James Toney Wants You
By Robert Ecksel February 14th, 2006Former three-weight world champion James “Lights Outâ€? Toney, who is due to fight Hasim “The Rockâ€? Rahman for the WBC title in Atlantic City on March 18 , is defying one of boxing’s cardinal rules and looking ahead of his bout with The Rock toward bigger and better things on the horizon.
As confident as Toney is he’ll get past Rahman, and for good reason, he is equally confident he can tempt former heavyweight king Lennox Lewis out of retirement when and if he wins the WBC portion of title next month – assuming, of course, no scandal follows in the wake of his victory.
“My goal right now is to fight Lennox Lewis,” Toney recently told BBC Sport. “I respect Lewis, he’s a good fighter, but he’s not a great fighter like me. Lennox will return – he can’t resist.”
Fighters talk, and it seems heavyweight fighters talk more than most, but reading minds has never been most pugilists’ strong suit, and that trend, braggadocio (i.e. trash talk) aside, continues unabated.
Last April, for those whose memories are as short as a New York minute, Toney outboxed, out-slicked and out-punched then-WBA champion John Ruiz at the Garden to win the crown, but he was stripped of the belt after failing a drug test administered by the NYSAC which indicated Toney had tested positive for steroids.
And now, a little less than a year after that debacle, James is back (and presumably clean), ready to fight Rahman, ready to fight the world, ready and willing to talk the talk to whoever will listen. But why even bring up the 40-year-old former champ Lennox Lewis, who retired in 2003 after beating Vitali Klitschko in LA and has resisted every call, and there have been many, to return to active duty?
Lennox Lewis, so little appreciated during his reign, has since his retirement become a touchstone, a benchmark, a yardstick against which most heavyweights these days seem measure their accomplishments. Maybe they figure they’re not the man until they beat the man who beat the man who beat the man – aka the man who ruled over the division for so long and with such dignity – and maybe they’re right.
For many years, every heavyweight worth his salt always seemed to be declaiming, “I want Jack Dempsey� or “I want Joe Louis� or “I want Muhammad Ali� – and the only people who ever seemed to pay them any mind were not the former heavyweight champs at peace in their dotage, but the middleweight sportswriters not at peace in their dotage, always searching for a scoop, always drooling for good copy, always willing to take seriously any off-the-cuff remark by men who would be better served by letting their fists and not their mouths do the talking.
But Toney, whose boxing and verbal skills are exceptional – no fight there – has earned the right to be taken seriously, not matter how delusional or off-the-wall his remarks, no matter how unlikely the depth of his wishful thinking. Yet, once Toney finished firing away at Lennox Lewis in his BBC interview, James, obviously in a roll, took a shot at another heavyweight champion, this one still active.
“Nikolay Valuev is like Frankenstein,” said Toney, whose knowledge of the monsters of film history is as great as his knowledge of the monsters of boxing. “He’s just another guy they want to put up as the Great White Hope. I don’t like John Ruiz, but there’s no way he lost that fight against Valuev. I’ll fight Valuev, embarrass him and knock him out. James Toney don’t worry about nobody.”
James Toney is right. He don’t worry about nobody … not even, apparently, himself.
February 14th, 2006 at 5:30 pm
I read that as of 2-12-2006 james toney weighs 250lbs. he needs to focus on the hard hitting rahman as opposed to the retired lennox lewis, or else he’s gonna get stretched.
February 15th, 2006 at 11:53 am
Many fans seem to not take James Toney very seriously considering he looks more like a light-heavyweight who’s ballooned to heavyweight.
Those that have followed James Toney’s career, however, know that looks can be deceiving.
James Toney has the skill that can frustrate a heavyweight. Consider the following:
(a) James Toney has great defensive skills, which were apparent when he fought the above mentioned John Ruiz, a heavyweight whose jab-n-grab style has frustrated many of his opponents, including Rahman himself.
(b) James Toney has knock-out power, which was evident when he defeated Holyfield (which many chalk up to Holyfield’s battle-weary condition other than Toney’s power; but that’s arguable)
(c) James Toney is an excellent counter-puncher, which spells trouble for any boxer at any weight since you leave yourself open when you throw punches.
(d) James Toney is an excellent inside fighter. This is an advantage at this weight since heavyweights tend to clutch their opponents to make them tire. If Rahman clutches Toney, Toney can pop him with punches that may not have enough power to turn his “lights out” due to the short distance, but will, at the most, take its toll as the fight continues into the latter rounds or, at the least, advantage Toney on the judge’s cards.
Conditioning, as we all agree, is a factor that helps the fighters go the distance, but skill is a key factor in determining whether going the distance really matters.
February 15th, 2006 at 2:13 pm
i agree if james doesnt come in fully prepared and in shape he’ll get rocked by the rock. but toney is a superior boxer in comparrison to him and i expect a twelve round decision with the last 5 to 6 rounds being very slow paced and half way boring. but ill still buy it. just to hear toney’s mouth. james toney in 12
February 15th, 2006 at 5:46 pm
I really enjoyed the article and would like to see an increase in articles about the upcoming fight to help it get some attention. I mean we all know the heavyweight division is stagnant in a way and Toney sure brings to the table some much needed character. I am not saying the fight has been ignored I just like more updates even if they are brief. thanks
February 19th, 2006 at 8:36 am
James Toney dosen’t surprise me by nothing he says or does. There is no limit to what a man can do when he puts his mind to it.
Larry Holmes didn’t impress me a whole lot but he found a way to win.
After Mike Tyson demolished Treavor, I knew he was the man.
If an when James Lights Out Toney defeats the Rock depending how he beats him in my minds-eye he will be the man.
People sucessfully tricked Roy Jones in believing he was out of bounds in the heavy weight division so he returned to the light weight division and in the process lost a step because of the weight gain and lost. It’s true that many have done it (Gained and Lost weight) and got away with it but it dosen’t work for everyone. I feel that Roy should have stayed in the light heavy weight division but after leaving and winning the title in the heavyweight division he should have stayed there or at the very least retired; that would have been awsome!!!
I pick James Lights Out Toney by decision.
February 19th, 2006 at 7:30 pm
I’m picking Toney to win a decision. Excuse me a majority decision. I doubt that Toney has the power to knock out Rahman. And I also doubt that Rahman has the skills and mobility to out maneuver the clever and crafty Toney.
I’d like to see Toney fight Byrd and unify those titles after he defeats Rahman. That fight would be more significant that him fighting Lewis or Valeuv. Lewis is retired and Valeuv is irrelevant.
February 21st, 2006 at 5:16 pm
I think James Toney will put Rahman “lights out” in five rounds. Rahman is not that good and got a lucky punch in to put Lennox Lewis’s lights out. The Rock’s chin is soft like charmin and it will not withstand Toney’s power. Toney will make Rahman retire after he gets the beating of his life just like Holyfield.
February 24th, 2006 at 1:01 pm
You can only name a few fighters who were able to change their fighting styles with age and James Toney is one of those fighters.
Please don’t sleep on his skills as a fighter and a defensive mastermind. I don’t see anyone in the heavyweight division that can out think or out class Toney at this time. Please tell Rahman to watch out for the counter punch because if he doesn’t, it will be lights out.
February 24th, 2006 at 3:40 pm
James Toney and Rahman?
The Heavy Weight Division has become very pathetic if this fight is worth talking about….
However it would be worth hearing if fatboy Toney gets his teeth knocked out.
Unfortunately, I am sure that still will not prevent him from ignorantly flapping his gums.
March 8th, 2006 at 2:42 pm
No doubt Toney is going to knock Rahman out in less than 5. I would love to see him slap Lennox around after that. If Lennox would man up and return that would be huge for the heavyweight division, and we all know James would beat on him if given the opportunity.