LAS VEGAS -- James Toney didn't just stop Evander Holyfield with a dominating performance Saturday night. He may have also ended his remarkable career.

Making his debut as a heavyweight, Toney exposed Holyfield as an aging fighter with fading reflexes before finally stopping him at 1:42 of the ninth round. In doing so, he may have finally convinced Holyfield that it's time to quit.

The shocking sight of Holyfield going down from a body punch in the ninth was quickly followed by another sight never seen before in his 20-year career: his cornermen jumping in the ring to save their fighter from more punishment.

"I'm sorry I had to do that to him," Toney said. "Holyfield is a great fighter. I grew up watching him.
... Much love to Evander."

Toney became only the second fighter after Riddick Bowe to stop Holyfield. But this was not the same Holyfield who engaged in wars with Bowe and Mike Tyson during his prime.

Lights Out for Holyfield

James Toney said he could hang with Evander Holyfield, and he was right. With astute counterpunching, ring savvy, and a strong chin, Toney picked Holyfield apart en route to a ninth-round stoppage Saturday night in Las Vegas in a performance that signaled the arrival of a new heavyweight player and what will, hopefully, be the end of a storied career. The former 160, 168 and cruiserweight champion has always wanted to fight the heavyweights, and now may be able to land big-money bouts with Chris Byrd, Roy Jones, Jr., or even Lennox Lewis on the heels of his stirring performance Saturday night. His no-nonsense aura and trash-talk bring attention to the kind of fistic skills that give fans their money's worth. The first round was Holyfield's best, as he used his fresh legs and stronger punches to deliver hard shots. But Toney hung tough, depending on his old-school torso movement and shoulder rolling to keep him out of Holyfield's way. By the fifth round, Toney, the current IBF cruiserweight champion, was pot-shotting the former heavyweight champ with one-twos, and doubling up to the body and head with thumping left hooks. He didn't do any one thing spectacularly, but his kept out of harm's way and as Holyfield's output declined, it became a painfully one-sided fight. Toney mixed his punches well and stepped up the pace in the seventh and eighth, smacking Holyfield with both hands and gesturing to the judges in a show of confidence after landing punches. Cornerman Don Turner told Holyfield after the eighth round that he was going to stop the fight if he kept taking shots. Turner, who has seconded Holyfield through countless wars since he defeated Mike Tyson in 1996, showed the kind of foresight that Holyfield¹s corner has too often lacked in recent years. After being floored in the ninth with a left to the body, Holyfield rose and took referee Jay Nady's mandatory eight count, signaling he was ready to go. But it was over. Don Turner threw the towel in, hopefully bringing about the end of one of the greatest careers the ring has seen ­-- and perhaps seen too much of to morally allow its continuance. Toney is now a heavyweight player. He can, indeed, hang with the big boys. James Probst writes regularly for Maxboxing.com and ESPN.com.

This Holyfield was an old fighter just two weeks shy of his 41st birthday, still believing in his mind that his body could do things it could no longer do. The more he tried, though, the more futile his punches became and he was taking a beating before the fight was finally stopped.

"Toney did beat me up," Holyfield said.

Holyfield, who won only two of his previous seven fights, had vowed to fight until he became the undisputed heavyweight champion again. But after being dominated by a former middleweight champion, there were no more excuses left.

He acknowledged as much, but wasn't ready to officially call it quits just yet.

"The easiest thing to do when you don't have a good night in your mind is just to say I quit, this is it," Holyfield said.

"Right now, I have to make a decision. It's easy to say I'm finished."

Later, though, Holyfield said he will fight on.

"No, I'm not going to retire," Holyfield said. "I'm going back to the drawing board."

Holyfield was bleeding from the mouth from the middle rounds on and was taking a beating from straight right hands that Toney seemed to land at will. Holyfield fought bravely, but his reflexes weren't what they used to be -- and he missed often with wild left hooks.

In the early rounds, Holyfield landed some big left hooks, and early in the third round landed a right hand that hit flush on Toney's face. But as the rounds went on, Toney slipped more punches and Holyfield grew increasingly frustrated at his inability to land solid punches.

"I have a lot of respect for him," Toney said. "But I was hungry and I knew I was going to do it."

The tenor of the fight changed in the opening seconds of the fourth round, when Toney went after Holyfield and landed a big right hand that seemed to stun the former four-time heavyweight champion.

By the time he hit Holyfield with a body punch in the sixth that sent him staggering backward, Toney seemed confident the fight was his.

Fight judges seemed to agree, as Holyfield trailed by four points on two ringside scorecards after eight rounds and two on the third.

Toney (67-4-2, 43 knockouts) was landing well in the ninth round when he threw a left hook to the body that sent Holyfield backward, and Holyfield fell face first to the canvas. He got up, but by that time his cornermen were in the ring, not allowing him to fight any longer.

For one of the few times in his career Holyfield was a bigger fighter, towering over the former middleweight champion and weighing 219 pounds to 217 for Toney.

That seemed to help Holyfield in the first few rounds, but soon Toney figured out his way inside and was not only beating Holyfield to the punch but also landing the cleaner and harder shots.

Holyfield (38-7-2, 25 knockouts) earned $5 million for the 47th fight of a long career in which he won the heavyweight title four times. But it may have been his last payday after a series of bad performances.

In those fights, Holyfield blamed either opponents who refused to stand in front of him or injuries. He had no excuses after taking a beating from Toney.

"My left arm was fine and my legs were fine," he said. "He outhustled and outmaneuvered me. I didn't get my punches off like I wanted."