Former world heavyweight champion Evander Holyfield is aiming for another crack at the world heavyweight crown in Zurich this Saturday against the reigning WBA Champion, Nikolai Valuev of Russia.
Heavyweight boxing watchers from around the world opined that Holyfield is too old to fight. At 46, he should settle down and retire for good. As the popular boxing trainer Freddie Roach said when Manny Pacquiao fought the aging Oscar de la Hoya, “He can no longer pull the trigger” referring to de la Hoya’s age. Oscar de la Hoya is only 35 years old and Roach considered him as an old boxer who should enjoy life in retirement. Holyfield is 11 years older than de la Hoya.
But Holyfield thinks otherwise. He said he is ready to surprise everybody and regain the world heavyweight title and become the oldest ever champion at the age of 46. In a statement made on Yahoo Sports, Holyfield said: “I have been asked my age so many times but that is fine, it is not about how old you are. It is about how old you feel and what you can do inside the ring. I am very experienced and I know what I have to do against Valuev. I am in great shape and I really look forward to Saturday night”.
Nikolai Valuev holds a superior body and height advantage over Holyfield. Valuev said of Holyfield: “It is something very special to fight an accomplished champion such as Holyfield. He is a living legend and I have full respect for him. However, once you are inside the ring, neither names or titles matter anymore. I have trained and I will put on a good performance on Saturday night”.
Evander Holyfield is an American boxer. He was born on October 19, 1952 in Atmore, Alabama. As an amateur, he started boxing at 12 years old. By age 15, he became the Southeastern Regional Champion and received a “Boxer of the Year Award”.
In his professional career, he fought 53 times, winning 42 and lost 9 with 2 draws. He had 27 wins via KO. He became famous when he beat Mike Tyson in the 11th round TKO decision and joined Muhammad Ali and Lenox Lewis as the only three men ever to become world heavyweight champions three times.
Nikolai Valuev is a heavyweight Russian boxer. He was born on August 21, 1873 in Leningrad, Soviet Union. He has a professional record of 51 fights, losing only once with 34 wins via knock out. As an amateur he had a 23-0 record with 16 knock outs.
He started as a professional boxer when he fought American boxer John Morton and Valuev knocked him down in the second round. That started his near unblemished boxing career with a winning record of 50 wins, losing only once to a fellow Russian by a majority decision.