James Toney is one of my all-time favorite fighters, and capable of beating any hulking heavyweight out there when he’s in good shape. even when he’s not in shape, he can break ‘em down with the best body attack in the division, and is willing to fight through excruciating pain to get the job done. His utter calm in the ring makes up for that spare tire he’s been sporting. So I say with some reservation that Dominick Guinn will pull the upset this Saturday. Guinn looks fantastic. I’ve never seen him so sharp, streamlined and focused. I was impressed with the sparring I caught on video. And when trainer Joe Goossen has a willing pupil, he can work wonders. In this case, Goossen has helped a plummeting Guinn recover his confidence by getting him in superb shape and giving him purposeful sparring. The tools are there; it’s just a matter of keeping his hands busy. He takes a good punch, and throws tight, short, paralyzing combos. When his head’s screwed on straight, which I think it finally is, he’s a bad man. I think he’s going to outwork Toney and take the decision. Toney’s less than Spartan lifestyle and alleged steroid use (was it just to recover from surgery or has he been running with the wrong crowd at Gold’s?) is catching up with him. The injury to his achilles before his fight with Jameel McCline, the torn bicep against Rydell Booker, the blown out shoulder against Ruiz – these breakdowns are for a reason and portend more of the same. Wish he didn’t have to tempt fate this way, and got the conditioning to match his wondrous skills … Chris Byrd is too skilled a boxer to go the distance with Williamson and not get the decision. But the ungainly “Touch of Sleep” brings that puncher’s chance. His style notwithstanding, Byrd has proven to be of the grittiest boxers around. He’ll be prepared for Sleep’s dangerous right hand and won’t get caught clean. Byrd by decision … What does Roy Jones have left? My mind says nothing, my heart says something – at least enough to defy the odds one last time and (somewhat) restore his tarnished legacy. Jones hunts and pecks his way to a split decision victory.

Zachary Levin

(New Yorker Zachary Levin is a feature writer for The Sweet Science. To access his work, simply CLICK HERE)