The series of fights between Mike Tyson and Evander Holyfield were some of the most lucrative and popular in boxing history. Much was written about the showdown before it finally happened for the first time in 1996.
Since the late 1980s, with Holyfield‘s rise to heavyweight after having been cruiserweight champion, the fight had been brewing. Then came Tyson‘s historic loss to ‘Buster’ Douglas in 1990.
Shock
The shocking result left ‘Iron Mike’, who was undisputed heavyweight king, without his three belts. Warrior, meanwhile, manoeuvred quickly and managed to get a fight with Douglas, who managed to get away from Don King to make the fight.
With Holyfield already champion, in 1991 Tyson gave up a tidy sum to go against George Foreman in exchange for a shot at regaining his throne, although facing ‘Big George’ provided him with a much bigger payday.
Unfortunately, an injury to Tyson while training forced the fight to be postponed for two months. Prior to the fight, the Brooklyn fighter was sentenced to three years in prison for rape.
After his release, Holyfield won the first by TKO in the eleventh round and the rematch ended with Tyson‘s disqualification for biting.
Speaking to World Boxing News, Holyfield discussed Tyson and his legacy.
“Not at all, it [the bite] didn’t tarnish his legacy. When you talk about Tyson, you have to talk about how good he was, the incredible things he did. He was the youngest heavyweight champion then and he still is. He was the youngest heavyweight champion at 20 years old and I was 28 years old, and I had an apprenticeship,” Holyfield said.
“Mike and I were in the same group trying to make the Olympic team [in 1984]. I made it, but he didn’t. We have someone who could have quit, but he stuck with what he wanted to do and became amazing in the 1980s,” he said.