34, like the green moss that envelope the Florida everglades.

	Roy Jones Jr. revels in wearing the WBA heavyweight belt.

The peak years of Jones' career have passed, but he still remains the best in the game when he faces Antonio Tarver (21-1, 17 KOs) at the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino on Saturday in Las Vegas.

Never before has a fighter dominated his sport like Jones in the past 100 years and that includes fighters like Sugar Ray Robinson, Roberto Duran and Muhammad Ali. Of course Ali could have done so if he had those three crucial years back in his life when the government banned him from the game.

Jones (48-1, 38 KOs) thoroughly dominates the sport with his unorthodox style of leading with his left hook or right hand rather than the usual jab. His legs serve to bounce him in and out of trouble quicker than you can say "Roy Jones Jr." But he is getting slower. You just canıt notice it because he continues to win effortlessly.

³I ainıt in my prime no more,² said Jones recently during a telephone press conference. ³I donıt want to keep doing this too long, man. You know 24 years is a long time.²

From his days as a lightning quick junior middleweight amateur to his current days as a world champion heavyweight professional fighter, Jones glides through opponents like the everglade flatboats with the large fan propelling it. He just skitters around obstacles with uncanny speed and maneuverability.

³Roy has fought everyone from the hardest punchers to the slickest boxers,² said trainer Buddy McGirt, who is preparing Tarver for his enviable task of trying to become the first fighter to actually beat Jones in the ring.

Jones, whose only loss was a disqualification given to him because he hit Montell Griffin while he was down on the canvass in their first meeting, has not been close to losing a decision much less losing several rounds in a fight.

But he is getting slower. The speed displayed against new WBO light heavyweight champion Julio Gonzalez two years ago as he moved in and out of the danger zone wasnıt as evident in his fight against John Ruiz when he took that title away last March.

In one frame against Gonzalez, he stood 10 feet away from the tall Mexican slugger in his usual crouch. Then, suddenly like a leopard soaring up a tree for a kill, Jones leapt toward the surprised Gonzalez and zipped a crushing right hand that astounded everyone at the Staples Center that night, especially Gonzalez who managed to stay on his feet after the blow. The distance he covered delivering that blow didnıt seem humanly possible.

Against Ruiz, Jones used the same tactic but this time most of the audience could see it coming. Still, Ruiz was unable to move out of the punchıs path, even at a diminished speed.

In the heavyweight division, fighters donıt possess this kind of blinding speed. Itıs only found in the welterweight divisions and lower. And even in those divisions itıs not that common.

One factor that does remain in Joneıs artillery is not his offensive weapons, but defensive prowess. Itıs always been his staple and he serves it hot and fresh every single fight.

³You have to use effective aggressiveness, you canıt just walk in there and walk straight at Roy, heıll eat you up,² said McGirt, a former world champion years ago who almost fought Jones in the early '90s. ³Youıve got to be smart, youıve got to put controlled pressure on Roy.²

From technically superior fighters like former middleweight champion Reggie Johnson to towering power punchers like Richard Hall, the defensive mastery of Jones has enabled him to outwit, out-smart and out-fight every single opponent he has ever faced inside the boxing ring.

But the tell tale signs of age are slowly emerging and pointing toward a decrease in Jonesıs edge against other fighters. He still has a wide margin of comfort against slower opponents that exist in the heavyweight division. Itıs the smaller quick fighters like James Toney, Bernard Hopkins and maybe Tarver who pose the greatest threat to his reign of domination.

³Iım not saying Roy Jones isnıt a great fighter,² said Toney, the IBF cruiserweight title-holder who recently dismantled Evander Holyfield. ³But I will beat him if he decides to get in the ring with me. He had his day, itıs over.²

McGirt, a boxing wizard of a trainer, said about Jones, ³I consider him to be a grand master in boxingŠ capable of all forms of boxing including defense, offense, ring generalship and it takes all that to be the great champion that he is.²

One of the leading factors in Jones micro disintegration is coming back down from 200 pounds to under the 175-pound limit. It taxes the body and wastes energy.

³In reference to his going up and down in weight, I donıt like to see him do that because when you get older it gets harder on you,² said Alton Merkerson, who trains Jones. ³When youıre young you can do stuff like that.²

Back in the early 1950s, Sugar Ray Robinson moved up to the light heavyweight division to fight champion Joey Maxim in a losing cause. The graceful fighter was never the same when he returned to middleweights. His career became a series of wins and losses from there on.

Could this be the road deigned for Jones?

Maybe not but Jones seems to have other things on his mind when he steps in against Tarver such as a possible fight against Mike Tyson or a slow moving Vitali Klitschko should the giant Ukrainian win one of the heavyweight titles.

Should the fleet Floridian pass Tarver, he heads toward recognition as the greatest fighter of this generation. And if he still has something in the tank, perhaps one of the greatest of all time should meet Toney, Tyson or Hopkins.

And despite the creeping green moss of age Jones keeps moving along like an everglade skimmer.