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"There's no risk. I don't understand why people keep saying that. How is it a risk? This is a fight that garners a whole bunch of eyes from the boxing world as well as other areas and can bring new fans over to MMA... James Toney poses all kinds of problems. There's a lot of unknowns coming into this fight, not just for him, but for me as well. Look at what he's accomplished in the sport of boxing, some of the names he's beaten. He's a dangerous opponent and I think an interesting opponent. The bottom line is there's a lot more going on in this sport than whether I win or lose."
-UFC Hall of Famer Randy Couture talks to MMAMania.com about his UFC 118 fight with James Toney and how the fight, win or lose, won't do anything to hurt the sport of MMA.
Penick's Analysis: I think the real funny part of this whole "MMA vs. Boxing" conversation in regards to this fight is that, if Toney is going to avoid Couture's takedowns and find a way to win that fight, it will be because he's training in MMA. It won't do anything to prove the boxing is better than MMA or that MMA is better than boxing. It will either be Couture proving that the boxer can't make the transition so easily or Toney proving that his hands are capable of knocking people out in four ounce gloves. That said, it will still be nice for MMA fans to see Couture take this one handily with all the things that Toney has spewed off about the sport.
RELATED STORY: UFC QUOTABLES: James Toney says he'll hit Randy Couture so hard at UFC 118 his grandparents will feel it: [CLICK TO READ FULL ARTICLE]
[Randy Couture art by Cory Gould (c) MMATorch.com]
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