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Holyfield may fight Sanders at Emperors Palace in October
Clinton Van Der Berg Published:Jul 08, 2007 /Suntimes.co.za
Evander Holyfield versus Corrie Sanders.
Promoter Rodney Berman may need to supply Salusa 45 for the pair of ageing warriors, but that isn’t stopping him from trying to land the fight for Emperors Palace in October.
On Wednesday he will meet Pat English, lawyer for Main Events, Holyfield’s promotion company, in New York. “Pat called and asked about the possibility,” said Berman, who told English Sanders had broken his hand in his last fight and wouldn’t be able to box until October. English said that would be fine, as Holyfield needed the time to recover after beating Lou Savarese in Texas last weekend.
Berman painted a win-win scenario for Sanders.
“This is heaven-sent because if he beats Holyfield, he’s right back up there. And if he loses, he’ll pocket close to R2-million. The motivation’s there.”
Berman is pushing hard. It’s Golden Gloves’ 30th anniversary year, and he knows the appeal of Holyfield, even at 44, will be substantial. T he “Real Deal” was mobbed in South Africa 10 years ago on a promotional visit. He is the only four-time heavyweight champion and was involved in boxing’s most infamous bout : the Bite Fight against Mike Tyson a decade ago when a chunk of his right ear was bitten off.
Sanders, 41, who broke his hand in a May fight against Daniel Bispo, was thrilled about the possibility.
“The injury is coming along nicely. At my age it’s harder to be motivated, but I’ll be in much better condition for a Holyfield fight. “It might be two old guys but we have lots of ambition,” said the former WBO champion, who asked only for good-quality sparring. Berman has promised to import US fighters for just that. In the meantime, ex-cruiserweight champion Sebastiaan Rothmann is being roped in to assist with fitness training.
Takis Christodoulou, Sanders’ manager, said the fighter would be in better condition than he was recently. “A fight with Holyfield is effectively a world title eliminator,” he said from Cyprus.
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Clinton Van Der Berg Published:Jul 08, 2007 /Suntimes.co.za
Evander Holyfield versus Corrie Sanders.
Promoter Rodney Berman may need to supply Salusa 45 for the pair of ageing warriors, but that isn’t stopping him from trying to land the fight for Emperors Palace in October.
On Wednesday he will meet Pat English, lawyer for Main Events, Holyfield’s promotion company, in New York. “Pat called and asked about the possibility,” said Berman, who told English Sanders had broken his hand in his last fight and wouldn’t be able to box until October. English said that would be fine, as Holyfield needed the time to recover after beating Lou Savarese in Texas last weekend.
Berman painted a win-win scenario for Sanders.
“This is heaven-sent because if he beats Holyfield, he’s right back up there. And if he loses, he’ll pocket close to R2-million. The motivation’s there.”
Berman is pushing hard. It’s Golden Gloves’ 30th anniversary year, and he knows the appeal of Holyfield, even at 44, will be substantial. T he “Real Deal” was mobbed in South Africa 10 years ago on a promotional visit. He is the only four-time heavyweight champion and was involved in boxing’s most infamous bout : the Bite Fight against Mike Tyson a decade ago when a chunk of his right ear was bitten off.
Sanders, 41, who broke his hand in a May fight against Daniel Bispo, was thrilled about the possibility.
“The injury is coming along nicely. At my age it’s harder to be motivated, but I’ll be in much better condition for a Holyfield fight. “It might be two old guys but we have lots of ambition,” said the former WBO champion, who asked only for good-quality sparring. Berman has promised to import US fighters for just that. In the meantime, ex-cruiserweight champion Sebastiaan Rothmann is being roped in to assist with fitness training.
Takis Christodoulou, Sanders’ manager, said the fighter would be in better condition than he was recently. “A fight with Holyfield is effectively a world title eliminator,” he said from Cyprus.
ww
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