EVANDER HOLYFIELD BOXING FIGHT VIDEO

Holyfield's diligent pursuit of his skill was evident at an early age. He won the Boys Club Boxing Tournament at the age of eight. At 11, he qualified to compete in his first Junior Olympics. By age 16, Holyfield weighed 139 lbs. (a junior welterweight) and became the Southeastern Regional Champion, winning this tournament and the Best Boxer Award. When he was 19 years old, Holyfield represented the United States in the Pan American Games in Caracas, Venezuela, where he won a silver medal. The following year, he was the National Golden Gloves Champion, and won a bronze medal representing the U.S. in the 1984 Olympic Games held in Los Angeles. Holyfield made his professional debut in November, 1984 defeating Lionel Bryams. He won his first cruiserweight title in 1986 against Dwight M. Qawi (then WBA junior heavyweight), and became the first boxer of the 1984 Olympic Games to win a championship title. Holyfield became world heavyweight champion with a 3rd-round knockout of Buster Douglas on October 25, 1990. He was then scheduled to fight Mike Tyson, who had been upset by Douglas, but the fight was postponed when Tyson suffered an injury and then canceled entirely after Tyson's conviction for rape. After three defenses, Holyfield lost the title to Riddick Bowe in a "Fight of the Year" on November 13, 1992. It was his first loss in 29 professional fights and the first of an epic 3-fight rivalry. Holyfield took a big step toward unifying the heavyweight title by knocking out Moorer in the 8th round on November 8, 1997, to win the IBF title. He faltered on the next two steps, however. His attempt to win the WBC title from Lennox Lewis failed when they fought a 12-round draw in March of 1999. In November of that year, Lennox won a decision in the rematch to unify the championship. In 2000, Lewis won back a piece of the title by decisioning John Ruiz, who had become the WBA titlist in the meantime. However, he lost it in a rematch with Ruiz in March of 2001, and they fought a draw in December, allowing Ruiz to hang onto the title. Former undisputed heavyweight champion Evander Holyfield brings a quiet dignity to a sport that is sometimes preoccupied with empty flash and false bravado. Heart, courage and toughness have always been words affiliated with great boxing champions, but no one in the history of the sport has possessed these traits in greater measure than "The Real Deal". Evander Holyfield is a fighter so obsessed with proving his doubters wrong, he still cannot walk away. He carries this championship drive and vision in all facets of life, including the creation of The Holyfield Foundation, a not-for-profit organization whose focus is the family. The foundation supports the spiritual, educational and athletic advancement of inner city youth and encourages parental involvement to strengthen family values, respect and responsibility.