HEAVYWEIGHTS ON DISPLAY IN RENO THIS WEEKEND

By Dave Bitar
Fightbeat Staff Writer 

Showtime Championship Boxing hosts an intriguing heavyweight doubleheader Saturday night (9:15PM ET/PT, from the Events Center in Reno, NV). Former WBA champion James Toney (68-4-2, 43 KO) and current IBF titlist Chris Byrd (38-2-1, 20 KO) are featured in a pair of twelve-round bouts against Dominick Guinn and DaVaryll Williamson, respectively.

The fight card was originally slated to feature IBF bantamweight champion Rafael Marquez in a title defense against highly touted South African prospect Silence Mabuza as the opening bout of a proposed tripleheader. Marquez was forced to withdraw after suffering from a chest cold. His bout has been rescheduled for Showtime’s next edition of its Championship Boxing series, to air November 5.

Several weeks ago, Chris Byrd's bout against mandatory challenger DaVarryl Williamson was added to the card as the co-feature, rounding out what looked to be a fantastic tripleheader of boxing action. With the postponement of Marquez-Mabuza, the focus for Saturday's card is squarely set on the heavyweight division as two of the best in the world take to the ring. Byrd-Williamson is still the co-feature, but now as the opening act of a doubleheader instead of the second of three fights.

The fights come at a time of renewed interest in the division. It is hot off of the heals of Wladimir Klitschko’s career-resurrecting win over power-punching Samuel Peter and only three days after Lamon Brewster’s dramatic, come-from-behind knockout over Luan Krasniqi, in Germany. Klitschko’s win earned him a mandatory position for Byrd’s IBF title and Brewster’s WBO title.

The Brewster/Kraninsqi bout took place on what would have been the 100th birthday of German heavyweight champion, Max Schmeling. All this comes one month before WBC champion Vitali Klitschko, considered by many to be the best heavyweight in the world, faces his mandatory challenger and former undisputed heavyweight champion, Hasim Rahman.

In a span of six weeks, most of the top heavyweights will be in action as three of the four main heavyweight champions will be defending their titles. If not for a failed post-fight drug test, James Toney would have been the fourth and final titlist to defend his title in that time frame. He defeated WBA titlist John Ruiz this past April, only to have the contest subsequently declared a  no-contest after Toney tested positive for a steroid substance. Toney was forced to relinquish the belt and serve a 90-day suspension as a result.

The ruling doesn’t change what actually occurred during the twelve rounds of action this past April. In initially being declared the winner, Toney had become just the third former middleweight champion in boxing history to go on to become a heavyweight champion. Toney also held world titles as a super middleweight and cruiserweight. The only two other fighters to have ever achieved this in boxing history were Bob Fitzsimmons and Roy Jones Jr.

Toney, however, was the first to be stripped and have the result annulled after testing positive for nandrolone.

Toney's camp argued that he had taken certain substances prior to the fight for rehabilitation purposes to help him recover from torn biceps and triceps muscles. However, had he not taken the Ruiz fight on short notice - it was originally discussed for June or July, but was moved up to April 30th - the substances would have been out of his system by the time he fought Ruiz.

As it happened, Toney and his camp decided not to protest the NYSAC's decision to give him a 90 day-suspension and a fine for $10,000. The official decision of the Ruiz fight was changed from the unanimous decision for Toney, to a no-contest.

No longer a titlist, Toney returns to the ranks of top contenders as he looks to make a statement against opponent Dominick Guinn (25-2-1, 18 KO's). While Toney remains a viable player in the division, Guinn is looking at what may be his last chance to prove himself after having fallen far from grace in the past eighteen months.

Two years ago, Guinn was one of the hottest young heavyweights in the sport. With the backing of promoter Main Events, Guinn scored two high profile wins on HBO. In June 2003, he played opening act to th Arturo Gatti-Micky Ward rubber match, as he scored a knockout over Michael Grant. Three months later, he decisioned Duncan Dokiwari in the main event of HBO’s “Night of the Young Heavyweights” installment on Boxing After Dark.

Since then, however, Guinn has come up short on several occasions. A lackluster split decision-loss to contender Monte Barrett on HBO in his home-state of Arkansas in March 2004 was just the beginning. Nine months later, Guinn returned, only to once again fall short on the scorecards again as he dropped a unanimous decision to fellow prospect Sergui Lyakhovich.

In April of this year, Guinn continued his struggles. In a lethargic performance from beginning to end, Guinn sleepwalked his way to a draw with journeyman Friday Ahunanya on ESPN2.

Guinn has gone from a top prospect to a fighter few see even as a respectable contender - let alone a future world champion. Also, he will face a difficult task trying to rehabilitate his boxing career against one of the best and most skilled technicians in the sport in James Toney.

In the twelve round co-feature, IBF heavyweight champion Chris Byrd makes the fourth defense of his title against the newly established #1 contender, DaVarryl Williamson (22-3, 18 KO's), who was recently elevated to top-contender status over Wladimir Klitschko.

Byrd won the title three years ago with a decisive points victory over Evander Holyfield, but has struggled to keep the belt in subsequent fights since. Hie has managed narrow decisions over challengers Fres Oquendo and Jameel McCline, and also retained his title in fighting to a draw against Andrew Golota. The decisions in the Oquendo and Golota fights were seen by many as highly controversial.

In this fight, the controversy actually began with the naming of his mandatory challenger. Williamson's ranking came when he was elevated over Klitschko, despite having lost to the Ukrainian almost a year ago to the day on Showtime. 

Williamson floored the former WBO champion Klitschko earlythe bout, but was out-boxed through the majority of the rounds, brief as the fight was. The fight was brought to a halt after five after an accidental headbutt produced a deep gash on Klitschko’s forehead. The cut was ruled too severe for the action to continue, and the bout went to the scorecards after five, where Williamson lost a fifth round split technical decision.

Williamson followed up the loss with wins over Oliver McCall and Derrick Jefferson, which the IBF decided were enough to elevate him to the mandatory position.

While Williamson may not have stellar credentials coming into this title shot, he may be able to give Byrd some trouble. The aging southpaw once again takes on a significantly taller opponent who carries a decent jab and a hard right hand. It should be an interesting contrast of styles for both fighters when they enter the ring Saturday night.

The fight card is promoted by Gary Shaw Productions, in association with Goossen Tutor Promotions and Don King Productions.

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