Boxers Coming Into MMA

John Morgan of MMAJunkie has the latest regarding Dana White acknowledging that boxing great James Toney is interested in fighting in the UFC:

Following December’s UFC 107 event in Memphis, Tenn., in which Toney tracked down White to discuss a potential fight in the UFC, the pro boxer showed up again at Saturday night’s UFC 108 event in Las Vegas. Toney jokingly said the next spot at which he would appear would be White’s private residence unless the fiery exec gave the boxer a chance to compete in the octagon.

 

White said Toney had earned at least an appointment to talk.

 

“I’m going to go sit right down with [Toney] before he goes to my [expletive] house,” White joked.

 

Toney’s potential involvement in MMA really has more questions than answers. First, Toney has been accustomed to making much larger paydays in his boxing exploits than he would earn in the UFC. But White said the dwindling paydays in boxing are precisely why Toney is interested in crossing over.

 

“There’s no money out there (in boxing),” White said. “There’s money for very few guys, and there’s thousands of guys that are making no money. … The way that we built [the UFC] was you’ve got guys that make millions of dollars, guys that make hundreds of thousands of dollars, guys that make 60-to-80 thousand dollars three times a year, and guys that make 60-or-70 thousand dollars a year. The money is spread out between all the fighters, not just a handful of guys at the top.

 

“How much is [Toney] making right now? He’s chasing me around for a reason. He’s not chasing me around because he’s making money. You know what I mean?”

 

Of course, even if the money could be worked out, the UFC has yet to see a high-level boxer gain success in the cage. While Toney, undoubtedly past his prime, was once among the most-feared boxers in the sport, mixed martial arts takes more than a pair of accurate hands.

 

White said Toney insists he offers the complete package.

Payout Perspective:

James Toney on a UFC card would undoubtedly bring a host of additional interest to the organization and the sport, but is that attention, on it’s own, enough of a reason to sign him?

It goes without saying – and by all accounts, White is well aware of this – that the UFC will need to tread carefully. MMA is becoming an increasingly demanding sport in which being well-rounded is a necessity. The UFC doesn’t sign every NCAA wrestling standout just because they were great at one of the aspects of MMA. Likewise, if they sign Toney it must be because he can compete on all dimensions of the sport.

Otherwise, signing Toney sends the wrong message; not just to MMA’s fan base, but the greater mainstream sports world. MMA must not become a stage for the freakish delight – reminiscent of Japanese MMA last decade – where the likes of Toney, Shaq, and others are allowed to compete just because they’re passable athletes and would draw a huge gate.

Freak shows are the quickest path to becoming a fad. For the sport of MMA to enjoy continued success and long term growth, it must establish itself on its own merits and with its own stars and talent.

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Note: I also thought Dana’s quote about the transformation of the purses in boxing was interesting. Toney would need to be able to compete at the contenders level and for more than 2-3 fights for him to have any shot at earning enough money to exceed what he’d get from boxing at this point in his career.

However, I think the more saliet point that White made, here, is that a lot of the attention goes to boxing’s big draws and purses – the Mayweather’s and Pacquiao’s of the sport – but few ever entertain the $500 that some undercard fighters receive on the very same card.