Toney stated after the Oquendo fight that he is scheduled to fight in February.Thompson said before Saturday'y fight that he will again fight in end January or in February. As both are promoted by Goossen Tutor and both previously agreed to fight, they will probably end up fighting each other in February. The positive thing is: Toney would not ballon up in weight for this fight as he is already at 230 and we have only 2 months to fight time. Having beaten Owquendo and Thompson in a period of 2 months would certainly give Toney a title shot, most likely against Valuev. However, I only give Toney a shot to beat Thompson if he weighs in between 220-226. He was again not in good shape for Oquendo and that combined with Oquendo's awkard style gave us this disappointing result. He was in far better shape for the Rahman II fight. It is do or die in February. Toney must get in tip top shape to beat a real top ten contender. I do not want to see no waiting game from Goossen which eventually would not give Toney title shot and by which Toney would only ballon up in weight. At 40, Toney either still has it or not have : answer in February.
I cringe at the thought of seeing Toney Vs. Thompson after Sat. Night. I guess it's safe to say/bet the distance on yet another Toney Fight. (BTW, Fres was jobbed, IMHO) Sad to see a great fighter like Toney going out like this..... (Even sadder than that, I'd prob still bet the house on TONEY Vs. Arreola)
I couldn't agree more. Toney needs to qualify for a world championship first before challenging anyone. His "win" against Oquendo did very little to raise his stock. A fight against the high rated Thompson would certainly be the right move at this point of Toney's career. Let's face it, the Toney that fought Oquendo on saturday would have lost a clear cut decision to Thompson. I don't care what the Fatman or Gossen says, it wasn't Oquendo's style that made him look bad but Toney's inability to match Oquendo's fitness beyond round 6. It is very hard, even for a long time Toney fan like me, to find an excuse for the kind of shape he was in on Saturday night. Toney needs to be kept active against top opposition, if this can't be done, he should call it a day and let the younger generation take over. I for my part take absolutely no pleasure in seeing an overweight, unmotivated Toney take on a bunch 2nd tier opponents...
any tall slick boxer is a bad tv match up for toney....he needs to fight shorter guys for good tv....a tua fight would be fun
Problem is, Toney's really unlikely to get a title shot based off that Oquendo showing. So he needs a top ten guy...and Thompson may be the only one he can get.
Toney can't seem to do anything as a heavyweight without there being some controversy involved. From the steroid fights to the Rahman fight. I didn't see the Oquendo fight yet but most here seem to be in agreement that Toney got a gift.
Because Top contenders should fight each other, so that we can see who deserves change to challenge a World champion.
I picked Thompson to beat Toney had they fought on Saturday and I certainly don't have any reason to go back on that pick if they fight in February. Being able to last 10+ rounds with Wladimir and taking his best shots would have to be rather galvanizing for Thompson wouldn't it? I could see Thompson giving Valuev a run for his money if he ever got a chance at the belt, which at this point is a longshot.