After his mediocre performance against Larry Holmes in June, Evander Holyfield set his sights on a fall opponent. After Riddick Bowe disposed of Pierre Coetzer on July 18th, a November date was set for both boxers to meet.
Friday, November the 13th was the date and the Thomas and Mack Center in Las Vegas would be the venue. I went over my brother’s house to watch this on on pay-per-view, since he was a huge Holyfield fan.
What I remember most was how light Evander came into the fight, weighing only 205 pounds, as opposed to Bowe’s 235. No matter what his ideas were, it seemed foolish to me. Even more so when after a few rounds of boxing, Holyfield decided to stand toe to toe and trade punches.
For most of the night, Bowe was in control. He was landing long jabs and right hands consistently. In the tenth, he staggered and dropped Holyfield and it was a miracle Evander survived. He showed tremendous courage and heart and even rallied to make it an amazing round.
Holyfield was hurt again in the 11th, but survived both that round and the 12th. When the cards were announced, there was no doubt that Riddick Bowe was the new champion of the world.
Evander talked of retirement in the locker room, and suddenly the heavyweight division seemed cloudy. I figured it was fatigue talking, and time would prove me right.
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