'OLD SCHOOL' TONEY BATTERS JIROV FOR IBF BELT By George J. Elsasser

Well, I went on record as having no clue on the outcome of Jirov-Toney battle for the IBF cruiser belt ... needed a few questions answered, and they would only come following opening bell.

Did offer the opinion the duke would be more about Toney than Jirov ... and what we got was a vintage 1991 - 1993 model of James - as in KO title wins over Michael Nunn (1991) for middleweight belt and Iran Barkley (1993) for super-middle crown - and once again it was enuf to get the job done.

As for defending champ Vassily Jirov it was a case of doin' what comes naturally ... and what once got done to the tune of undefeated at 31-0, 27 KOs among his peers in a diluted cruiserweight division, would not be nearly enough against the old-school veteran of 71 ring meetings.

To give Jirov his due, he brought the action to Toney in usual style from the start to finish ... but it was clearly evident after six candles that Vassily did not have the heavy guns his 27 knockouts implied - it was also clear that Toney knew the score as well.

To be sure, this one was action-packed, enough for HBO homeboy Jim Lampley to rate it as a candidate for fight of the year honors ... why not, only some eight months left in year 2003 - but, yes ... this one was a thriller.

Ironically, it was the younger 29 year old Jirov that would finish the final stanza with an empty gas tank ... the game plan of quantity over quality never had a chance - and a courageous Jirov barely finished on his feet.

You had to enjoy watching a skilled Toney do all them little things that only the special ones do - and if dedicated over the years, it is how James Toney would be seen today ... a special one.

The pick and choose was there ... maybe a right uppercut ... or a two-punch combination ... at times three-punch combo ... and then those four exploding bombs that found Jirov inside the final half-minute ticks on the clock, that put the Kazakhstan clouter on the canvas.

Thought it was over, but then recalled the referee ... good old Steve "Body bag" Smoger of 1988 Simon Brown-Tyrone Trice fame - as brutal affair as ever seen - the Smog only stopped that one in round 14 when Trice actually slumped into his arms - and so, Jirov got the green light and on guts alone finished upright.