Larry Holmes, Lennox Lewis and Evander Holyfield are three of boxing’s greatest ever heavyweights.
Holmes, known as ‘The Easton Assassin’, reigned as the undisputed heavyweight champion for seven years between 1978 and 1985, defeating the likes of Muhammad Ali, Ken Norton and Trevor Berbick during this period.
Lewis and Holyfield played a key role in the golden heavyweight era of the 1990s, which saw them both reign as the undisputed before they eventually clashed on two occasions within the space of seven months.
Their much anticipated first encounter ended in a split draw, although Lewis settled the score in their rematch in November 1999, defeating ‘The Real Deal’ via unanimous decision to add the WBA and IBF titles to his WBC crown.
One fighter who shared the ring with all three is Puerto Rico’s former world cruiserweight champion Ossie Ocasio, who proved to be a tough opponent for the legendary trio. He was, however, stopped by Holmes and Holyfield and beaten on points by Lewis.
Speaking to the Ring Magazine, Ocasio didn’t hesitate to name ‘The Real Deal’ as the best fighter that he ever shared the ring with, paying homage to the two-weight undisputed champion.
“Holyfield. He was a complete fighter and ended up beating almost 99-percent of the fighters he fought. He was one of the greatest I ever had the pleasure of stepping in the ring with. Lewis was young and one-dimensional at the time, however, he would later develop and become a superstar. Holmes was a good fighter, but he was a stand-up fighter, straight, not moving in angles.”
Holyfield remains just one of two fighters in boxing history to become undisputed at cruiserweight and heavyweight, recently joined by Oleksandr Usyk. He remains the only four-time heavyweight champion.
