Evander Holyfield stopped Mike Tyson in the 11th round of their first bout on November 9, 1996, and the public cried for a rematch immediately afterwards. I went home on a high after Evander’s huge win, which helped me get through a difficult winter season to say the least.
The original date for the rematch was set for May 3, 1997, but was changed when Mike Tyson suffered a cut in training. June 28 was the new date, and would be held at the MGM Grand Hotel in Las Vegas again. I had been reading about the fight in the boxing magazines for months, and Tyson was actually listed as a slight favorite for this bout, which baffled me to say the least.
My brother came over on fight night to watch it on my 46 inch projection TV. It was like having my own closed-circuit theatre, and excitement filled my bedroom as the pre-fight productions ceased, and the first round got closer and closer. My brother and I were both huge Evander fans, and wanted nothing more than to see him win big again.
When Tyson and Holyfield met in ring center to start the fight, I saw terror on Mike Tyson’s face for the first time in his career. Evander looked right through him, and Tyson looked down in fear. It reinforced what I already knew, that Evander had Tyson’s number physically and mentally, and would win this fight too.
The began with back and forth action, Evander the aggressor and landing hard punches. It wasn’t a blowout by any means, with Mike’s power an ever present threat at any moment.
Evander won the second round with jabs and occasional rights, but the bout was just settling down, and I figured it would be a competitive, long battle. Tyson complained that a cut he received in the second round was from an intentional head butt, but referee Mills Lane ignored his claims. As the third round began, no one could have ever predicted what would happen next. With forty seconds left in the round, Holyfield jumped in the air in obvious pain, and was grabbing his ear. Incredibly, while in a clinch Tyson had reached over and bitten a chunk out of Evander’s right ear. Mayhem ensued, and referee Mills Lane was originally going to call it off as a disqualification, but instead opted to deduct 2 points from Tyson and let him continue. Astonishingly, a few seconds later after action resumed, Tyson bit Evander’s left ear!.
Mills Lane called it off, and Tyson went into a fit of rage, He tried to attack Evander, and the ring was flooded with police officers and security guards. Tyson seemed to be possessed by demons, and the scene was too bizarre to believe. It was obvious to me the guy was sick in the head, and I wouldn’t miss him if he never fought again. After the bout, he blamed Evander, and said he was only ‘”Retaliating because of the head butts for 2 fights.” Even Don King was speechless, and when all was said and done, disgust was the only way I could describe my emotions.
Evander had retained his championship, was gracious as usual after the strange night, and left me glad he was the champ now, and not Tyson.
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