Yes, it’s really going down – James Toney Vs. Donovan “Razor” Ruddock, November 11 in Jamaica! Okay, it’s only an exhibition, but plenty of people are alarmed, nonetheless.
Toney, now aged 55 and 77-10-3(47), is nothing like the great fighter he once was. Ruddock, now aged 59 and 40-6-1(30), has not boxed since 2015, when he was stopped by Dillon Carman in a Canadian heavyweight title fight (Razor still insisting he was fouled in the fight, this by repeated rabbit punches that caused the third round defeat he suffered).
The two legends, and they are indeed, spoke with the Truth and Company Boxing Podcast this week, and the two veterans did a pretty good job in their attempts to get us interested in the bout that will serve to generate money for charity, the beneficiary being Ruddock’s former school that is in need of funds.
Toney said he is “cool” about the upcoming exhibition (and the two fighters were full of respect for each other, with no trash-talking or any trading of insults), and the former multi-weight world champion said that despite his age, he is “looking forward to letting everybody see my skills.”
“At my age, I can still whup anybody on the planet, any time, anywhere, any place,” Toney said, his speech sounding surprisingly clearer than it has in other recent interviews. “I’m the original old-school fighter. I was born to fight. Everybody else was taught to fight.”
Razor then responded to Toney.
“James, nobody on planet Earth can beat me! Nobody,” Ruddock said. “I can’t wait to show you. I’m not gonna come out there looking to……I’m just gonna show you.”
“I like that,” Toney shot back. “I like to see you like that. I love confident people, because that way, if they say, ‘he was old, he was a bum!’ No, they can’t say that – Razor’s no bum, he’s a champion.”
“Age has nothing to do with this,” Ruddock said.
“You got that right,” agreed Toney.
Both fighters are promising a “great show” in Kingston, but there are plenty of skeptics who are yet to be convinced this will be the case. Both men say they have been training, and both aging warriors were all smiles as they appeared on the podcast. It was actually quite strange seeing Toney so cheerful, especially whilst talking to an upcoming opponent. Again, this one is merely an exhibition bout, but since when has that stopped “Lights Out” from being bad?
Let’s hope Toney and Ruddock can put on a good shot, with neither man getting hurt or embarrassed. This one, at least, is in the aid of a worthy cause.
