by James Slater – The long, very long, pro career of legendary four-time heavyweight world champion Evander Holyfield simply refuses to come to an end! It has been reported how the 47-year-old future Hall of Famer has been given a one-fight license to fight in the state of Nevada, and that “The Real Deal” is now expected to fight in Las Vegas on April 17th, at The Orleans Hotel and Casino.
The probable opponent for the man who has not seen any ring action since his closer than expected points loss to then WBA ruler Nikolai Valuev in December of 2008, is reigning WBF titlist Frans Botha. As fans know, the two veterans were originally supposed to meet in January of this year in Uganda, now it seems the two fighters with a combined age of 88 will clash in “Sin City..”
Holyfield last fought in the state of Nevada way back in October of 2003, when he lost on a 9th-round TKO to James Toney in Vegas. Shortly after his next fight, an upset points loss to Larry Donald in New York, Holyfield was suspended by The New York State Athletic Commission due to his “diminishing skills.”
But, in refusing to quit the sport, Evander bounced back with a four-fight win streak in 2006/2007, which culminated with title fights against Sultan Ibragimov and then Valuev; both of which were points losses. Now looking like facing Botha for the lightly regarded WBF bauble – a belt Holyfield recently said he’d “treasure” if he won it – Holyfield will return to the city that saw some of his greatest triumphs. What kind of a fight it will be if he does indeed face “The White Buffalo,” though, is anyone’s guess.
For his part, the 41-year-old South African has won three of his last four fights, with his last bout being an October 2009 draw with Pedro Carrion. It may not mean all that much if he does get the win over Botha in April, but I feel Holyfield can probably do so, on points. Who knows, the fight might actually draw quite a crowd and the action could even be surprisingly good?
Holyfield’s record currently stands at 42-10-2(27), while Botha is 47-4-3(28) at present. By the way, according to BoxRec, Botha is still down to face Joey Abell in Uganda on March 27th. It’s probable the Holyfied fight would make Botha more money, however.