B Hop or James Toney?

[IronDanHamza]

if Toney went neck and neck technically with Mccallum he could certainly handle what Hopkins has. Hopkins has longevity and consistency, but h2h I see Toney beating him. A good way of looking at this is; Take Toney and lets sat he stays in great shape for 10 years and takes on B-hops resume, he handles those guys with ease, including Tito - who he would have knocked out inside 6.

Hopkins had a better time with Jones because of his height and because he was ALWAYS in shape. I am not totally ds*****g Jones win over Toney, but Toney really didn't look prepared and struggled to make weight - he also was never given a rematch by Jones.

James Toney couldn't even beat Dave Tiberi at MW and couldn't even decisvely beat Sanderline Williams or Merqui Sosa and you actually think he could go through Hopkins resume undefeated?

It's always the same with James Toney. "If he fought fighter A, he'd dominate and knock him out in 6 rounds"

Name me ONE top fighter that Toney ever dominated and stopped in 6 rounds. There ain't one. And you reckon he stops Tito in 6 rounds? Ain't happening.

And James Toney and Roy Jones never had a rematch because Roy Jones schooled him so badly in first gear as if he was fighting a guy that had never boxed a day in his life. Why would anyone want to see a rematch of that? Roy Jones could legitimately beat Toney with one hand tied behind his back.

[them_apples]

James Toney couldn't even beat Dave Tiberi at MW and couldn't even decisvely beat Sanderline Williams or Merqui Sosa and you actually think he could go through Hopkins resume undefeated?

It's always the same with James Toney. "If he fought fighter A, he'd dominate and knock him out in 6 rounds"

Name me ONE top fighter that Toney ever dominated and stopped in 6 rounds. There ain't one. And you reckon he stops Tito in 6 rounds? Ain't happening.

And James Toney and Roy Jones never had a rematch because Roy Jones schooled him so badly in first gear as if he was fighting a guy that had never boxed a day in his life. Why would anyone want to see a rematch of that? Roy Jones could legitimately beat Roy Jones with one hand tied behind his back.

not in 8 rounds but he did ko Michael nunn. Thats a better win than anything on B-hops middleweight resume. Tito is a welter that would have been destroyed by Toney.

Hopkins struggled with plenty of opponents himself, including losing twice to Jermain Taylor, who wasn't a bad fighter - but thats my point, anyone in the higher echelons of boxing beats Hopkins.

That being said Toney has is flaws too. He generally only did well if you came and fought him. They are both similar in levels of ability (overall).

[IronDanHamza]

not in 8 rounds but he did ko Michael nunn. Thats a better win than anything on B-hops middleweight resume. Tito is a welter that would have been destroyed by Toney.

Hopkins struggled with plenty of opponents himself, including losing twice to Jermain Taylor, who wasn't a bad fighter - but thats my point, anyone in the higher echelons of boxing beats Hopkins.

That being said Toney has is flaws too. He generally only did well if you came and fought him. They are both similar in levels of ability (overall).

He stopped Nunn after getting schooled for 10 rounds.

There is nothing to suggest Toney would "destroy" ANY top level fighter. He never has. Tito wasn't a natural MW but he was a capable one and there is no way in hell he would destroy him.

He didn't "destroy" Dave Tiberi and actually he couldn't even beat him.

[young_robbed]

Easy way to answer this: Toney had more talent, Bhop more versatile and consistent.. The main thing seperating da two was the consistency and Bhop's longevity.. Fair enough, Toney fought for a while and in many weight classes, but he ballooned up in w8 far too much..

I would pick Toney to beat Bhop Prime for Prime....Bhop"s rugged, inside all terrain style would come into play, they would be countering eachother and exchanging in jabs in what I would imagine to be a great display of the technical sweet science.. A legitimate chessmatch, probably a great show of inside fighting, dirty tactics and utilization of angles.. (I would have also liked to see Nunn vs Jones as a side note of a great fight that was missed out in the 90s) but Toney's counters and power shots would take it for me,perhaps in a 7-5, 8-4 affair.. Defensively, this fight would be a joy to watch also. Somewhat similar to Kalambay-McCallum and such..

[STEPHEN90]

toney was the better fighter and prime vs prime toney wins

[Sugar Adam Ali]

They had different skill sets..

Hopkins was a much better mover and boxer from the outside

Toney was much better in the pocket and was more heavy handed..

[harry-greb]

Hopkins learned every facet of the game. Toney was a born fighter. Hard to call if they met in their prime. Slightly favour Hopkins to win an ugly decision where he hugs money to death and doesn't allow him to work inside.

[Mugwump]

The problem with B-Hop is identifying the age at which he was best suited to challenging Toney in his prime. Younger B-Hop was pretty raw and gives Toney too many opportunities. Older B-Hop was technically capable of giving Toney a real headache but lacked the workrate.

I'm sure there's a happy middle ground somewhere in B-Hop's career. But I don't fancy his chances outside of it.

That said, I'm talking about James Toney at his peak which is not a lengthy period of time.

[IronDanHamza]

The problem with B-Hop is identifying the age at which he was best suited to challenging Toney in his prime. Younger B-Hop was pretty raw and gives Toney too many opportunities. Older B-Hop was technically capable of giving Toney a real headache but lacked the workrate.

I'm sure there's a happy middle ground somewhere in B-Hop's career. But I don't fancy his chances outside of it.

That said, I'm talking about James Toney at his peak which is not a lengthy period of time.

When was Toney's peak?

[Mugwump]

When was Toney's peak?

I'd say he was at his best in the lead up to the Jones fight. At the time I thought he was a technically excellent fighter. A real throwback to an earlier era of boxing. He was embarrassed against Jones. But it wasn't the kind of defeat which, say, Leonard had at the hands of Duran where Leonard was right up close to the top of his abilities.

What I'm saying is I don't think Toney acquitted himself well. Tactically he was very naive and fought poorly.