via Getty
LAS VEGAS, NV – NOVEMBER 9: Evander Holyfield and Mike Tyson fight for the WBA Heavyweight tittle at the MGM Grand Garden on November 9, 1996 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Holyfield won the fight with a TKO in the 11th round. (Photo by Focus on Sport/Getty Images)
via Getty
LAS VEGAS, NV – NOVEMBER 9: Evander Holyfield and Mike Tyson fight for the WBA Heavyweight tittle at the MGM Grand Garden on November 9, 1996 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Holyfield won the fight with a TKO in the 11th round. (Photo by Focus on Sport/Getty Images)
Mike Tyson is riding off the high of his successful return to boxing. Even though it was an exhibition bout and ended in a draw, Tyson showed he is viable to box in these circumstances. While the scorecard said draw, most people had scored the fight for Tyson. He obviously wasn’t the Tyson of his prime, but what we saw wasn’t bad for a 54-year-old man.
Evander Holyfield has long been eyeing a trilogy fight with Tyson. Their initial rivalry took place over 20 years ago. However, the rivalry was marred with controversy. Holyfield beat Tyson in their first bout, but the second bout ended in an unconventional way. Tyson would be disqualified for biting Holyfield’s ear off.
This gave ‘The Real Deal’ a 2-0 lead. Despite those wins, many often still credit Tyson as being one of the best boxers of that era over him. He wants a trilogy fight with Tyson in an exhibition, a push that has only strengthened after Tyson’s return against Roy Jones Jr.
ADVERTISEMENT
Article continues below this ad
Evander Holyfield tells Tyson to stop making excuses and sign the contract 👀 pic.twitter.com/vm1zLnHoeg
— ESPN Ringside (@ESPNRingside) December 1, 2020
Holyfield is even older than Tyson, but the fact he is still aggressively pursuing this rematch shows his confidence in his abilities at this age as well. This would possibly be the biggest exhibition boxing bout possible.
ADVERTISEMENT
Article continues below this ad
Should Mike Tyson rematch Holyfield?
Mike Tyson does have something to gain here. He is the one that never beat Holyfield, with those two losses sticking out on his record. However, stepping into a ring for the third time and losing may hurt his legacy even more. A win would still leave the score 2-1 but will create questions over the better fighter, as the second fight ended with a DQ.
via Getty
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – FEBRUARY 22: (L-R) Former Heavyweight Champions Mike Tyson, Lennox Lewis and Evander Holyfield are honored prior to the Heavyweight bout for Wilder’s WBC and Fury’s lineal heavyweight title between Tyson Fury and Deontay Wilder on February 22, 2020 at MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Al Bello/Getty Images)
Tyson looked as good as he could for his age in the fight against Jones Jr. Nonetheless, risking his legacy by possibly losing a third time to Holyfield is a dicey choice. Especially considering that ‘The Real Deal’ is two years shy of his sixtieth birthday.
ADVERTISEMENT
Article continues below this ad
Holyfield does have a major commercial value to exploit with a fight like this. Hence, it makes sense for him to put his 2-0 record, even if means he loses. We all saw the money Tyson and RJJ just made, so this could be viable. Would you be interested in seeing the legends duke it out in a trilogy?
