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10/14/2003 Archived Entry: "Toney & Jones: Putting it all in Historical Perspective"
Toney & Jones: Putting it all in Historical Perspective
By Tom Donelson
While the recent heavyweight bouts of James Toney and Roy Jones, Jr. have provided buzz among boxing fans, it is time to put those victories in historical perspective.
Bob Fitzsimmons was one of the original great pound for pound fighters. In 1891, Fitzsimmons took the recognized world middleweight championship from "Nonpareil" Jack Dempsey in the Big Easy, the city of New Orleans. (In the same location one year later, Gentleman Jim Corbett would take the heavyweight title from the legendary John L. Sullivan.) On March 17th, 1897, Bob Fitzsimmons challenged Gentleman Jim in Carson City, Nevada. After being floored himself, Fitz nailed Corbett with a perfect body shot and stopped the great Corbett. Fitzsimmons became the first middleweight to win the heavyweight championship and, unlike Roy Jones, who traveled through the light heavyweight division before beating John Ruiz, Fitzsimmons went straight from the middleweight to challenge Corbett. Weighing 167 pounds, Fitzsimmons proved able to handle the heavier and quicker Corbett. His reign as a heavyweight champion would only last two years before losing to Jim Jeffries, the George Foreman of his era. Fitzsimmons continued to campaign as a heavyweight for the next four years as he would fight the best in the division. He even knocked out Sailor Tom Sharkey in two rounds, the same Sharkey who would fight and lose a tough 25-round decision against the great Jim Jefferies.
At the age of 40, Bob Fitzsimmons became the World light heavyweight champion and claimed his third division title. Fitzsimmons often fought heavier fighters but he easily more than he lost and was one of the dominant fighter of his era. When he won his heavyweight title, he beat the best heavyweight of his era, not the 10th best.
Tom Loughran was a slick boxing light heavyweight champion, holding the Light Heavyweight crown between 1927 to 1929. Loughran moved up to the heavyweight division with the idea of capturing the heavyweight crown. His heavyweight career included bouts against Max Baer (W 10) and James J. Braddock (W 15 for the Lightheavyweight Title), and Jack Sharkey (L KO 3, W 15), each of whom would hold the Heavyweight Title during their careers. In 1933, Tommy challenged Primo Carnera for the title. Despite being outweighed by nearly 80 pounds, Loughran took Carnera's best for 15 rounds before losing a decision to the Italian champion. In many ways, his accomplishments were more stunning when compared to those of Jones or Toney. Tommy fought the top heavyweights of his era -- men superior to Ruiz or the old Holyfield that Toney fought.
Michael Spinks was one of greatest light heavyweights and the night he fought Larry Holmes he was fighting the recognized best heavyweight of his era. Larry Holmes had won 48 straight fights and 20 straight heavyweight title bouts in a row. He was one fight from Rocky Marciano's record of 49 straight victories. While Holmes was 35 years old, he still possessed a piston like jab and potent right hand. Spinks upset Holmes by out hustling him and later won a close, controversial rematch to cement his claim as heavyweight champion, a title that he would share until Mike Tyson would end his boxing career with a stunning one round knockout three years later. Spinks, like Fitzsimmons, did not challenge one of the lesser alphabet champions but took on the best. Holmes was the best heavyweight in 1985.
The purpose is not to denigrate the accomplishments of Toney or Jones. Both men were one of the best fighters of this generation but neither John Ruiz nor the 41-year-old Holyfield were in the same class as Corbett or Holmes. Holyfield was one of the boxing great heavyweights. But the Holyfield that fought Toney was a shell of his former self. Toney faced a fighter who was barely a top ten fighter at best. As for Ruiz, he was not a top five heavyweight even he held the WBA championship belt. Jones fought a masterful fight against a top ten heavyweight but his victory does not compare to Fitzsimmons conquest of Corbett or Spinks victory over Holmes.
