Evander Holyfield’s boxing legacy is nothing short of sensational.
His career spanned just shy of 30 years, winning the undisputed championship at cruiserweight and heavyweight along the way, making him one of the very few fighters in the sport to achieve that feat in more than one division.
‘The Real Deal’ also remains as the only man to win the world heavyweight championship on four occasions, another extraordinary record which has stood for over 20 years.
Holyfield shared the ring with an abundance of great fighters throughout his career, including Lennox Lewis, Mike Tyson and George Foreman to name a few.
In a recent ‘Winner Stays On’ video with Mail Sport, the 62-year-old was asked to pick a winner between former opponents Tyson and Foreman, to which he said.
“Mike Tyson!”
‘The Real Deal’ fought ‘Iron’ Mike twice within an eight month period. Their first clash took place in November 1996, with Holyfield stopping Tyson in the eleventh round to claim the WBA heavyweight title.
In the following June, the heavyweight stars met again in a bout that was steeped in controversy after Tyson was disqualified due to biting the right ear of his opponent. Their rematch is universally recognised as the ‘Bite Fight’, as it remains one of the most memorable moments in boxing history, albeit for the wrong reasons.
In the aftermath of this incident, chaos ensued inside the ring with the teams and entourages of both fighters clashing. The reason for Tyson biting Holyfield remains a mystery, although many felt the former was looking for a way out of what was becoming a very hard nights work.
