I am a little skeptical of that, I mean Ray Austin and Sultan Ibragimov squared off 
to see who would have the right to face Wladimir Klitschko who is the number one ranked heavyweight in the world. The result wasn't the best, but the implications 
and the action of the fight were of the highest standard. Truthfully both Austin and Ibragimov deserve a title shot before Toney and Peter do, but that is a moot point 
and we must move on. 

As for the proposed fight between the overgrown middleweight in James Toney and 
the lumbering clubber that is Samuel Peter; this fight has deadly implications for 
the division. It's not that the winner will prove how dominant they are, but if Toney 
wins this fight, then the heavyweight division will take a giant step back in terms of development and respect.

Let me state right now that James Toney should not be boxing at all! That is not a statement in regards to his skill or age or how fat he is, that is in regards to the fact that Toney was caught cheating using the super steroid Nandrolone, and even 
though usually a one year sentence is handed out, I say at least two years to show that this action is not acceptable. 

Instead Toney was fighting months later, but not for the WBA. Okay now that my 
little rant is over James Toney is a very skilled and natural fighter. Toney's ability to make you miss and counter is unrivaled in the heavyweight ranks. Toney is also a natural light heavyweight or cruiserweight and carries the power of the former. 

Yes we know that Toney looked impressive in stopping Evander Holyfield, but 
Jeremy Bates stunned Holyfield and the feather-fisted Larry Donald looked like a boxing deity against Holyfield. I know that my rhetoric towards Toney sounds very biased, but the truth is that Toney can outbox most anybody in the division, at least that is what we have been led to believe. 

We have come to the conclusion that James Toney is a master technician of 
boxing and employs an old-school style of boxing that most of today's fighters have 
no idea how to figure out. For the most part that statement carries a lot of validity to it, but Hasim Rahman thoroughly ou-boxed Toney and James was fortunate to get a gift draw. 

Then as we saw earlier this month Oleg Maskaev who has always been a slugger, ou-boxed the boxer-puncher Hasim Rahman. So what does that say about Toney's ability to out-box these heavyweights? Sure Toney's technique is better than his contemporaries, but the truth is that Toney lacks the power to keep these men off
of him and they carry the power to negate his speed. However, Toney is going up against Samuel Peter. 

Peter is as raw as they come in regards to boxing ability. This behemoth of a 
human being looks to debilitate his opponents with his power. Thoughts of 
technique and game-plans never traverse the neurons in Peter's head. We all 
saw the results of that last September when Peter went up against current IBF champion Wladimir Klitschko in a bout that saw Klitschko go down three times, 
only one was legitimate, but that didn't matter.

For every round that Klitschko didn't go down, he handily defeated Peter and 
Samuel showcased his fundamental flaws for all to see. So it is feasible that 
Toney can outbox Peter for twelve rounds and garner a unanimous decision victory, 
but that is if Peter doesn't punch back.

For all of his flaws, Samuel Peter has one equalizing attribute, and that is his "gawdammnn" power. I say this because when you saw Peter knock out Jeremy Williams there was a collective "gawdammnn" from everyone watching. We all know Peter can't box. In his follow up fights with Robert Hawkins and Julius Long, Peter showed little to no improvement against Hawkins, and Long had given up before he walked down towards the ring. 

Thing is though; Peter is now working with Jesse Reid. Now there are rumblings 
from fighters that Reid is becoming more of a cheerleader and less of a trainer, but 
the fact is that Reid knows boxing and he did wonders with another limited slugger 
in Lamon Brewster. If Samuel can actually listen to Reid and work Toney's 
extensive mid-section then the night should be short. 

The scary thing is that because of Peter's poor technique, he doesn't even throw 
with his optimal power. Yes the guy can actually get stronger; couple that with 
some technical guidance and a strategy and Peter can stop the smaller Toney.

These two men possess two vastly different skill sets. That means that for both, 
the path to victory is two different journeys. For Toney he will need to come in 
under 230 pounds to have a chance, preferably around 220. Peter will need to come 
in near 250 pounds to be able to dance with Toney and keep him in the middle of 
the ring. James can counter and work on the inside to smother Peter's punches 
and score a victory. On the other side, Peter can bang away at the body and arms 
of Toney and not worry one bit about getting hurt by Toney's counters. I believe that 
as limited as Peter is, Toney just won't be able to keep the Nigerian off of him. 

(EDITOR'S NOTE: Toney weighed 233, four pounds less than he did against Hasim Rahman.) 

Granted Toney has never been stopped in his entire career, he has also never 
fought someone with as much power as Peter, and if Toney comes in heavy, and I believe he will, look for an eighth round stoppage for the limited but improved Peter. 

In the end a victory for Peter is better for the division for youth would be served and 
the detractors can no longer claim that a former middleweight is among the elite. 

However, whoever is victorious, I don't see a bright future for the winner.