Well, it wasn’t exactly pretty but, as promised, veterans James Toney and Donovan “Razor” Ruddock did manage to put on some kind of a show last night in Kingston, Jamaica. Boxing their six-round exhibition bout, Toney, aged 55 and having weighed-in at 247 pounds, and Ruddock, aged 59 and having tipped-in at 260 pounds, boxed to a draw.
The opening two rounds were three-minute sessions, while the local commission declared that the following four rounds be lowered to two-minute rounds. Both guys sported quite a belly, the flab there to be seen (hey, the two old warriors could have opted to wear t-shirts, and head-gear, come to that). Toney, looking deadly serious throughout the bout, did show quick hands on occasion, but the legs of “Lights Out” were not there, they haven’t been there for years.
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Toney still has a worryingly good chin, however. Razor, stiff and upright, did get home with what looked like genuine power shots with his right hand at times, and Toney didn’t budge. Clearly, both men have respect for each other. The crowd seemed to enjoy the spectacle, and let’s hope some decent money was raised for the charity of intention, this Ruddock’s former school that is in need of funds.
Above all, nobody got hurt or embarrassed, with both legends embracing afterwards and then smiling. But the bad news is the fact that there could be more of these kind of exhibitions to come. In fact, when we consider how much interest last night’s affair generated, it seems there WILL be more to come.
Those fans who tuned in to watch last night’s bout were not forced to do so, and the fact that a decent number of pay-per-view buys is expected shows the kind of intrigue some people do have over these shows.
Ruddock, who tunes 60 next month, last boxed for real back in 2015, while Toney last fought for real back in 2017.
Last night’s under-card wasn’t much to write home about. In the co-feature, top-10 ranked 130 pounder Abel Mendoza beat up on 42 year old Aristides Perez for three rounds, before Perez was unable to come out for the fourth round. Mendoza is now 39-0(30), while Perez falls to 34-25-3(19).
While DJ Ruddock (son of Razor) had a so-so start to his pro career at welterweight, with Ruddock being held to a draw by the now 1-0-1 Juezier Heron over four rounds.