As James Toney and Kimbo Slice cross over, is the grass always greener on the other side?

Athletic competition and the hyperbole that surrounds it have always gone hand and hand, from the days of NFL Films turning the sport of football into a sort of modern form of Greek mythology  to the modern ESPN assault of highlights and star objectification it's totally understandable that a healthy ego comes with the territory. Unfortunately, the deterioration and destruction of pro athletes has become a very public and very profound part of the sports experience.

We are all familiar with watching once bright stars fade away. Jerry Rice, the greatest Wide Receiver of all time went from being on top of the world in San Francisco to being replaced by Terrell Owens; from having another Super Bowl appearance in Oakland to being 4th on the depth chart in Seattle to being cut from the Denver Broncos in the preseason. For the great ones it is almost always a painfully slow but consistent crawl to mediocrity.

There are also other stories, when stars momentarily appear and dissipate almost as quickly as they came. Guys like deceased Detroit Tigers Pitcher Mark Fidrych, who captured peoples imagination with solid play and a offbeat personality that made him a fan favorite but only enjoyed a brief career. And lot's of times we see athletes try to ply there trade in a different field with mixed results.

On one side we have James Toney, a man who has won multiple world championships in 6 different weight classes during the course his career but who has fallen on hard times in the Boxing world. Once the kind of fighter that demanded the PPV platform, his 2008 IBA and NABO Heavyweight title bout against Fres Oquendo was shown on basic cable. For a fighter as prideful as James Toney, it has to sting his ego being outside of the mainstream spotlight while Mixed Martial Arts continued to grow in popularity. 

On the other side we have combat sports neophyte Kimbo Slice, a fighter whose quirky personality outside of the cage and rugged fighting style inside the cage have made him a sensation in Mixed Martial Arts. Kimbo is a product of the new generation, simultaneously embracing his " Street Certified " image while playing up his calm nature and genuine curiosity with the sport. Where as the proud boxing champion fought on a struggling cable network, the street fighting sensation fought on prime time network television despite having little legitimate experience in Mixed Martial Arts.

Taking this into consideration, it is hard to question James Toney's decision to cross over into the arena of Mixed Martial Arts. Not only does it put extra money in his pocket, but it makes his name relevant again in the minds of fight fans. Even though James Toney could be considered a legend in boxing, most causal MMA fans probably only have a faint idea of who he is at this point.  What's ironic is that the aged prizefighter is taking the opposite approach of the street fighter. Where as Kimbo fought the likes of Bo Cantrell and Tank Abbott before moving on to harder competition, Toney has elected to jump into the deep end and face off against MMA legend Randy Couture to kick off his MMA tenure. The lead up to the fight has probably done much to massage his ego, but the outcome of the fight is all but certain. Toney is in over his head.

Curiously, as Toney crosses over into MMA the Street Fighting neophyte Kimbo has decided to step into the pro boxing ring. Delicately handled by boxing promoter and former Elite XC boss Gary Shaw, Kimbo never had to worry about being thrown to the wolves and luckily enough the quality of his competition didn't adversely affect peoples curiosity in him. However, to hear Gary Shaw talk about Kimbo winning boxing titles is pure madness. Even in boxings confusing network of world championships, a scenario where Kimbo could even come close to a title shot is nil to impossible.

Kimbo as always turns up the charm one hundred and ten percent at the presser, weaving anecdotes of his kids and his desire to break ribs; the same charm that made him such a fan favorite in MMA. It's hard not to be swayed by his own conviction into believing that he has a shot to make it in boxing. However Kimbo is not getting any younger, and despite reassurances that his knees are fine it's hard to imagine his knee ligaments reappearing over night. Better strikers than Kimbo have come and gone through Boxing and haven't made an impact, if K-1 legend Ray Sefo couldn't win in boxing than a technically raw fighter like Kimbo has little chance of making it to any sort of meaningful payday.

As it stands now, both of these radically different fighters are standing near the end of their athletic careers. Despite their unique backgrounds the goal of their decisions is exactly the same. These are men grasping for the last fleeting moments of glory before the last bit of that magic they once had goes away for good. Hopefully for their sake they find some meager success and some decent money and piece of mind to show for their choices, but history doesn't bode well for either of them.