Is Evander Holyfield Deluded Or Could He Reclaim A Heavyweight Belt One More Time?
By Michael Woods May 22nd, 2006Is the Real Deal really deluded or not?
Is he delusional?
Should friends and family stage an intervention?
Or could Evander Holyfield really do it again, stave off the inevitable decline of aging and regain a heavyweight title?
I’m leaning towards the intervention, myself, but stranger things have happened than Holyfield defying the insistent, firm hands of Father Time and reclaiming a title belt. Nicolay Valuev, no severe offense intended, does after all hold the WBA belt, and no one out there in pundit land sees him as anything close to invincible.
At 43, Holyfield has lost his last three fights and has not gloved up since he lost to Larry Donald in November 2004.
But he will not fade away and enjoy the fruits of his glorious labors. Holyfield told Sky Sports: “I don’t think there’s a lot of people that want me to quit.
“If people really knew me, they know I’m supposed to be on top, and that’s how I am supposed to retire.
“When people have faith and they are looking for a way to retire, they want it to be on top.
“It’s not the way that you start, it’s the way that you end.
“How many people are still a champ when they retired? I choose to retire as a champion.”
Sounds scary to me. I’m for self confidence and all, but the writing has been on the wall, in glowing neon, for some time. The speech is slurry, the disconnect between the brain and body is immense. Am I wrong, TSS readers? Feel free to leave a comment and weigh in: should Holyfield call it a day and leave the rigors of the savage science to the next generation? Or would he have a chance against Valuev?
(Email news tips to Michael Woods at Fightwrite@gmail.com)
May 22nd, 2006 at 4:30 pm
Holyfield is my favorite fighter,but enough is enough,he should retire.But the Donald fight was a bad matchup of styles to begin with,i knew he would outpoint Holyfield,and there was nothing to gain by fighting him.With the hvwt div a mess you cant blame him,hed probably lose at this point even to such a limited fighter as Valuev,but maybe he wins…….That could be good or bad,if he retires good,but if he tries to defend the belt….well you know the rest lol
May 22nd, 2006 at 5:12 pm
The “Real Deal” will shock the world. He will once again be champ. Let him alone! No one should tell him to stop fighting because of stereotypes about old fighter, and this mad, youth obessed society. Holyfield’s age is not a death sentence.
May 22nd, 2006 at 5:38 pm
Please, Mr. Holyfield, RETIRE and enjoy your money and the women in Atlanta! Since his 2nd fight with Tyson, Holyfield’s skills have been on the decline. We all love the guy and his contributions to the sweet science, but he has to believe in his ability to build a life beyond sports.
Isn’t there anything else this man wants to do with his time?
DK
May 22nd, 2006 at 8:32 pm
Whoever wrote the article about Mike Tyson being a ‘myth’ obviously has minimal intelligence about the sport and a very short memory. Please tell me who Mike Tyson dodged on his way to the heavyweight crown in his prime from 1985 to 1991 before prison? O.K, Lennox Lewis beat Mike Tyson in 2002. Wasn’t this 16 years after he first won the title? For comparison, was Muhammed Ali, who was beaten to a pulp by Larry Holmes, the same fighter in 1980 as he was 16 years earlier in 1964 when he first won the title? I don’t think so.
Lennox Lewis is a good fighter but has a glass jaw. To go down from one punch only in the second and fifth rounds of a fight when you’re a great heavyweight doesn’t look too good on your record. When Mike Tyson has been knocked out, he has taken a barrage of punches to go down. Does this poor excuse of a writer remember Holyfield hanging off the ropes with knees on ground going down in fights against Riddick Bowe and Bert Cooper in his early reign as Champion. Do you remember the articles in the boxing magazines saying at that time that he was a very weak champion, and that with every title defence he loses respect? No, all they remember is Tyson being TKO’d in the 11th round after regaining the title, when released from jail. Do you realise the guy had only fought 8 rounds of boxing in 4 years when he fought Holyfield? Was Muhammed Ali the same fighter after losing 3 years of boxing? No, he came out and lost to Joe Frazier, and was decked in the 15th round.Do you remember when Lewis was clubbered by Hasim Rahman, how many writers said he was not a great champion? Then when he won the rematch, he was suddenly an all time great. You writers piss me off the way you change your minds so quickly and the way you judge these guys who have the guts to get in the ring.
Please remember when you judge a fighter, or any athlete, you judge him when he was in his prime. Not when he just fights for the money as Mike Tyson has clearly done since returning to the ring from jail.
The great Roberto Duran who has had many highs and also lows, many losses, quit in the 8th round against Leonard, knocked out clean in 2 rounds by hearns by 1 punch. Why is he rated by Ring magazine as the 4th greatest fighter pound for pound in history in 2002/3? Some of you writers have got no idea. Anyway, thank God I remind myself that it is only some misguided fools opinion!
May 22nd, 2006 at 9:06 pm
Evander, run away quickly.
Determination and delusion is a dangerous mix, especially for a fighter.
Holyfield is both and it’s going to see him hurt.
‘The Real Deal’ loses in his next fight, whoever the opponent is.
I stopped watching Holyfield after he was thrashed by James Toney, because I want to remember Holyfield when he upset the odds by beating Riddick Bowe and Mike Tyson.
Holyfield is upsetting me now. He’s a danger to himself, like Ali, like any number of men who fought too long.
Hopefully no sanctioning body will approve of another fight. The WBA certainly shouldn’t agree to a fight with Nicolay Valuev.
Use your head Evander, not your heart.
May 22nd, 2006 at 10:56 pm
How can you be a fan of this sport and not love Evander Holyfield?
Last time I heard him speak he sounded fine, but if he’s starting to slur, well, that would be heartbreaking considering he has earned tremendous purses and truly didn’t need to fight as long as he did.
I was taught about Marciano. I tell my son about Ali, Holyfield and Lewis.
May 23rd, 2006 at 12:38 am
Holyfield is a hopeful! Everyone enjoys the underdog card he presents, but a giant killer he is no more. Would Valuev wish to be known as one of the many to inflict irreparable damage upon a boxing great? I think not. Such as Foreman and ali? Holyfield has heart but will not quit, so how can a boxing commission allow something like this? Maybe if Holyfield showed signs of his yesteryears… What about a Lewis Vs. Valuev that would rock.
May 23rd, 2006 at 2:20 am
Holyfield is still in his youth compared to what society wants to tell him. Hey, Real Deal do your thang and when you WIN Big, retire on them and then God will say ” Job Well Done My Son “. And just as they told George Foreman, and all can say History will repeat itself with you Real Deal.
God says ” Favor is not fair “, you will have Favor and some. Just keep God in your corner and you will come out on TOP again.
HAIL TO THE REAL DEAL, HAIL TO THE REAL DEAL,
HAIL TO THE REAL DEAL, HAIL TO THE REAL DEAL,
HAIL TO THE REAL DEAL, HAIL TO THE REAL DEAL,
HAIL TO THE REAL DEAL.
There are your 7 comfirmations!!
May 23rd, 2006 at 3:12 am
Holyfield PLEASE retire! Even though none of these “heavyweight champions” right now are unbeatable I’m pretty sure that if you can’t beat Larry Donald you can’t beat any of them.
May 23rd, 2006 at 10:19 am
“I don’t think there’s a lot of people that want me to quit.”
Those people are fringe heavyweight contenders looking for a name fighter to feast on. Holyfield doesn’t even represent/guarantee box office success any more. King got tired of dancing for him because he wasn’t making any money in prolonging his career. So Holy responds by claiming that it’s King who’s past his prime, and that he (holy) isn’t being properly promoted.
Even more so than his own refusal to accept that he’s done as a fighter, Holy’s greatest problem today is that he wants to have his cake and eat it too. He claims that he’s only sticking around because he believes that he can reclaim the undisputed HVY title, yet has turned down NUMEROUS fights along the way because he didn’t like the payday attached. There was only so much in the pot for the July 29 PPV card. Roy was willing to accept short money for the sake of taking what he believes to be a winnable fight.
But not Holy - no amount they offered for FRANK WOOD was enough to satisfy him. What that tells me is that he doesn’t truly believe he can regain the title; in fact, it tells me that he’s not even sure he can beat Frank Wood. And just incase he can’t, he wants to be properly compensated.
At one point, he was the highest paid boxer in the world. His name no longer carries that weight at the box office. He seems to be the last one to realize that.
May 23rd, 2006 at 1:02 pm
Holyfield is done. He’s had a great career, he will be remembered in the top 10 HW’s of all-time, but he’s just too old, slow, and small. He has the heart of a champion and the ego, but someone close to him needs to get through his thick (punch drunk) skull and get him to walk away. He’s the richest HW champion in history, he’s overcome heart problems, naysayers, and shocked the world by beating a very dangerous Mike Tyson, and that’s the problem. He feels invinsible, but his reflexes are gone and he can’t put two punches together after the third rd. It’s time to retire and play with the kids and probably grandkids by now.
May 23rd, 2006 at 9:45 pm
Forget about Holyfield, Its Atlantas own True Champion O’neil SuperNova Bell!!!!!! O’ Neil Bell Vs James Lights Out Toney. The Fight of the Year!!!!!! Lets Make it Happen!!!!!!!!
May 23rd, 2006 at 11:31 pm
DELUDED. PERIOD!!!
May 24th, 2006 at 3:46 pm
I always been a fan of Evander but I am afraid he will only quit when he dies in the ring.
May 24th, 2006 at 5:47 pm
RETIRE &…. QUICK!
May 24th, 2006 at 6:01 pm
The poor guy is unable and unwilling to let go of this quest to become the undisputed champ again. He apparently can’t accept that he no longer has the requisite abilities to compete on the highest echelon in the divsion. He is either completely delusional or he knows he can’t fight anymore and needs the money. He has at least 10 children and has gone through expensive divorce proceedings several times. In spite of all he’s made he might not have kept as much as we’d expect. My guess is he’s delusional and really believes he can do it. He’s a highly religious and spiritual man who clearly believes the lord will bestow this miracle on him.
May 24th, 2006 at 10:01 pm
Evander is looking more and more like an aging Muhammad Ali - NOT in style, but in the fact that both called it quits WAYYYYYY to late in a career that, rather than reaping the hall of fame success that both deserve, reaped the years of punishment that their hearts were too big to give in to. Let’s hope that Holyfield, a living legend, rides into the sunset. He doesn’t need a belt to be champ.
May 25th, 2006 at 4:57 am
He’d still be a draw if they made Danny Williams versus Evander Holyfield in the UK, equally he could earn well from a match with Kevin McBride in Boston or Ireland.
I’d also venture fights with Vidoz in Italy and other national champions etc would still generate huge interest in the respect countries.
Holyfield beating these guys would not woo the American public who’ve seen him flogged too many times, but it wouldn’t suprise me if it earnt him sanctioning body points and ultimatley a title shot.
The downside of course is that fighters like Holyfield could well lose to anyone now.