Evander Holyfield

[Demorak]

I have nothing but respect for Evander. He might not be the best fighter of all time but he certanly has the biggest heart.

And I hope he will pick up another belt and then retire.

[Lance Uppercut]

Yeah, I agree with pretty much all of the above. With the exception of the Ruiz fights Holyfield never gave us a dull performance. Even today, that Saverese fight was probably the best heavyweight bout of the year (sadly)

Also in regards to the Lenox Lewis bouts, yes Holyfield lost the first bout IMO even though it was called a draw BUT Evander absolutely won their re-match! No doubt in my mind. Yet when people go back in history they assume Lewis owned Holyfield and was a better all time boxer because of it, NOT TRUE AT ALL. I think a third match was needed for those two.

[porlie]

Yeah, I agree with pretty much all of the above. With the exception of the Ruiz fights Holyfield never gave us a dull performance. Even today, that Saverese fight was probably the best heavyweight bout of the year (sadly)

Also in regards to the Lenox Lewis bouts, yes Holyfield lost the first bout IMO even though it was called a draw BUT Evander absolutely won their re-match! No doubt in my mind. Yet when people go back in history they assume Lewis owned Holyfield and was a better all time boxer because of it, NOT TRUE AT ALL. I think a third match was needed for those two.

Ruiz made that fight boring tho, It wasnt Evanders fault.
I make you right on his fight with Saverse being best HW fight of the year, it shows Evander has got something special that the other HWs havent.
Aye I agree Holyfield defintley won the rematch with Lewis, true boxing fans know that Lewis wasnt better then Holyfield.
I liked how Holyfield could fight effectively in different ways, up on his toes moving, standing his ground and slugging, plus he has shown his chins good.
Evander is what a champ should be all about.

[Thunder Lips]

Also in regards to the Lenox Lewis bouts, yes Holyfield lost the first bout IMO even though it was called a draw BUT Evander absolutely won their re-match! No doubt in my mind. Yet when people go back in history they assume Lewis owned Holyfield and was a better all time boxer because of it, NOT TRUE AT ALL. I think a third match was needed for those two.

That second fight is so frustrating to watch for me. When Evander turned it up and actually got active, he was jabbing the hell out of Lewis and rocking him with big punches. It was apparent that he could take over the fight at will....but only in spurts, and I think he took more than a few rounds off while Lewis racked up the points with well...partially blocked and flat out blocked jabs. I think those body jabs hurt and drained Lewis and Holyfield actually looked fresher by fights end, but he just couldn't seem to stay busy and get more punches off.

I do agree with Foreman's observation that Evander probably did enough to get by, but after the controversy of the first fight that wasn't going to happen. Shame. A third fight was needed even though it was becoming more and more apparent that Evander was slowing down considerably; but who knows how it would have went down if it actually happened?

[titoi]

Don't want to start a flame war or anything, but as admirable as Holyfield's battles have been, no discussion of him should discount the likelihood that he used steroids to bulk up. To me, this seriously taints his career & legacy.

[COOP407]

I like him as a fighter, but certain things need to mentioned. He beat an overweight clubfighter to take the title. He struggled with Foreman, Holmes, and almost got knocked out by Bert Cooper. Prior to winning the title, he struggled with over-the-hill Michael Dokes, and a journeyman in Alex Stewart (twice). Yes, he beat Mike Tyson, but pretty much everyone agrees that Mike was a shot fighter in disguise by then.

[Hydro]

I like him as a fighter, but certain things need to mentioned. He beat an overweight clubfighter to take the title. He struggled with Foreman, Holmes, and almost got knocked out by Bert Cooper. Prior to winning the title, he struggled with over-the-hill Michael Dokes, and a journeyman in Alex Stewart (twice). Yes, he beat Mike Tyson, but pretty much everyone agrees that Mike was a shot fighter in disguise by then.

They were both past their prime, but Holyfield was the one whom people thought was shot going in.

People, because of hope or their unrealistic expectations, thought Tyson in 1996 was the Tyson of old.

But really, both guys had seen better days. Holyfield adapted better as he got older than Tyson did.

[Ironside]

as for an exciting fighter, Holyfield is definetaly one of the most exciting fighters of all time, i think he has a top notch resume and hes a definite all-time great.

[Thunder Lips]

I like him as a fighter, but certain things need to mentioned. He beat an overweight clubfighter to take the title. He struggled with Foreman, Holmes, and almost got knocked out by Bert Cooper.

I haven't seen the other fights in some time but Holyfield most certainly did not struggle against Foreman. Obviously, he couldn't knock the big man out but he came pretty damn close before easing off in the last couple rounds and cut the big guy some slack. Holyfield scored with ease, and at wrost took the few shots that glanced or caught him very well. He got hurt by a clubbing shot in the seventh but quickly recovered and won the round. He won almost every round but maybe one or two for crying out loud. And old man Foreman wasn't exactly a push over, the guy was smart, still hit like a truck, was very durable, and most of all very hungry.

The overweight clubfighter did win the title from Tyson, Holyfield can't help it if he showed up for a payday. At any rate, he did what your suppose to do to overweight clubfighters. Can't fault him for that.

[COOP407]

I agree, I'm just saying that most of the reason people give Evander such a high place on the all-time list is because of his wins over Tyson. Tyson, although we didn't know it at the time, was only a shell of his former self. And if we all agree that Tyson was no longer a great fighter at that time, then why does Evander get such high marks for beating him? I'm just saying that while Holyfield does possess all the attributes of a great fighter, perhaps his resume is not as impressive as it appears at first glance.