Povetkin-Chagaev vs. Holyfield?
Holyfield believes that god is in his corner, whispering in his ear, telling his to keep his hands up and chin down, advising him to keep barreling forward…
Don’t let the title fool you. Alexander Povetkin (21-0, 15 KOs) and Ruslan Chagaev (27-1-1, 17 KOs) won’t both be fighting Evander Holyfield at the same time, however interesting that might be. But the winner of Saturday’s WBA heavyweight title scrap at Messehalle, Erfurt, Thüringen, Germany, might face 48-year-old Evander Holyfield as his first challenger.
It has been reported that Holyfield (44-10-2, 29 KOs) has met with German promoter Kalle Sauerland and expressed his desire to get it on with the newly crowned champ. Since Sauerland didn’t laugh (or cry) and throw Evander out of his office at the mere suggestion an epic mismatch, means that it might happen, whether we want it to happen or not.
Holyfield will be 49 when and if he faces the winner of Povetkin-Chagaev. He’ll be a year older than he is now, but he will not be a year wiser. The former champion is more former than champion these days, and his chances of dethroning either man are slim to none—and Slim just left town.
Because of his name and past achievements, Holyfield is still a bankable opponent. But he’s fighting way past his recommended shelf life. Evander’s shining moment was more than TWO DECADES ago when he KO’d Buster Douglas in 1990 to win the WBC/WBA/IBF heavyweight titles. At the time, Holyfield was viewed a little more than a blown-up cruiserweight and the experts said it couldn’t be done. But it could be done, and The Real Deal was the man who did it.
Holyfield was a great champion. He fought his heart out each and every time he climbed through the ropes, and his battles with Riddick Bowe, Mike Tyson, and Lennox Lewis always showed Evander, whether he won or lost, in glorious full-fledged warrior mode.
But his career has been spotty for a decade. Since he lost to Lewis in 1999, he’s fought 16 times, lost six of those bouts, with one NC. Of his six losses, two were for heavyweight titles, a rout by Sultan Ibragimov in 2007and a MD loss to Nikolay Valuev in 2008.
Holyfield believes he’ll be heavyweight champion again someday, that god is in his corner, whispering in his ear, telling his to keep his hands up and chin down, advising him to keep barreling forward. But some cornermen aren’t all they’re cracked up to be.
No doubt the winner of Povetkin vs. Chagaev would like a soft touch in his first title defense. But beating up a delusional 49-year-old man will prove nothing to nobody. Holyfield won’t retire of his own free will. He’ll have to be carried out of the ring.
The time has passed for Evander to be a lovable old codger hawking grills, and he’s never been glib or verbal enough to get behind a microphone and start calling fights. But there must be something Holyfield can do besides fighting. Since he won’t listen to reason, maybe we should take god the cornerman aside and tell him what we think.
