Mike Tyson (USA) vs Evander Holyfield (USA) American professional heavyweight Mike Tyson (45–1, 39 KOs – pre-fight record) against the undisputedly powerful and skilled champion in cruiser weight in late and at heavyweight Evander Holyfield (32–3, 23 KOs – pre-match record). The fight took place at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Paradise, Nevada, on November 9, 1996. Spectacular boxing match, HD.
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First years
Tyson and Holyfield became acquainted while preparing for the 1984 Summer Olympics, both on the “losing team” who came second in place of their much higher rated No. 1 teammates. However, Holyfield defeated Ricky Womack twice and made it to the Olympic team, while Tyson failed to make it through, losing to Henry Tillman on points.
After that, Tyson gradually became a power in heavyweight while Holyfield went on to win bronze in Los Angeles. In 1986, Tyson became the youngest boxer to ever win a world heavyweight title when he knocked out Trevor Berbick in the second round to win the World Boxing Council title as part of a series of consecutive fights designed to to unify the belts of WBC, WBA. , and the International Boxing Federation and created an undisputed world champion. The following year, Tyson won two more championships to become the first boxer since Leon Spinks became the undisputed world heavyweight champion.
Holyfield rose through the ranks of the light heavyweight division before making his name in a cruiser weight class. In a relatively nascent league – considered only a title weight class since 1979 – Holyfield quickly became the first undisputed champion to win all three of the sanctioning bodies’ titles. big. He ascended to heavyweight in 1988 and continued his promotion. By 1990, he was looking to challenge Tyson to a fight, and after some tough negotiation, the two boxers would agree to fight later that year.
Tyson lost to Buster Douglas, whom he had planned as a proper fight for the Holyfield match, falsifying that plan. Holyfield was given the first shot at the new champion and won the third knockout. Tyson, meanwhile, enters the fight with Canadian heavyweight Donovan Ruddock and the winner will face Holyfield. However, a controversial ending to the bout, which Tyson won by technical knockout, resulted in an immediate rematch and further delay of the Tyson vs Holyfield bout. After Tyson won a decisive victory, a fight was signed on November 18, 1991. An injury and Tyson’s subsequent conviction for rape in 1992 brought the fight to an indefinite halt. , because Tyson was sentenced to six years in prison.
The current
Holyfield, meanwhile, continued to reign as the undisputed champion until losing to Riddick Bowe in November 1992. He would regain the WBA and IBF titles from Bowe in a rematch next year, then lost to Michael Moorer in 1994. Holyfield was later forced into retirement due to a misdiagnosed heart condition, only to return a year later. He fought Bowe again in the fall, was knocked out for the first time in his career, then fought former cruiser heavyweight world champion Bobby Czyz and knocked him out.
Tyson was released from prison in 1995 and continued his career to great fanfare. He fought journeyman Peter McNeeley in his first fight and then, in front of a national television audience, knocked out fringe rival Buster Mathis, Jr. who knocked out Lennox Lewis in 1994, and Frank Bruno, a veteran British contender who fought and lost to Tyson in his first championship title, to face him in his next bout. surname. Bruno defeated McCall by decision, but was then defeated by Tyson in the third round.
Tyson will be stripped of his title for agreeing to fight WBA champion Bruce Seldon in his next bout instead of Lewis, the leading contender. He knocked out Seldon in the first round and a fight was set with Holyfield, who despite his former champion pedigree is considered past its prime.
To prepare to fight Tyson, Holyfield hired Mike Weaver, a former WBA champion, as his personal assistant. He also recruited David Tua, the WBC champion, whose style and anthropometry closely resembles Tyson, as his competition partner.
Underlined
Showtime promoted the event as a frontrunner in the heavyweight title, as two other champions were also defending their titles that night. In total, five people (including Tyson) were scrambled for that night.
Another bout featured star boxer Christy Martin, who has already achieved some fame and is becoming a star; she defeated Bethany Payne by knockout in the first round.
Undefeated WBC World Minimum Champion Ricardo Lopez knocked out rival Morgan Ndumo in the sixth round to retain the title.
WBA super bantamweight champion Antonio Cermeno defeated Eddy Saenz after his opponent decided not to advance in the fifth round.
The first of three heavyweight title fights followed. The IBF title match took place with Michael Moorer against Francois Botha. Moorer had previously beaten Axel Schulz in 1996 because the title had been stripped from midfield champion George Foreman; Botha had beaten Schulz in a previous match to claim the vacant title but the result was vacated due to a doping violation. Moorer knocked out the previously undefeated Botha in the final round to retain the title.
The last match before the main event was the World Boxing Organization championship. Henry Akinwande, a British boxer who defeated Jeremy Williams for the Riddick Bowe belt, vacated to set up his third and final bout with Holyfield, against former North American Boxing Federation champion Alexander Zolkin. Akinwande won with a tenth round knockout in his first title defense.
Fight
Tyson rushed out very quickly and sent Holyfield reeling with the first solid punch. Holyfield, who had studied Tyson’s style closely, then explained that Tyson had dropped back to his left, from a position where he usually makes a left hook, but on this occasion Holyfield caused a surprise. surprised when throwing a cross on the right. Holyfield ties Tyson up and reveals the first surprise of the fight, his overwhelming strength, as he pushes Tyson backwards. Tyson would never seriously injure Holyfield for the rest of the fight. Holyfield defended effectively for the remainder of the first half and used Tyson’s counterattack. At the end of the round, Tyson threw a punch after the bell; an unwary Holyfield retaliated. In the second minute, Holyfield cornered Tyson into a rope position and stabbed him with a difficult combination, and his strategy for the match became clear. Since Tyson was essentially throwing one punch at a time, Holyfield blocked the first attack, then used his strength to squeeze and push Tyson backwards. Keeping Tyson on his back foot minimized his power and affected his balance, and also gave Holyfield the opportunity to jump up and score with headers.
As the rounds went on, Tyson couldn’t adjust, and found himself completely sidetracked. In round 5, Tyson coordinated fiercely, at the end of the match, Holyfield did not wobble. In season six, a headbutt from Holyfield (judged by Halpern as accidental) opened a cut above Tyson’s left eye, and Tyson was also knocked down, as Holyfield caught him with a left hook. in the chest as Tyson rushed in. Holyfield continued to dodge Tyson’s blow and caught him with punches to the head. With 15 seconds remaining in the seventh round, Tyson lunged at Holyfield as Holyfield moved forward, resulting in a strong collision. Tyson cried out in pain and fell to his knees, but again the umpire dismissed the headbutt as unintentional. Tyson was examined by the ring doctor and tied up Holyfield for the remainder of the round. Over the next two innings, Tyson continued to miss fierce punches and receive counterattacks from Holyfield. At the end of the tenth round, a punch from Holyfield sent Tyson staggered across the ring. Holyfield chases him into the ropes and lands in a series of devastating blows. By the sound of the bell, Tyson was out of the way and defenseless, but his corner allowed him out for the eleventh time. Holyfield quickly landed another brutal expansion combination, pushing Tyson back onto the ropes.
Halpern had seen enough, and he stopped the fight, giving Holyfield one of the most famous upset victories in boxing history. Holyfield also became the first person since Muhammad Ali to win the heavyweight title three times, although, unlike Ali, Holyfield’s third championship wasn’t for the heavyweight title held by George Foreman at that time. During his post-match press conference, Tyson told Holyfield: “Thank you very much. I have the greatest respect for you.”
