Evander Holyfield wants to take on Mike Tyson one more time. After watching Tyson battle Roy Jones Jr. to a draw on Saturday night in an exhibition match, Holyfield announced a third bout between him and Tyson would be “a global event and the only fight that anyone wants to see.” Holyfield has beaten Tyson in the last two matches which happened in the 1990s.
“My side tried to make the fight happen and we got nothing but excuses,” Holyfield said in a news release on Tuesday as reported by ESPN. “Now I can see why he wanted a tuneup fight before thinking about fighting me. No more excuses. This is the fight that must happen for both our legacies. Saturday night you said you were ready to fight me, so sign the contract and get in the ring, Tyson. The world is waiting and it’s on you now. I’m ready.”
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After his bout with Jones Jr., Tyson revealed that he would like to fight again. However, in order for the third match with Holyfield to happen, Tyson said the middleman needs to go.
“Maybe Evander needs to talk to me because every time my business associates talk to his business associates, it doesn’t turn out well,” Tyson said. “So, I don’t know. If you could see what we made tonight, if these guys really care about the welfare of Evander, they would have had this fight with Evander. Maybe we’ll do another, but whoever he’s with, whoever is handling him is totally wrong.”
Bitter rivals in the late 1990s, Tyson and Holyfield first faced each other in November 1996. Holyfield won by TKO in the 11th round. It was considered an upset at the time as Tyson was in his prime and Holyfield was in the midst of a comeback from retirement.
The rematch – Tyson vs. Holyfield II – came in June 1997 when Tyson was disqualified for biting Holyfield’s ear twice – the first time taking a chunk out. Tyson was losing in the early rounds and bit Holyfield’s ear to retaliate for what perceived to be intentional head-butts.
Holyfield hasn’t been in a sanctioned boxing match in nearly 10 years. Before Tyson took on Jones, he was out of in-ring action for 15 years. Tyson got in great shape for his battle with Jones, revealing he lost 100 pounds. And while it was a draw, most experts and fans believe Tyson won the fight.
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