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Vassiliy Jirov vs. James Toney

Date	April 26, 2003
Venue	Foxwoods Resort Casino, Ledyard, Connecticut, U.S.
Title(s) on the line	IBF Cruiserweight title
Tale of the tape
Boxer Vassiliy Jirov James Toney Nickname The Tiger Lights Out Hometown Balkhash, Kazakhstan Grand Rapids, Michigan, U.S. Pre-fight record 31–0 65–4–2 Age 29 years 34 years, 8 months Height 6 ft 2 in (188 cm) 5 ft 9 in (175 cm) Weight 188 lb (85 kg) 190 lb (86 kg) Style Southpaw Orthodox Recognition WBA, WBC, IBF, IBO, WBF, IBA, NBA and The Ring Light Heavyweight champion 3-divison world champion The Ring No. 4 Ranked Cruiserweight 2-division world champion
Result
Toney wins via unanimous decision (117–109, 117–109, 116–110)

Vassiliy Jirov vs. James Toney was a professional boxing match contested on April 26, 2003 for the IBF cruiserweight title.

Background

A fight between reigning IBF cruiserweight champion Vassiliy Jirov and former 2-divison champion James Toney had been in the works for nearly two years. Jirov and Toney had a tentative agreement to face each other on September 8, 2001. Jirov, despite being a former Olympic gold medalist and in the midst of a 2-year reign as cruiserweight champion, had yet to headline a boxing card and was hoping a fight with Toney, once one of boxings biggest stars, would give him the chance to do so. However, a deal did not get done and Jirov's next defense turned out to be against 34-year old Jorge Castro, the IBF's number-one ranked cruiserweight contender and Jirov's mandatory challenger. After his defeat of Castro, Jirov hoped to either meet Roy Jones Jr., the then-undisputed light heavyweight champion or Toney, who was in attendence for the Jirov–Castro fight.

Toney would fought Jason Robinson in an IBF title eliminator bout, earning the victory via seventh-round knockout, making him the number-one contender to Jirov's title and officially setting in motion his first major title fight since his 1994 loss to Roy Jones Jr. The Jirov–Toney fight was originally set for November 2002, but a long and acrimonious split with his longtime manager, Ivalyo Gotzev, caused a 14-month layoff for Jirov and the fight was pushed back to April 26, 2003.

The Fight

In a hardfought bout in which a combined 1,843 punches were thrown, Toney would earn a unanimous decision victory with rather comfortable scores of 117–109 (twice) and 116–110. Jirov served as the agressor and pressed the action most of the fight, throwing 1,032 punches, but only landing 24% of them (243) as Toney defended and counter-punched effectively and landed over 100 more punches than Jirov, scoring 380 of his 811 thrown punches. Toney would score the fight's lone knockdown in the 12th and final round. Jirov and Toney exchange punches back-and-forth for the entire duration of the round with both fighter taking damage, then with 20 seconds remaining Toney scored a six-punch combination that sent Jirov down to the canvas. With only five seconds remaining, Jirov answered referee Steve Smoger's 10-count and the fight continued, though the bell rang to end the fight just as the fighters engaged again.

HBO's unofficial ringside scorer Harold Lederman, who had Jirov winning going into the 12th round, scored the fight even 113–113.

Fight card

Confirmed bouts:

^Note 1 For IBF Cruiserweight title
^Note 2 For vacant WBC and IBF Light Heavyweight titles

Broadcasting

Country	Broadcaster
United States	HBO

References

1. Boxer's Biggest Fight Is for Attention, N.Y. Times article, 2001-07-17, Retrieved on 2025-01-06
2. With One Eye Toward the Future, Jirov Outpoints Castro, Washington Post article, 2002-02-03, Retrieved on 2025-01-06
3. Call James Toney a survivor, Sports Business Journal article, 2002-08-07, Retrieved on 2025-01-06
4. Toney Earns Another Shot at a World Title, 'L.A. Times article, 2002-08-19, Retrieved on 2025-01-06
5. Jirov's message: I talk by fist, ESPN article, 2003-04-24, Retrieved on 2025-01-06
6. Toney Hands Jirov First Loss as a Pro, N.Y. Times article, 2003-04-27 Retrieved on 2025-01-05
7. "BoxRec - event".

• 2003 in boxing
• 2003 in sports in Connecticut
• April 2003 sports events in the United States
• Boxing matches in Connecticut
• Boxing matches involving James Toney
• Boxing matches refereed by Steve Smoger
• Boxing on HBO
• Cruiserweight championship matches