Evander Holyfield Making Another Comeback at 43
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James Joyner | Thursday, June 29, 2006 |
Evander Holyfield, one of the most charismatic heavyweight champions of the modern era, is making yet another comeback.
The “Real Deal” is returning. Former four-time heavyweight champion Evander Holyfield, 43, is coming back from a 21-month layoff to face journeyman Jeremy Bates in a 10-round bout Aug. 19 at the American Airlines Center in Dallas. “I’m very excited about it,” Holyfield told ESPN.com on Wednesday. “Being able to finish what I’ve started means a lot. I was sidetracked lately, but I am getting back on the path.” A news conference to announce the fight is scheduled for Thursday afternoon at the American Airlines Center, event organizer Lester Bedford said.
Holyfield (38-8-2, 25 KOs) has lost three in a row and is 2-5-1 in his last eight fights. He hasn’t fought since dropping a lopsided unanimous decision to Larry Donald on Nov. 13, 2004, in New York. After the Donald fight, Holyfield was indefinitely suspended by the New York commission for “poor performance,” meaning he couldn’t fight anywhere in the United States until the suspension was lifted. However, Holyfield protested and, after passing a series of medical tests more than a year ago, New York boxing officials changed his suspension from a medical one to an administrative one, which allowed him to seek licenses elsewhere. Last week, Holyfield was granted one in Texas.
“I still want to be the undisputed heavyweight champ of the world,” Holyfield said, repeating the mantra he has preached for the past several years. “There is no reason to fight if that was not my goal. Everything I have ever done was with that goal in mind. If my goal wasn’t to be the undisputed heavyweight champ of the world then there would be no reason to get back in it.”
Sad.
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It’s so sad to see once famous people try and make comebacks after there prime. Although it is such a wonderful feeling to see someone have there last hoorah to. I believe this will unfortunatly be a sad occassion due to a couple of obviously glaring factors. Age and heart at this point are probably going to overtake the mear thought of ever becoming a heavyweight champion at age 43. It has never been doubted about the size of Evander’s heart as he has shown so many times before, but this time the heart has several years of rust and less fire than his earlier years as the heart of a lion.
You Show em, Holyfield. Don’t let anyone put you down!
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