10.17.04 – Evander Holyfield – Holyfield took a break from training after his loss to James “Lights Out” Toney and will not have been in a fight for over a year when he enters the ring on Nov. 13 and will be 42 years old. Don King said about Holyfield, “He’s an old man just rolling like a river.”
“This is the first step I have to take, looking over my past fights,” Holyfield said. “ I have made some adjustments and realized I have to be totally dedicated and ready to fight. I couldn’t get another fight. I wanted a championship but that didn’t happen. I couldn’t let a whole year go by (October 2003 was his last fight) so I had to take this fight.
“The big thing was to get a championship fight but unfortunately it didn’t happen that way. So instead of letting a whole year go by without no competition at all, I think that would have hindered me. So more than anything I had to go back to how I usually think. I can’t be so concerned about getting a championship opportunity. I have to be more concerned about winning it when I get it. So I have to prepare myself so whenever the time will come I’ll get it and win it.
“It’s not like I had a big problem with Chris Byrd. It’s that at that time my health wasn’t the best that it could have been.
“I think that anytime I go into the ring, people know that I’m not going in there boasting that I’m better than anybody. They know that I’m going in there for a goal. The thing is not to fight just to fight. I have a goal to become heavyweight champion of the world. It’s not because I need money; it’s not because I have a bad attitude and I can’t do nothing about it. It’s just the fact that I have to finish the right way. The finish is to be heavyweight champion of the world.”
“The big thing is, I’m in this game because I believe I can win it, not because of the condition that the fighters are in or because of the competition. I always felt that I was the better fighter than the fighters that were fighting.
I have a passion for the game. I go to sleep and wake up still wanting to fight. I’ve never been a person who cares what anyone else says. If that was the case, I’d still be in the ghetto. You’re only old when they throw dirt on you.
“Being undisputed champion is something that’s been there since 1992 when I lost to Riddick Bowe. There have been times to step away, but my goal has always been to be undisputed champion. The importance is to be the best. If I only get one title, it’s only one-third. There are still two other people with titles who think they’re the best. The reality is you have to have all three belts. Then no one can say they’re better than you.”
EVANDER “The Real Deal” HOLYFIELD
Four-Time World Heavyweight Champion
Atlanta, Ga. 38-7-2 (25 KOs)
Training Site: Houston, Texas
Trainer: Ronnie Shields, who trains Juan Diaz, Ivan Hernandez, Juan Lazcano and Dominick Guinn and has trained “Iron” Mike Tyson, Vernon “The Viper” Forrest, Jessie James Leija, Andrew Golota, Pernell “Sweet Pea” Whitaker, Arturo Gatti and others.
vs.
LARRY “The Legend” DONALD
Former NABO Heavyweight Champion
Cincinnati, Ohio 41-3-2 (24 KOs)
Training Site: King Training Camp in Orwell, Ohio
New trainer: Colin Morgan, who was born in Georgetown, Guyana, and now lives in New York City and also trains WBC cruiserweight champion Wayne “Big Truck” Braithwaite. Morgan has also trained Andrew “Six Heads” Lewis early in his career, Andrew Murray, Gary St. Claire, Tiger Martinez, Bert Cooper and others. He is considered by many to be one of the more under-rated trainers in boxing.
“Larry is willing to learn and he is a very hard worker,” Morgan said. “He has relied too much on his natural abilities, which are huge.
“I’m teaching Larry that if he wants to go to the next step, he must develop his natural killer instincts and punch properly by sitting better on his punches to get more snap, which will result in knockouts. You’ll see the difference when he steps into the ring with Evander.”
“Working with Colin has been great,” Donald said, “Believe me, my whole body has been feeling it, too.
“It’s always good to fight a Hall of Famer,” Donald said of Holyfield. “A lot of people may think he don’t have it anymore but he do. When he comes to fight, he comes to fight. Anybody who goes in with him and expects him to lay down has a problem.
“I’m not disappointed in my career. All around I’ve had a beautiful career. A couple of fights I may have fallen short but you can’t fall apart. That’s when you have to be at your best. I feel I should have gotten more opportunities, but everybody isn’t willing to step in the ring with me the way Holyfield is. He never ducks and dodges nobody. Why would he start now?
“Holyfield has a goal, and I have a goal, and we both can’t reach ’em. His is to become five-time heavyweight champion. I’m just striving to be champion. That’s what’s going to make our fight magnificent. This is a title eliminator.
“It’s very rare to get all those top-notch fighters on one card. This is going to be beautiful. I’m excited to be part of it. For me, what this fight’s all about is opportunity. Nothing will stop me and I am ready to rumble.”
“Battle for Supremacy” is being presented by Don King Productions in association with Madison Square Garden and will be produced and distributed domestically by HBO Pay-Per-View, available to over 50 million pay-per-view homes, beginning at 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT on Saturday, Nov. 13 with a suggested retail price of $44.95 and broadcast internationally and on closed circuit by KingVision.
Tickets priced at $800, $500, $300, $150 and $75, are on sale now at the Garden box office and all TicketMaster locations or by calling TicketMaster at 212-307-7171, 201-507-8900, 631-888-9000, or 914-454-3388. TicketMaster purchases are subject to convenience charges.