Evander Holyfield will celebrate his 46th birthday next weekend, but if you think that's too old to box, well, he disagrees.
Holyfield will reportedly fight the Russian giant Nikolay Valuev for the WBA heavyweight title belt in December. It's a fight in which the 6-foot-2, 220-pound Holyfield will be 11 years older, one foot shorter and 100 pounds lighter than his opponent.
From The Times Online:
"They said I was too old when I was 34 and was getting ready to fight Mike Tyson for the first time," Holyfield said. "There's nothing new with what people say. I have a desire and I am the one who got to train and I am willing to make the sacrifices necessary to be the best. Just imagine a 46-year-old guy being heavyweight champ of the world."To be clear, winning the WBA title belt doesn't make someone the true heavyweight champion of the world. Valuev owns the WBA's belt, but Wladimir Klitschko is generally recognized as the world's top heavyweight, and the winner of Saturday's fight between Samuel Peter and Wladimir's older brother Vitali will be generally recognized as the next-best heavyweight.
Still, Holyfield-Valuev will be one of the most talked-about heavyweight fights of the year. Which says a lot about the current state of the heavyweight division.
