21.09.06 – Dino Duva, President of Duva Boxing and promoter of WBC #1 contender Samuel “The Nigerian Nightmare” Peter says he’s enraged by even the speculation of the WBC ordering a rematch between Peter and James “Lights Out” Toney. Peter scored a close but entirely legitimate split decision win over Toney in a WBC elimination bout on September 2. While the bout was competitive, there are no solid grounds for ordering a repeat other than Toney’s camp being unhappy with the outcome. “(Toney’s promoter) Dan Goossen has filed a protest with the WBC, regarding the fight and requesting an immediate rematch be ordered. And from what I hear, the WBC is putting it to a vote. This should never happen. This should not even be put to a vote for several reasons.:
– The WBC would be taking the scoring out of neutral officials’ hands.
– The fact is the scoring was not that close. Two judges had it scored by five points for Peter
– James Toney’s character, or lack of, shouldn’t be continuously awarded by the WBC.
– In a recent poll of respected boxing writers, an overwhelming majority indicated that regardless of who they thought won, a rematch should not be ordered by the WBC and it would not be in the best interest of boxing or the WBC.
Infuriated by having been forced to deal with the volatile Toney and his continuously unprofessional antics, Duva says the WBC would be making a huge mistake by acquiescing to Goossen and Toney’s refusal to accept a legitimate loss, “also, on a personal level, he continually makes disparaging remarks about people and their personal lives and he’s not only a disgrace to boxing but also a disgrace to the human race. If the WBC gives him another opportunity he doesn’t deserve, they would be lowering themselves to his level.”
Duva says that Toney’s behavior has always been detrimental to boxing and that he’s flabbergasted at how many opportunities he continues to receive. “James Toney has continually behaved this way throughout his whole career. He crosses the line into people’s personal lives and says a lot of things that make boxing look bad. He made a ton of hateful remarks to Sam and his camp before the fight and even made disparaging remarks about a respected WBC official in a recent interview. James Toney shouldn’t even be in the picture. The WBC should start taking character into account and James Toney has none. Enough is enough. This kind of thing cannot be rewarded and it would be a disgrace to the boxing business.”