Former undisputed cruiserweight and heavyweight king Evander Holyfield has admitted that he would have lost to Mike Tyson had they fought when ‘Iron Mike’ was in his prime.
In a resurfaced interview, ‘The Real Deal’ had admitted that he was fortunate to fight Tyson when he was past his best, with prime Tyson being ‘unbeatable’.
Evander Holyfield Admits He Would’ve Lost To Prime Mike Tyson
When it comes to boxing greats and icons of the sport, Evander Holyfield is one of the best fighters the world has ever seen.
‘The Real Deal’ is a former undisputed cruiserweight champion of the world, before then moving up to heavyweight and repeating the feat. Holyfield became the first fighter in boxing history to win the undisputed championship at both cruiserweight and heavyweight.
During his illustrious career, Holyfield faced the likes of George Foreman, Lennox Lewis and Riddick Bowe to name but a few of his past opponents. Another man who he shared the ring with, on two occasions, was Mike Tyson.
In a recent interview that has resurfaced, Holyfield has admitted that he fought Tyson at the right time in their respective careers.
Holyfield has admitted that had he have fought ‘Iron Mike’ during his prime years, he would have been ‘unbeatable’.
“Unbeatable. When you didn’t know what Tyson was going to do, everybody was in trouble.
“He changed up and got into a rhythm that everybody does and he became beatable. I was fortunate enough to fight him when he was beatable,” Holyfield concluded.
Although Holyfield will forever be known for beating Mike Tyson, he himself is under no illusions that it could have been a completely different story had he have fought Tyson at his formidable best.
How Many Times Did Evander Holyfield Beat Mike Tyson?
Evander Holyfield and Mike Tyson shared the ring on two separate occasions. It was Holyfield who won both fights in November 1996 and June 1997 respectively.
In 1996, ‘The Real Deal’ challenged ‘Iron Mike’ for his WBA World Heavyweight Title in what was their first duel. On that occasion, Holyfield stopped Tyson in the 11th round to secure the knockout victory.
Just over seven months later in June 1997, they fought for a second time. This rematch remains one of the most controversial fights of all time, with Tyson getting disqualified midway through the third round after biting a chunk from Holyfield’s ear.
Tyson, who is one of a number of boxers who fought after an arrest, was fined $3million for biting Holyfield’s ear in the rematch. He was also ordered to pay all legal fees.
When Was The Infamous Mike Tyson Ear Bite Of Evander Holyfield?
As previously outlined, Mike Tyson and Evander Holyfield shared the ring on two separate occasions.
‘The Real Deal’ got his hand raised in both fights, winning the first in 1996 via 11th round knockout before then winning the second fight in November 1997 via disqualification.
The reason for the DQ win in favor of Holyfield was of course due to the infamous ear biting incident.
Midway through the third round, with Holyfield clearly on top in the fight and frustrating Tyson, ‘Iron Mike’ tore a part of Holyfield’s ear off with his teeth after an aggressive bite.
To this day, this fight remains one of the most talked about bouts in boxing history. This is of course due to the ear biting incident rather than the boxing action itself.
