The Match Not Made In Heaven, Holmes vs. Butterbean

By Ed Ludwig

14.03 - Former Heavyweight Champion Larry Holmes (68-6 44 KO's) is set to return to the ring after a year and a half of inactivity. His opponent will be Butterbean (65-2-3 49 KO's). The bout will take place on June 8th in Norfolk Virginia. Holmes is one of many fighters who should have called it quits a long time ago. After defeating Anthony Willis in June of 1996, Holmes had publicly stated that this would be his last fight. The Willis bout was televised in North America on CBS and the network put together a nice piece on the career of the "Easton Assassin".

Holmes stopped Willis in the eighth round. I was happy to see him go out on a winning note in front of a nationally televised audience. I have the majority of Larry's fights on videotape and following his fight with Willis I decided to watch his war with Carl "The Truth" Williams. This was the fight that stuck with me after watching it live on television. I became a true blue boxing fan after seeing this. At the time I thought Larry Holmes lost and I was very upset with the outcome. My knowledge of boxing was not the same then as it is today.

When Holmes lost the title and two close decisions to Michael Spinks my heart sank. Championships are won and lost all the time but what made me angry was that he came so close to tying and eventually breaking the undefeated record of Rocky Marciano. He was heartbroken and walked away from boxing. Two years later the new era had begun, Mike Tyson was destroying everyone in his path and the former champ thought he could teach the young lion a few tricks. In 1988 Larry Holmes returned to face Mike Tyson for the Undisputed Heavyweight Championship.

I could see the fear in his eyes once Tyson entered the ring and I knew it would be a short night and I was right. Tyson demolished the veteran and stopped him in round four. Following his loss most people, myself included thought this was the end for Larry Holmes. Three years later the lure of big money brings Holmes back. His comeback starts against journeyman Tim "Doc" Anderson and Holmes stops him in one round. Holmes pads his record against ordinary opposition before pulling off the biggest upset of his career against Ray Mercer. He would challenge for the title two more times, losing by decision to Evander Holyfield and Oliver McCall.

Larry Holmes victory over Anthony Willis would have been the perfect ending for him. A few months had passed and then comes the announcement that he would be going to Denmark to meet Brian Nielsen. I could not understand why a legend such as Holmes would want to make another comeback. His accomplishments are what most fighters can only dream of and he has been very smart with his millions of dollars in career earnings. The more he fought the more I lost respect for him. Why take the risk of being injured or worse? Larry Holmes can't beat "Father Time".

He has won his last three fights and should he lose to Butterbean then I believe this will haunt him for the rest of his life. An all time great with a loss to Butterbean on his record will tarnish his image and take away much of what he has done in the ring. I have nothing against Butterbean although I consider him a special attraction and nothing more. He is entertaining and he has the right to earn a living. I will always remember Larry Holmes as a great champion who poured his heart into the sport he loves. For the sake of Larry Holmes and all of his fans I hope there will be no Holmes vs. Butterbean II.

I am not thrilled with this match-up. Larry Holmes has beaten the best during his time including Ken Norton, Gerry Cooney, Earnie Shavers and Trevor Berbick to name a few. Beating Butterbean at this stage is something not many fans will pay attention to unless he loses. If that happens he will be the butt of many jokes instead of being looked upon as an all time great in the sport of boxing. The sad thing for me is that I will be very curious to see this fight assuming it is televised. To me this is nothing more than a special attraction or a swing bout. If we can accept it for what it is then we might be pleasantly surprised but I really doubt it. Danny Bonaduce and Todd Bridges were victorious in the Fox Celebrity Boxing special. Hey Larry and Butterbean, would you be interested in a unification showdown with these guys?