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Toney Defeats Ruiz for WBA Heavyweight Title
Flanked by Don King and referee Steve Smoger, James Toney celebrates his WBA heavyweight championship
With a cigar in hand and the WBA championship belt displayed above him, James Toney wasn't disappointed he didn't completely fulfill his promise.
Toney didn't knock out John Ruiz to win the heavyweight championship Saturday night. Instead, he outpointed Ruiz by dominating the second half of the fight - and drove Ruiz into retirement.
And then it was time for Toney to celebrate.
"I'm enjoying my night," Toney said about an hour after his unanimous decision made him the fourth-oldest heavyweight champion. "I'm having fun and smoking my cigars.
"I'm 36 and I feel like 26. Life has just begun for me."
Toney, a former champion at three other weights who took his first title in 1991, won just his third heavyweight bout, becoming only the third one-time middleweight champion to take boxing's top crown.
One of the other middleweight-turned-heavyweight winners was Roy Jones, who also beat Ruiz. Jones was at ringside broadcasting the fight, in which Toney looked fearsome - and flabby.
While the extra weight didn't look good on Toney, he never lost the swagger he carried into the Madison Square Garden ring. And as the fight swung his way, he grimaced in mock pain at Ruiz and even did a little shuffle after the eighth round.
"I didn't expect much from John, because he is an average fighter. John Ruiz is stupid, he can't change his style, he only knows how to fight one way," Toney said.
Ruiz's manager/trainer, Norman Stone, said his man is through fighting.
"John's done. Farewell," Stone said. "This kid has never ever said anything bad about the things that have been said about him."
At 233 pounds, Toney was outweighed by eight pounds, and the weight looked better on Ruiz. Not that it mattered as Toney wore down the natural heavyweight to win 116-111 on two cards, 115-112 on the other.
Ruiz, 33, landed only 28 percent of his power punches to 57 percent for Toney, and it naturally made a difference. Yet it was not a hard punch that sent Ruiz to the canvas early in the seventh round, but a right-left combination. Ruiz claimed he slipped, but replays showed Toney connected just before Ruiz went down.
"He's a tough guy to fight, he moves around a lot," Ruiz said. "I connected a lot, I finished stronger and I won the fight."
Well, no, John, Toney got the nod for finishing better. And now he has his sights on the other heavyweight champions: Vitali Klitschko, Chris Byrd and Lamon Brewster.
"I want to flight Klitschko next... I am ready to fight anybody," Toney said. "I don't duck anyone.
"I'm looking for the fight that'll make me a lot of money. I am soon going to be the undisputed champion of the world."
Toney won the IBF middleweight title on May 10, 1991, over Michael Nunn. Toney defended it six times, then moved up a class to super middleweight and won the IBF crown over Iran Barkley on Feb. 13, 1993. Toney defended four times, then lost to Jones on a decision on Nov. 18, 1994.
Nearly nine years later, he won the IBF cruiserweight title over Vassiliy Jirov. And now he has a share of the heavyweight crown.
And Toney showed no signs of the Achilles' tendon injury that sidelined him for most of 2004.
Ruiz led on two cards and was even on the other halfway through the fight, his third defense of the belt he beat Hasim Rahman to win in December 2003. But after the knockdown in the seventh, the snarling Toney took control - although he couldn't get the knockout he predicted.
"No respect for him," Toney said, adding he was annoyed at all the trash-talking by Stone. Of course, no one can match Toney in that department.
Of the last six rounds, Toney won all on one card and lost only one round on the other two cards. But his celebration in the ring was very much subdued - no cigars quite yet.
Perhaps he wasn't all that impressed with his work.
"I only had 4 1/2 weeks to prepare for this fight," he said. "I do what I do. I didn't expect much from John because he is an average fighter."
Ruiz now is an ex-fighter.
The crowd of 9,169 didn't have a problem with the decision. Indeed, with Ruiz unable to trap Toney in the clinches he usually uses effectively, it was the challenger who carried much of the fight. There weren't a great deal of solid punches by either boxer, but it was more entertaining than many of Ruiz's bouts.
Source: AP
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