James Toney- Brain Injury

I was watching Outside the Lines on ESPN this morning.
They were doing a segment on brain injuries in boxing and football.
James Toney was interviewed during the segment. It seems that he's been diagnosed with damage to his pituitary gland (located at the base of the brain) that likely resulted from numerous blows to the head.
As a result, his pituitary gland can't function normally and release the right amount of hormones. Toney suffers from unusually low levels of numerous hormones, such as testosterone.
During the segment, they said this brain damage may be one of the main causes behind his weight problems, as his body can't produce the hormones needed to metabolize food.
Studies are showing that as many as 50% of boxers may suffer from pituitary gland brain injury. Results like this always bother me and make me worry about the quality of life for fighters like Gatti, Morales, and Holyfield who have suffered the same type of punishment over the years that Toney has.

Im a huge Toney fan and think he is still a great credit to the sport. If Toney really has a brain injury then he should not be licensed to fight.

Im not sure if I buy into this. I would need to see some evidence.

Thats sad to hear if it is true. Toney does seem to be getting slurrier and slurrier over the years.

He's been one of the greatest boxers in the world over the past 20 years, I'd hate to see him suffer permanent damage.

Did Toney himsellf comment on this? Or was the diagnosis hypothetical?

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Originally Posted by bilbo

Did Toney himsellf comment on this? Or was the diagnosis hypothetical?

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Yes, he was interviewed during the segment. They showed the results of a blood test conducted by Toney's personal physician that showed he had very low levels of certain hormones.
The only way to treat boxers or football players who suffer from this condition is to prescribe them steroids or growth hormones, which is obviously illegal under boxing's drug policy. So if Toney wants to keep fighting, he needs to do it without treatment.

Also, by the way, Toney completely admitted to being guilty of taking a steroid before the Ruiz fight. He said he briefly took a steroid because he had an arm injury and wanted it to heal quicker. He didn't try to say the test was wrong or anything. He admitted fault.

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Originally Posted by bilbo

Thats sad to hear if it is true. Toney does seem to be getting slurrier and slurrier over the years.

He's been one of the greatest boxers in the world over the past 20 years, I'd hate to see him suffer permanent damage.

Did Toney himsellf comment on this? Or was the diagnosis hypothetical?

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Toney in general is quite clear, but in interviews following fights he is quite slurry. I put this down to an overweight man having just gone 12 rounds though. Not easy to be lucid after that.

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Originally Posted by miles

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Originally Posted by bilbo

Thats sad to hear if it is true. Toney does seem to be getting slurrier and slurrier over the years.

He's been one of the greatest boxers in the world over the past 20 years, I'd hate to see him suffer permanent damage.

Did Toney himsellf comment on this? Or was the diagnosis hypothetical?

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Toney in general is quite clear, but in interviews following fights he is quite slurry. I put this down to an overweight man having just gone 12 rounds though. Not easy to be lucid after that.

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Kostya Tszyu had some brain injuries as a result of the Hatton fight years ago. most injuries require some time off, then your as good as new and able to fight . only in severe cases is it going to be problematic. O0

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Originally Posted by Lords Gym

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Originally Posted by miles

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Originally Posted by bilbo

Thats sad to hear if it is true. Toney does seem to be getting slurrier and slurrier over the years.

He's been one of the greatest boxers in the world over the past 20 years, I'd hate to see him suffer permanent damage.

Did Toney himsellf comment on this? Or was the diagnosis hypothetical?

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Toney in general is quite clear, but in interviews following fights he is quite slurry. I put this down to an overweight man having just gone 12 rounds though. Not easy to be lucid after that.

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Kostya Tszyu had some brain injuries as a result of the Hatton fight years ago. most injuries require some time off, then your as good as new and able to fight . only in severe cases is it going to be problematic. O0

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And of course Rocky Balboa suffered both a detached retina and brain damage in his career but was fully recovered after a near 20 year layoff

Damn.. I wonder if james plans on hanging em up...

Never thought i'd think this..Let alone say it..But he should..

I mean the odds are stacked...
If this has truely affected his metabolism then that sucks.. Thats one barrier on training..
That on top of his age..Hes like 38 now...
He sure has taken some big punches it looks to be fairly bleak for his career now..
But knowing james toney..Im not sure he will hang them up..

I bet all the people that joked about James having a brain problem to make fun of James feel like ripe tits about now..

The reason that Toney would have low hormone count especially
Testosterone is because he did steroids before.
It can cause your own tetosterone production to shut down.
Pro body builders take some other drugs to jump start their testosterone production again. Its a dangerous catch -22.
could explain why he had trouble getting ripped up.

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Originally Posted by miles

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Originally Posted by bilbo

Thats sad to hear if it is true. Toney does seem to be getting slurrier and slurrier over the years.

He's been one of the greatest boxers in the world over the past 20 years, I'd hate to see him suffer permanent damage.

Did Toney himsellf comment on this? Or was the diagnosis hypothetical?

---

Toney in general is quite clear, but in interviews following fights he is quite slurry. I put this down to an overweight man having just gone 12 rounds though. Not easy to be lucid after that.

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;D True that. I doubt James has any serious damage and sincerely hope he does not.

poor james

I've been saying this for a few years now, that Toney's speech was become more and more slurred, I remember Hector Camacho sr speech becoming more slurred in the last few years of his career too.

Hey,one thing about the brain damage...Cuts down on the amount of Tequilla ya need to feel "punchy"

Here's the macho man!

[youtube=425,350]ITHOFMgpVq8&mode=related&search=[/youtube]

Although I've never heard of this type of injury, I know that the pituitary gland slows production of somatotropin (GH) once you enter your twenties and begins
to decline markedly throughout ones lifetime. Hence, the use of HGH is beneficial for body builders as it seriously elevates levels of somatotropin and helps a lot
with increasing metabolic function. HGH therapy is used for deficiencies in this area and is very difficult to test for in sports. Toney may have to
undergo such therapy if there is an extreme deficiency in his pituitary function. Muscular atrophy, as well as bone density levels, are examples of such deficiencies;
as evidenced in the elderly.
This is a shame if it's true, but it seems like a logical explanation. I just hope that Toney can come to terms with his condition and retire from the sport.

I agree, theres just no other way around this that doesnt diminish credibility.

I would be upset to see him fight on.