THE GREAT ROBBERY
ANDY GORDON, then the Chairman of the New York State Athletic Commission, was making the long drive home from Atlantic City to Long Island after watching the IBF middleweight title fight between champion James Toney and challenger Dave Tiberi.
“Ringside, I had it for Toney, but I said, man, this is close,” recalled Gordon. “This is gonna explode, and this was without even knowing, and it did.”
Thirty years later, the details of the February 8, 1992 bout have largely forgotten by fight fans, but the reverberations of Toney’s split decision win are still felt in the boxing world, one that was shaken by a verdict that prompted a United States Senate Subcomittee to investigate the sport and ultimately was the catalyst for the passing of the Muhammad Ali Act in 2000.
As for the principals, James Toney was recently announced as a member of the International Boxing Hall of Fame’s Class of 2022. Meanwhile, Dave Tiberi lives with his family in his native Delaware, a successful businessman and community leader who walked away from the sport after the disputed loss.
No big money rematch. No comeback. No sad stories of a fighter who stuck around too long. And no regrets.
“Did I miss it, yes,” said Tiberi. “But the way I looked at it was that God had a bigger plan than I did.”
For much of his life before the biggest fight of his career,
