After Roy Jones easily defeated Bernard Hopkins in May of 1993 to capture the IBF middleweight title, he made four successful defenses of his crown. Struggling to make the 160 weight limit, and needing a challenge, he set his eyes on James Toney’s super middleweight championship.
Toney had upset Michael Nunn to win the middleweight title in 1991, then beat Iran Barkley to capture his super middleweight belt. He was cocky and a big mouth, and made the perfect opponent for Roy.
The bout was nicknamed ‘The Uncivil War’ and with good reason. Neither liked one another, and Toney never stopped running his mouth, saying he would easily defeat the talented Jones. I was psyched for this one, and for good reason. I loved Roy and I detested Toney, as much as I had any fighter. The November 18th, 1994 date was something I looked forward to a great deal, a chance for Roy to shut Toney’s mouth for good.
The fight itself was no contest. Jones boxed circles around Toney, and dropped him with a left hook in the third round. I gave him ten rounds on the scorecards, and he showed that we was the far superior fighter in every aspect. Toney complained that it was the weight loss that cost him the fight, and I laughed at his excuses. Roy had taken his belt, and I was thrilled to say the least.
I also remember was happened the day after. Roy said the fight was so easy, that he felt like he didn’t even get a good workout in. So in defiance, he got up the next morning and ran three miles down the strip in Vegas.
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