BOSTON?Those vicious rumors are true.
The White Gorilla is putting his toe into the MMA waters because he is fascinated by UFC 118, Hall Of Fame boxer James Toney matching his skills against solid grappler-fighter Randy Couture.
Imagine that, a dinosaur like me checking out the MMA crowd.
So I decided to speak to a boxer who actually knows plenty about other forms of fighting, two time world heavyweight champion Shannon Briggs.
The slugger from Brooklyn is working arduously in South Florida to get ready for his Oct. 16 chance in Hamburg to become, like his idol Muhammad Ali, a three time champ.
One betting shop makes the American a 30-1 underdog to champion Vitali Klitschko which is ridiculous if you know that, from the first round to the 12th, Briggs has sudden, explosire KO power. Ask Sergei Liakhovich about that, his having gotten knocked clean out of the ring in the final round in their title bout at a ballpark in Phoenix.
Briggs thinks Toney has a real chance to beat Couture but says this is not boxing versus MMA, no showcase to decide which is the superior sport.
?Toney is not just a boxer, he is rough and ready, and he can brawl,? Briggs said. ?I give James a good chance to win this. But, obviously, the show is over if Randy takes him down.?
Briggs trained for a long while Brazilian style American Top Team fighters in Fort Lauderdale. He also fought in K1 matches in Japan where he had mixed success.
Briggs is not a boxer who downplays the skills of anyone in MMA.
?I’ve been in there fighting these guys, I’ve trained with them and I know how diligent they are in training. I am not some Old School boxing guy who rejects MMA. UFC is big business and it well run and MMA is going to be around.
?Boxing and MMA are not in some death match against each other, both will survive and thrive over the years.?
I don’t know if Briggs is right about Toney but since I know JT a long, long time I am openly rooting for him to do well even if he does not win.
It’s hard for me to envision a warrior like Toney not getting in some serious licks.
