“I will go on record and say he is not dumb enough to stand and trade with me,” Toney said. “Machida almost knocked him out, so what do you think I would do to him?”
The contradiction of Toney’s MMA career is that the most interesting fight left for him -- against a striker who would look to use his kickboxing ability and keep the fight standing -- is too pricey for any promotion but the UFC, which may be out of the Toney business: he received a disclosed $500,000 salary for the Couture fight. If K-1 stumbles as badly as some expect in the coming year -- victims of the flatlining Japanese fight scene -- here’s hoping they’ve got enough in the till to give Toney what he’s asking for.