Posted on 03/23/2021
By: Hans Themistode
With numerous reports surfacing that former undisputed heavyweight champion Mike Tyson turned down a 25 million dollars offer to face his long-time rival Evander Holyfield, Tyson has decided to put an end to those erroneous statements.
“I just want everybody to know, the fight is on with me and Holyfield,” said Tyson during an interview with Haute Living.
Tyson and Holyfield have been linked to one another for roughly three decades. When both were at the peak of their powers, in the early 1990s, a matchup between the pair was all but done. The one hurdle that stood between them was fringe contender James “Buster” Douglas. With Douglas going on to create arguably the greatest upset in boxing history by stopping Tyson in the seventh round in 1990, Tyson vs Holyfield fell by the wayside.
They would eventually rekindle their rivalry six years later. But while most of the boxing world believed Tyson would be too much, Holyfield proved his critics wrong by scoring back-to-back wins over his man.
As Tyson began dusting off his boxing gloves recently, the 2011 Hall of Famer decided that he would end his retirement, which began in 2005, to return to the ring for a series of exhibitions. First up on his docket, was future Hall of Famer Roy Jones Jr. The two met in the main event slot on streaming app Triller.
While their contest officially ended in a draw, Tyson, 54, revealed that he never intended to hurt Jones Jr. With that said, Tyson also disclosed that in his next contest, he planned on going “all out.”
With two wins in his back pocket against Tyson already to his name, Holyfield, 58, began urging his former rival to take him on the ring.
“Yes, I want to fight Mike Tyson,” said Holyfield during an interview with Fiaz Rafiq and Richard Forrester of The Sun several months ago. “I can definitely handle him.”
For Tyson, he has grown fond of Holyfield over the last few years. Both men have been seen making the rounds at special events and television shows.
Despite the reverence Tyson shares for him, however, he will put all of that to the side as he believes the third time will be the charm.
“Holyfield is a humble man. I know that he’s a man of God but I’m God’s man. I’m going to be successful May 29th.”