For me no, Toney's superior skills, especially defense, timing and counterpuncher, would get the better of the pressure of the tough Johnson. Toney by wide decision
I'm going against the grain here and picking Johnson by decision as i've repeatedly said 175 was Toney's worst weightclass he got out hustled by Griffin twice and lost to Thadzi. Toney did nothing remarkable at 175 and Johnson had a good steady workrate and had good wins at 175 even pushing some top Light Heavyweights like Chad Dawson when he was a bit past his prime. I think the more consistent work from Johnson would be enough to earn him a competitive decision over Toney who was too hit/miss at 175.
A combination of a lack of dedication and bad judging cost him the Griffin and Thadzi fights. They were close fights, but I still thought Toney won those fights though. The question I guess is if Johnson could beat a fit and properly motivated Toney? I do not think he could.
The problem w/ this argument is that Toney's LHW tenure was defined by a lack of fitness & motivation. Regarding Johnson, Toney could probably beat a pre-Cuellar Johnson, but a Cuellar-trained Johnson outhustles him to a dec IMO.
Depends on which Toney you are referring to. Did you know Toney had a few fights at 175 in between at when he was still champ at 168? Anyway, I still think the Toney of the Griffin fights would edge Glen Johnson. It is a question of styles. Griffin was a a smart slick fighter while Glen's classical aggressive style would play into Toney's hands.
Johnson via Competitive UD. He outhustles a lazy Toney. And yes I said lazy. Toney didn't look impressive at all at 175 (except against the many scrubs he faced there). A green, unproven Griffin & an unknown journeyman like Thadzi could beat him. There's no reason to assume he'll rise to the occasion against a tough, discliped & consistent, world-class contender in Johnson.
There are more confirmed sightings of Bigfoot and the Loch Ness Monster than of a physically fit Toney. I consider such a version of James to be a mythological creature.
