Dana White signs his stalker James Toney to screw with Strikeforce

Yes, after giving the contract seeking, controversial, veteran boxer James Toney the cold shoulder at UFC 108, Dana White impulsively signed him yesterday.  Zach Arnold has already covered this story in much better detail than I could, with a piece entitled Marks of Desperation: The marriage between UFC and James Toney.  So what made Dana change his mind?  Unsurprisingly the answer, courtesy of Dave Meltzer, turns out to be to screw over their opposition Strikeforce, who were apparently negotiating with Toney to face Herschel Walker in a freak show match designed to draw ratings for their next CBS show. 

So what happens from here?  Expect the promotional war to heat up between UFC and Strikeforce, as UFC is already making plans to run a live show on April 17th, the current date for Strikeforce's next CBS show.  Expect James Toney to be pushed as a major outsider heel to the UFC fanbase, similar to how Brock Lesnar was pushed before his UFC debut.  But will lightning strike twice and the same push work for an aging, washed up, boxer?  We'll see.