Evander Holyfield is convinced that neither size nor age will matter in Saturday´s showdown with Nikolai Valuev. The 46-year-old challenger is determined to become the oldest heavyweight champion in the history of boxing when he takes on the Russian Giant in front of a sell-out crowd of 12.500 fans in Zurich. In order to put his name in the record books, though, he needs to defeat the biggest and tallest champion of all time. “I will display a performance that will surprise many people,” Holyfield said at today´s official press conference. “I have been asked about my age so many times but that is fine. It is not about how old you are. It is about how old you feel and what you can do inside the ring. I am very experienced and I know what I have to do against Valuev. I am in great shape and I really look forward to Saturday night..”
Valuev will make his second appearance in Switzerland after stopping Jameel McCline in the third round of their meeting in January 2007. “It is great to be back in Switzerland,” Valuev said. “It is a great country and the people are very nice. It is something very special to fight an
accomplished champion such as Evander Holyfield. He is a living legend and I am full of respect for him. However, once you are inside the ring, neither names nor titles matter any more. I have trained very well and I will put on a good performance on Saturday night.”
Manager Wilfried Sauerland admitted the showdown will be one of the biggest fights he has ever staged. “This is a very special bout,” he said. “Holyfield has been heavyweight champion four times. He faces the biggest champion of all time. It is a clash of the superlatives.” Philippe Huber, CEO of co-organisers Kentaro, believes that Saturday´s clash will help to put Switzerland on the world boxing map. “We are keen to establish Switzerland as a top venue for great boxing fights,” he said. “This is truly an outstanding event.”
A relaxed Holyfield also happily answered questions that were not related to boxing. A curious reporter wanted to know whether he really lived in a house with more than 100 rooms. “Yes, that is true,” Holyfield said. “I have been blessed and I am very thankful for my lifestyle. I have worked very hard for it. And that is what I will do on Saturday night: Work hard to win the title.”
Asked about how many rooms his house in Russia has, Valuev smiled. “My new house is not finished yet. These kind of things take a little longer in Russia.”
Valuev: I will not underestimate Holyfield
Evander Holyfield believes he got what it takes to beat Nikolai Valuev and become the oldest heavyweight champion of all time. The living legend will try to deprive the Russian Giant of his WBA title when he comes face-to-face with him in Zurich on Saturday night. “I am in great shape,” Holyfield said during today´s media work-out at the Swissotel. “There have been many great fighters in the history of boxing but nobody managed to win the heavyweight title at the age of 46. I will try to accomplish that.”
Holyfield would not lift the curtain on his tactics for Saturday, though. “Valuev might have same advantages, but there are also some things that will be working in my favour,” he stated. “I will show on Saturday what I mean by that.”
Unlike Holyfield, who took his time to warm up, hit the pads and do shadow boxing, Valuev did not spent much time in the ring today. After some light stretching and shadow boxing, he was done, hinting that he prefers to do most of his training work in the evening hours. Apart from the physical preparation, Alexander Zimin also puts a lot of emphasis on the mental fitness. “I go walking, read books and watch a few Russian movies,” Valuev stated. “I will try to relax and get my mind set on Saturday.”
The Russian Giant is full of respect for his famous opponent. “He is very experienced,” Valuev lauded. “I will not underestimate him and I am fully aware that I need to perform very well to beat him. But as you can see I am highly concentrated. I believe I have done everything I need to do in order to leave the ring victorious on Saturday night.”
Valuev-Holyfield Fact Sheet
Dec. 20 PPV card live from Switzerland
Main Event (12 round, heavyweights): Nikolay “The Russian Giant” Valuev (49-1, 34 KOs), 2-time and reigning WBA Heavyweight Champion, St. Petersburg, Russia vs. Evander “The Real Deal” Holyfield (47-9-2, 27 KOs), 4-time World Heavyweight Champion, Atlanta, Georgia.
Also on PPV (8-rounds, super middleweights): Mads “Golden Boy” Larsen (50-2, 37 KOs), former IBO & WBF super middleweight champion, Berlin, Germany vs. 5-time world kickboxing and Thai boxing champion, Roberto Cocco (9-2, 5 KOs), Torino, Italy.
(Highlights shown from some other fights on the card, time permitting: European heavyweight champion Francesco Pianeta (17-0, 11 KOs) vs. Johann Duhaupas (17-0, 10 KOs); WIBA flyweight champion Eileen “The Hawaiian Mongoose” Olszewski (5-2-1, 0 KOs) vs. Nadia Raoul (9-0, 3 KOs); heavyweight Oleg Platov (26-1, 22 KOs) vs. Jason Gavern (15-4-3, 8 KOs), cruiserweight Jimmy Kapanov (8-0, 5 KOs) vs. Paolo Ferrara (25-13-1, 7 KOs); heavyweight Timor Ibragimov (24-2-1, 13 KOs) vs. TBA.)
Date: Saturday, December 20, 2008
Site: Hallenstadion, Zurich, Switzerland
Promoter: Wilfried Sauerland’s Sauerland Event and its Managing Director, Christian Meyer, in association with Don King Productions.
PPV Broadcast: Distributed in the United States by Integrated Sports for live viewing at 3 PM/ET – 12 PM/PT on both cable and satellite pay-per-view via iN Demand, TVN and DISH Network for a suggested retail price of only $24.95. Same night replay at 9:00 PM/ET – 6:00 PM/PT.
PPV Announcers: Nick Charles and Al Bernstein
PPV Information: www.integratedsportsnet.com.