Sunday, Aug. 13, 2000
Holyfield Wants Lewis or Tyson Despite Drab Win
LAS VEGAS (Reuters) - Evander Holyfield was 34 years old
going on 24 when he defeated Mike Tyson twice, but on Saturday
night he looked like 37 going on 47 when he eked out a close but
unanimous decision over John Ruiz to win the vacant World Boxing
Association heavyweight championship.
Holyfield looked slow, sluggish, inaccurate and a shadow of
the fighter whose stamina, courage and ability allowed him to
win 16 world title bouts in the past 14 years.
And yet he says he wants to be the undisputed world
heavyweight champion again.
Is he fooling himself, a warrior unwilling or unable to
admit that time finally has eroded his skill? Is he now more a
drawing card than a contender, more popular than potent?
Or is he is still a viable, dangerous fighter who simply had
an off night?
``They can look at it any way they want,'' said Holyfield,
who turns 38 in two months. ``I'm not going anywhere.
``Why continue? Because my goal is to win again. This is
just the first step. I am going to be undisputed heavyweight
champion of the world again.
``I'll fight until I win it. I'm not four-time heavyweight
world champion because I didn't have setbacks,'' continued
Holyfield, who has a record of 37-4-1.
``I fought (Bobby) Czyz (winning in unexpectedly lackluster
fashion in 1996) and everyone said that I was washed up. But
that got me into the fight against Mike Tyson, and we know what
happened there.''
TYSON, LEWIS IN HOLYFIELD'S FUTURE?
Tyson could be a big factor in Holyfield's future, and so
could World Boxing Council and International Boxing Federation
heavyweight champion Lennox Lewis of England.
Immediately after the win, Holyfield, the first person to
take a world heavyweight title on four occasions, said he would
give Ruiz a rematch, but the chances of that happening are slim.
Despite the close decision, Ruiz does not have marquee value.
Holyfield has a limited number of quality rounds left in
him, and he intends to expend those against fighters who can
garner him titles and earn him additional millions. Those
fighters are Tyson and Lewis.
``I'll fight Lewis or Tyson if those fights can be made,''
said Holyfield.
But neither of those matches could take place until next
year. Tyson is tentatively scheduled to fight Andrew Golota of
Poland in October in or near Detroit while Lewis is expected to
face David Tua of Samoa November 4 in Toronto or November 11 in
Las Vegas.
Also, Holyfield is supposed to make a defense of his WBA
title within four months. The challenger is not known since the
top contenders, Wladimir Klitschko of Ukraine and Oleg Maskaev
of Kazakhstan, are at this point committed to other fights.
Klitschko is slated to challenge World Boxing Organization
champion Chris Byrd of the United States in October while
Maskaev is set to meet Kirk Johnson of Canada that month.
LARRY DONALD NEXT?
That would put American Larry Donald next in line to
challenge for the WBA title, a fight that realistically could
happen since he, like Holyfield, is promoted by Don King. But
that would do little for Holyfield's unification aspirations.
``The people know there's only one real heavyweight
champion,'' said Lewis.
Holyfield, who has a controversial draw and a decision loss
to Lewis, had to show a lot more than he did against Ruiz in
order to be considered a favorite in a third fight with the
Briton.
``This was definitely a hard fight,'' Holyfield said about
his effort with Ruiz. ``The guy fought back. I tried to make him
reach and counter, but I couldn't. I couldn't hit him with
combinations. I couldn't run over him. I wasn't able to knock
him out.
``So I was patient. Patience is a virtue.''
But time can run out before patience does, especially in
boxing. |
