28-years ago today: THE greatest cruiserweight fight in boxing history!

07/12/201407/12/2014 James Slater

Today in 1986, at The Omni in Atlanta, Georgia, two cruiserweights put on a truly unforgettable 15-round war of a fight that still ranks, all these years later, as THE finest to have been waged in the weight class directly below heavyweight. And though, at the time, the still relatively new cruiserweight division was both dismissed and mocked by many a fan and expert, the battle defending WBA ruler and challenger Evander Holyfield put on went a long way towards getting the division accepted by all.

Holyfield, a 1984 Olympian who was having his 12th pro bout, was seen by many as too inexperienced for the tough, dangerous and crafty born-again Muslim who used to be known as Dwight Braxton. Holyfield, the critics, said, ran out of gas after just a few rounds of warfare, and if that happened against the saw-off slugger (who was also blessed with good defence and a rock of a chin) known as “The Camden Buzzsaw” he would be in a whole heap of trouble.

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Evander Holyfield retires at age 51 – “The Real Deal” goes down in history as a true great

06/28/201406/27/2014 James Slater

Living legend and huge overachiever Evander Holyfield has officially retired from boxing at the age of 51. “The Real Deal” said that he has been unable to get fights and that he “don’t want to get hit.” The announcement will no doubt come as a relief to Holyfield’s fans and friends, as it looked until quite recently that the former four-time heavyweight ruler would stick around for what he hoped would be one last big fight.

Now that he has realised he has done more than enough in boxing, Evander can sit back and let the historians decide where they will rank him amongst the other boxing greats that lit up the sport. It’s almost a gimme that Holyfield – who retires with an overall record of 44-10-2 – 1 no-contest (29 KO’s) but a spotless 18-0 (14) as a cruiserweight – will go down as THE greatest cruiserweight of all-time. As to where he will be placed amongst the heavyweight immortals, the 1984 Olympic bronze medallist will probably be placed somewhere in the top-10, or at the very least just below the top-10.

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Boxing: Five Memorable “Psych Jobs”

11/22/201311/22/2013 Matthew O Brien

Boxing is an inherently psychological undertaking. It is an activity that exposes the contestants to far more than the simple prospect of defeat: the potential combination of public humiliation and genuine physical harm percolate in a fighter’s mind to a degree that few who have not lived the experience can reasonably quantify. Far from being a mere test of physical skills then, boxing is perhaps one of the purest tests of human will power. Some of the biggest contests in boxing history have therefore been won or lost through cunning, bravery and fortitude as much as they have speed, strength and stamina.

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“Twice Bitten,” The Story Of Holyfield-Tyson II A KO Read

09/14/201606/11/2013 James Slater

Review by James Slater: New York Post writer George Willis has delivered a fine read regarding the true story regarding one of the blackest days in boxing history. Willis, having done impeccable research, has produced the definitive read on the infamous second meeting between heavyweight legends Evander Holyfield and Mike Tyson.

Known universally as “The Bite Fight,” the spectacle that unfolded in Las Vegas in June of 1997 shocked everyone; fans, experts and casual viwers alike. Willis, in his addictive book, explains why.

More than just a book to cash in on the shocking behaviour of the then hugely unhinged Tyson, “Twice Bitten” also serves as a comprehensive biography of both heavyweight greats. With good coverage devoted to the formative years of both men, including when Tyson and Holyfield met for the first time, and the time the “obsession” Holyfield had of fighting Tyson first reared its head, Willis gives readers plenty of new information: such as, how a member of Team Tyson took to dying his white shorts black when no black ones were at hand, and what Holyfield trainer Don Turner feels about religion and boxing, and his take on God “picking the other guy to win.”

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Mike Tyson Vs. Evander Holyfield: Which Fighter Has The Greater Legacy?

09/14/201608/28/2012 ESB

by James Slater: Somewhat as it is with Muhammad Ali and Joe Frazier, the names Evander Holyfield and Mike Tyson are destined to be forever linked. Though they only fought twice, with Holyfield winning on both occasions, Tyson and Holyfield had a long running rivalry, with a genuine grudge element added. The two were talked of as natural rivals as far back as 1987, when “The Real Deal” was a cruiserweight, but we had to wait – for one reason or another (jail, injury, etc) – until 1996 before the two mesmerizing heavyweights clashed in ring centre.

Today, quite amazingly considering the infamous “bite fight” of 1997, the rematch, the two have become pretty good friends (with Evander today releasing a Twitter pic of himself wearing a T-short mocking the bizarre DQ win he engaged in with “Iron” Mike. But who was the overall greater fighter, who has the greater legacy – Tyson or Holyfield?

Though many would ordinarily jump right on an article that prompts a debate about who was the better man between two fighters when one of them has beaten the other twice, I have a feeling this will not be the case here. Sure, Holyfield twice defeated Tyson, but this is “Iron Mike” we are talking about after all – a fighter with one of the most rabid and vocal groups of supportive and idolising fans in modern day boxing history.

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Evander Holyfield: Is “The Real Deal” About To Call Time On His Legendary Career?

09/14/201608/27/2012 ESB

By James Slater – Over the weekend, a number of boxing web sites ran with the story of WBC heavyweight king Vitali Klitschko basically ruled out a fight living legend Evander Holyfield (I read the story on Examiner.com).

Fans will not in any way have been shocked by this statement by Klitschko, as he and his younger brother are class acts, neither one wanting to either hurt or humiliate the once-great Holyfield, nor get arrested for murder. Speaking very much for his brother as well no doubt, Klitschko has made it clear: there is no big fight left out there for the 49-year-old former four-time ruler.

Holyfield has said himself that he will not take a meaningless non-title fight “just for the sake of fighting,” and we must now hold him to his word. With a Klitschko fight now as dead in the water for him as can be, Evander surely has nowhere to turn but towards the exit door.

In truth, the future Hall of Famer who last fought in May of last year (a win: a 10th-round TKO over fellow veteran Brian Nielsen) should have called it quits a number of years ago, say after his close points loss to the huge Nikolay Valuev (this December 2008 fight being “The Real Deal’s” last good showing).

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Evander Holyfield calls out the Klitschko brothers again

09/14/201608/18/2012 ESB

By Rob Smith: Evander Holyfield, 49, is hoping that one of the Klitschko brothers will give him a fight so that Holyfield can try and capture another heavyweight world title before he retires someday. Holyfield hasn’t been ranked in the top tier for quite some time in the heavyweight division so it’s going to be a tad difficult for him to get one of the Klitschkos to bite on his offer.

Holyfield said to Sky Sports News “They [Klitschkos] have got an opportunity to probably make the biggest payday of their lives fighting Evander Holyfield…With the Klitshkos, they aren’t choosing to fight me, I’ve said I’ll fight them. All they got to do is realize that both of us will make money, then we’ll see who the winner is.”

Ignoring the fact that this would be terrible mismatch and the Klitschko brothers would take heaps of criticism from boxing fans if they took this fight, A fight between one of the Klitschko brothers and 49-year-old Holyfield would still do really well in Germany where the Klitschkos fight. The Klitschkos could sell out one of their 50,000 seat football stadiums if they fought Holyfield.

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All Time Historical Survey Series Recap – The Original 8 Weight Classes & P4P

09/15/201608/10/2012 Geoffrey Ciani

by Geoffrey Ciani – Over the course of a sixteen month period beginning in June 2009, I conducted a series of surveys that all began with a very simple question: Who are the ten best heavyweights of all time? While contemplating my own list of top heavyweight pugilists, I decided gathering the input of others might help display a more accurate portrayal of what a ‘true’ top 10 list should look like. Now of course this is not an exact science by any means. In fact, quite the opposite, it is an extremely subjective topic that is often skewed by personal bias, differences of opinion, individual tastes and preferences, and most importantly the absence of a universally agreed upon criteria with which to judge past fighters. Even with these inherent obstacles playing their natural role, however, we can still establish some degree of consensus.

The guidelines were simple. I had every person who voluntarily participated in each survey provide me with a chronological list of who they considered to be the ten best (heavyweights, middleweights, etc) in boxing history. Ties were not permitted, just a straight-forward list from one to ten. I then used a weighted-points system to assign values to fighters based on where they appeared on each individual’s list. First place votes received 25 points. Second place votes were worth 15 points, third place votes were 12, and fourth and fifth place votes were worth 10 and 8 points respectively. After that, the point differential was constant, with sixth place votes getting 5 points, seventh place votes getting 4, eighth getting 3, ninth place 2, and tenth place 1.

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Evander Holyfield Auctioning Off some of his posessions

08/09/2012 ESB

By Vitali Shaposhnikov: What started as minor financial difficulties such as child support, turned into a devastating economic down-spiral for Evander Holyfield. Just about a month ago, Holyfield was forced to sell his mansion just outside of Atlanta for $7.5 million, but that sale was of minimal benefit, as the champ owed the bank double that amount, and more than $200,000 in back taxes (http://www.tmz.com/2012/06/08/evander-holyfield-georgia-mansion-sold-auction/).

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