By Tito Ruiz
Miami rapper Rick Ross and Atlanta rapper Pastor Troy took full advantage of the spotlight at the recent Roy Jones, Jr./Felix Trinidad boxing match and averted a pre-match dispute over who would open for the American boxer.
A minor pre-fight conflict arose between the artists, who both firmly stated that they would be rapping their respective songs while walking eight-time world champion Jones into the ring.
A representative for Don King Productions confirmed to AllHipHop.com that Rick Ross would be the only artist accompanying Jones into the squared circle.
However, at show time a resolution was suddenly met before Jones took to the ring in New York’s Madison Square Garden on Saturday January 19, 2008.
Pastor Troy walked Jones into the ring performing the song “Clash of the Titans,” a tune that he penned exclusively for the match-up with Felix Trinidad.
The song was a direct play off of the pay-per-view mega-bout that was dubbed “Bring on the Titans.”
Shortly after Pastor Troy, Rick Ross entered the ring up by singing “Boss,” the second song on his forthcoming album Trilla.
During the Ross performance, hit producer Swizz Beatz attempted to walk towards the ring, but was met with resistance by Madison Square Garden officials.
Eventually, Swizz managed to make his way through the ropes in time to lend his standing ring support for Jones.
Earlier afternoon, Sean "Diddy" Combs was on-hand for an exclusive Ciroc Vodka promotional photo shoot, at which time the Bad Boy CEO wished both pugilists luck in the fight that eventually saw Jones best Trinidad.
During the Madison Square Garden pre-fight press conference, the day prior, Diddy, Ciroc and veteran promoter Don King also endorsed the distribution of 1,000 “Social Responsibility” cards for free public transportation to promote safety in New York.
An estimated 60 million viewers witnessed the 12 round unanimous Jones decision over Trinidad, which included two knockdowns.