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Evander Holyfield's monicker was "The Real Deal", and justly so. He was the first and only undisputed cruiserweight champ ever, held a version of the heavyweight crown 4 times, including the undisputed title. He participated in 2 fights of the years, in his 1992 loss to Rid**** Bowe, and his 1996 title winning 11th round TKO of Mike Tyson. But he was a little inconsistent.
He won the undisputed Heavyweight title with his 3rd round KO of James "Buster" Douglas, but lost it to Rid**** Bowe in a classic confrontation. After regaining 2/3 of the title back after avenging the defeat, he lost the crown in his next effort against Michael Moorer.
In the Moorer fight, he began to experience the adverse effects of hepatitis B, which he claims he contracted from seafood. After taking a unanimous decision against Ray Mercer, he fought the rubber match with Rid**** Bowe. Bowe was winning the fight easily as Holyfield couldn't muster the strength to put up a competitive fight. Holyfield struck gold in the 6th, flooring the Brownsville native for the first time in his career. But his rally was short-lived, as he was dropped 2 times in the 8th and was stopped by Bowe.
Seemingly done in the fight game, Mike Tyson planned to take apart Holyfield to give his comeback some much needed credibility. Only thing is that Holyfield didn't play along, stopping "Iron Mike" in the 11th round in 1996's upset of the year. After getting bit on the ear in the rematch, it was clear Holyfield was back.
After knocking out Michael Moorer for the IBF belt, he ran into a 6'5 wall named Lennox Lewis in 1999. In one of the worst decisions in the history of boxing, Holyfield escaped with the IBF/WBA titles with a draw. After losing the rematch, he beat Ruiz for the WBA strap to win his 4th heavyweight puzzle piece. He lost the rematch and got a draw in the rubber match before going 1-3 in his next 4 fights, including getting stopped by James Toney in the 9th round.
So how great was Evander? Ring Magazine in 1998 put him as the 3rd best heavyweight of all time. I don't see him as one of the top heavyweights of all time. He was tough as hell, but only won the title 4 times because he lost it, like Ray Robinson and the middleweight title. What do you think? Is he a top 5 heavyweight? I place him at 10, right behind George Foreman and before Sonny Liston.
He won the undisputed Heavyweight title with his 3rd round KO of James "Buster" Douglas, but lost it to Rid**** Bowe in a classic confrontation. After regaining 2/3 of the title back after avenging the defeat, he lost the crown in his next effort against Michael Moorer.
In the Moorer fight, he began to experience the adverse effects of hepatitis B, which he claims he contracted from seafood. After taking a unanimous decision against Ray Mercer, he fought the rubber match with Rid**** Bowe. Bowe was winning the fight easily as Holyfield couldn't muster the strength to put up a competitive fight. Holyfield struck gold in the 6th, flooring the Brownsville native for the first time in his career. But his rally was short-lived, as he was dropped 2 times in the 8th and was stopped by Bowe.
Seemingly done in the fight game, Mike Tyson planned to take apart Holyfield to give his comeback some much needed credibility. Only thing is that Holyfield didn't play along, stopping "Iron Mike" in the 11th round in 1996's upset of the year. After getting bit on the ear in the rematch, it was clear Holyfield was back.
After knocking out Michael Moorer for the IBF belt, he ran into a 6'5 wall named Lennox Lewis in 1999. In one of the worst decisions in the history of boxing, Holyfield escaped with the IBF/WBA titles with a draw. After losing the rematch, he beat Ruiz for the WBA strap to win his 4th heavyweight puzzle piece. He lost the rematch and got a draw in the rubber match before going 1-3 in his next 4 fights, including getting stopped by James Toney in the 9th round.
So how great was Evander? Ring Magazine in 1998 put him as the 3rd best heavyweight of all time. I don't see him as one of the top heavyweights of all time. He was tough as hell, but only won the title 4 times because he lost it, like Ray Robinson and the middleweight title. What do you think? Is he a top 5 heavyweight? I place him at 10, right behind George Foreman and before Sonny Liston.
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