It Will Be a Big Bout for Toney

When James Toney said he was moving up to heavyweight, he wasn’t kidding.

Toney weighed in at 217 pounds Thursday for Saturday’s heavyweight nontitle bout against Evander Holyfield at Las Vegas’ Mandalay Bay Events Center. That is 27 pounds more than Toney weighed in his last appearance in the ring in April, when he beat Vassiliy Jirov to win the International Boxing Federation cruiserweight title.

Holyfield, a former four-time heavyweight titleholder, weighed 219, one pound less than he weighed in his last fight. That was in December, when he lost to Chris Byrd for the IBF heavyweight crown.

Only once has Toney, who began as a middleweight in 1988, weighed more in the ring. That was in 2001 when he beat Wesley Martin in Compton on a third-round knockout. Toney weighed 226 for that fight.

“Toney is naturally getting bigger,” said his trainer, Freddie Roach. “Heavyweight is a better weight for him.”

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Two other heavyweights will be in the Mandalay Bay ring tonight in the 10-round main event of a show to be telecast on Showtime and aired on XTRA (690/1150).

Cedric Boswell (21-0, 16 knockouts), who was scheduled to face Vitali Klitschko at Staples Center in June until Klitschko moved up to fight Lennox Lewis, will face Jameel McCline (29-3-3, 17), who lost to Wladimir Klitschko in December, McCline’s only appearance in a world title fight.

-- Steve Springer