"I'll gladly be the first one to knock out Antonio Tarver! This is what fans have to understand. They want to criticize me for being inactive, but Tarver has been inactive too. Unlike Tarver though, I want to come back and fight the Bitchschko Sisters, David Gaye or Tomasz Assdamek. He comes in and fights Nagy Aguilera and looks like shit doing it...I'm telling you now, Tarver can get it. Al Haymon and his fighters treat me like I got AIDS...He can't punch at heavyweight, he has no defensive skills, he's ugly as hell, so I can't make him look any worse, and he looked like a bum. He said he wants to get off of ShoBox cards and on Showtime Championship Boxing. Well, tell them you want to fight James Toney. TNT! Toney N Tarver. He should have a little pull with Showtime. Let's see if he will use it and make this fight happen. The fans need to speak out. Let's not let him fight another Aguilera. He done tested the waters and now it's time to sink or swim," stated a frustrated James "Lights Out" Toney, who's eager to prove that he's still a force to be reckoned with in the heavyweight division. After watching Tarver's successful debut as a heavyweight, Toney, who's fought 2 times for the heavyweight title, is ready to be his next test if Tarver is up for the challenge. You don't want to miss what else he had to say about Tarver, Vitali Klitschko's title defense against Shannon Briggs, and much more. Check it out!
PC: What's up JT?
JT: Not too much. These fighters still treating me like I got aids.
PC: You were very disappointed that the fight with Wladimir Klitschko didn't materialize. Have you gotten any word on a possible next opponent or fight?
JT: No word yet. I'm working on a few things. But I got a question for you. Did you see that shit the other night?
PC: Antonio Tarver's fight?
JT: Yeah! Man, Tarver talked all of that shit when I was in Memphis about how he wanted to fight, and then he tried to fight Danny Green because I guess he thought about making a pit stop at cruiserweight. But you can't starve yourself no more. You are a heavyweight and it's time to fight or shut up. I'll fight his bubble gum lip ass in Florida if he wants to do it. Toney and Tarver for the IBA Heavyweight title; let's make it happen. I'll gladly be the first one to knock out Antonio Tarver! This is what fans have to understand, they want to criticize me for being inactive, but Tarver has been inactive too. Unlike Tarver though, I want to come back and fight the Bitchschko Sisters, David Gaye or Tomasz Assdamek. He comes in and fights Nagy Aguilera and looks like shit doing it. As soon as he saw he wasn't going to be able to get him out of there, he started faking an injury. Then some fans will be saying, "Oh, that was his heavyweight debut." I fought Evander Holyfield in my heavyweight debut fresh off of the "Fight of the Year" with Jirov, so he don't get a pass for that shit. I'm telling you now, Tarver can get it. Al Haymon and his fighters treat me like I got AIDS.
PC: What were some of the things you felt like you could capitalize on while you were watching Tarver on Friday night?
JT: He can't punch at heavyweight, he has no defensive skills, he's ugly as hell, so I can't make him look any worse, and he looked like a bum. He said he wants to get off of ShoBox cards and on Showtime Championship Boxing. Well, tell them you want to fight James Toney. TNT! Toney N Tarver. He should have a little pull with Showtime. Let's see if he will use it and make this fight happen. The fans need to speak out. Let's not let him fight another Aguilera. He done tested the waters and now it's time to sink or swim. These dudes...man, I don't even know what to say. It's sad where boxing is at right now.
PC: Switching gears to the fight between Vitali Klitschko and Shannon Briggs...
JT: (Cutting in) Again, are the fans okay with that fight going the distance. How in the fuck he couldn't knock out that bum Shannon Briggs?
PC: Most would say because Briggs showed a lot of toughness...
JT: (Cutting in) Man, please. He showed he can't make adjustments. Vitali could have hit him with right hands blind folded. Being a punching bag for 12 rounds don't show me you're tough; it shows me you're dumb and a bum. He should have knocked Briggs out within 3 to 5 rounds tops. I see why these dudes don't want to fight me. I'm serious.
PC: I hear what you're saying, but what would you say to fans, media or anyone questioning you deserving a title shot or a big fight?
JT: It's like this. Shitrosa [Derek Chisora] has 14 fights. What can he possibly do to beat Wladimir? I applaud Teddy Atlas for getting his fighter out of that fight because he wasn't ready, so if Povetkin isn't ready with 20 or so fights, how is this kid gonna be ready? They would rather see him fight a guy with 14 professional fights rather than someone with 80? And I'm a future Hall of Famer? I mean, who would you rather have on your resume? Put me out of my misery if I'm so bad and far gone. They won't though and they won't get anywhere near me. Audley Harrison getting a shot on the strength of beating someone who was 32-12, Vinny Maddalone is 2-2 in his last 4 and beat a guy that was 19-6 to get his shot, and Shannon Briggs fought a bum of the month club for a month to get his. When I didn't get the Wladimir fight, I did my research to see what these guys who are getting shots had accomplished and the answer to all of them is nothing!
PC: I hope something happens for you soon. I'm sure we will be getting a lot more with you in the near future. Give me some closing thoughts.
JT: Percy "No Mercy" Crawford and FightHype is the best thing going. Ya'll need to appreciate what these guys are doing in the game. Tarver said what other 40 something year old fighter can do what he's doing? (Laughing) He don't have to look no further. I'm not only older than him, but I'm doing it better than him. Step up to the plate.
[ Follow Percy Crawford on Twitter @MrLouis1ana ]