MIKE TYSON REJECTS $25,000,000 GUARANTEE TO FIGHT EVANDER HOLYFIELD AT HARD ROCK STADIUM IN MIAMI ON MAY 29th
Representatives of Evander Holyfield expressed frustration after Mike Tyson’s representatives refused to accept a $25,000,000 guarantee from Team Holyfield to participate in Tyson v Holyfield 3 at the Hard Rock Stadium to kick off Memorial Day weekend. The parties have been in intense negotiations for several months and Team Holyfield sincerely believed a deal was imminent, especially after the Hard Rock threw its support behind the project, and there were multiple other offers conveyed to Team Tyson. However, Team Tyson’s demands recently became untenable, and not what Mike Tyson had originally agreed on in direct conversations with Holyfield.
The event was to occur at the beautiful Hard Rock Stadium, home of the Miami Dolphins NFL franchise, Super Bowl games, and many other world class sporting events and entertainment, and would have been the ideal setting for the trilogy finale of this great rivalry between two of the greatest legends in the history of boxing. While neither side has announced publicly that the fight is not going to happen, with negotiations at a standstill and the date rapidly approaching, it seems unlikely that this fight will occur as planned.
“We thought this was a done deal but it quickly fell apart when Tyson’s people declined all offers,” said Kris Lawrence, Evander Holyfield’s manager. “We were negotiating in good faith all along and it appears we just ended up wasting our time.”
Evander Holyfield’s Camp Claims Mike Tyson Fight Not Happening, ‘Deal Fell Apart’
Welp, sounds like Mike Tyson vs. Evander Holyfield is officially dead … Evander’s camp says negotiations for a 3rd fight between the boxing legends have fallen apart.
“We thought this was a done deal but it quickly fell apart when Tyson’s people declined all offers,” Kris Lawrence said.
“We were negotiating in good faith all along and it appears we just ended up wasting our time.”
As we previously reported, 54-year-old Tyson announced on his podcast last week that he’ll be returning to the ring on May 29 in a massive event at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami.
Tyson didn’t name his opponent — but all signs pointed to his old nemesis, 58-year-old Evander Holyfield.
Now, Evander’s camp confirms the two sides were in serious talks — “intense negotiations for several months” — but the deal ultimately went south.
“Team Holyfield sincerely believed a deal was imminent, especially after the Hard Rock threw its support behind the project, and there were multiple other offers conveyed to Team Tyson,” Holyfield’s camp said in a statement.
“However, Team Tyson’s demands recently became untenable, and not what Mike Tyson had originally agreed on in direct conversations with Holyfield.”
Sources tell TMZ Sports … Evander claims he personally spoke with Mike on the phone early on in negotiations and they agreed to a 50/50 split on profit.
But, things changed … with Evander’s camp claiming Team Tyson simply wanted a bigger cut.
Holyfield’s team says they tried to make a deal in which Tyson would get a guaranteed $25 mil for the fight — but Mike turned it down.
Now, it seems both sides are at loggerheads — and willing to walk away from the deal.
Our sources on the Holyfield side tell us Evander still wants to fight — if Mike’s people will come back to the table with a better offer.
So, there’s still hope … but right now, it’s not looking good.
Evander and Mike last fought in 1997 … and it ended with Tyson biting a chunk out of Evander’s ear. Holyfield’s last pro fight was in 2011, when he earned a TKO victory over Brian Nielsen.
