Heavyweight great Evander Holyfield once revealed the exact moment he decided to call time on his outstanding professional boxing career.
Known by his moniker ‘The Real Deal’, Holyfield is widely considered to be one of the greatest heavyweights to have ever laced up a pair of gloves.
The Alabama-native etched his name into boxing history during his tenure when he became the first man to win the undisputed championship at both cruiserweight and heavyweight.
Holyfield produced a number of legacy-defining wins throughout the course of his heavyweight campaign, defeating the likes of countrymen ‘Big’ George Foreman, Riddick Bowe and Mike Tyson to name a few.
Despite his outstanding success, ‘The Real Deal’ once reflected on the moment he knew he had to walk away from the sport following a tough sparring session with an up-and-coming heavyweight.
Speaking to Pro Boxing Fans, Holyfield claimed he decided to announce his retirement from boxing after he shared the ring with a 19-year-old Andy Ruiz Jr back in 2011.
“When I sparred that guy Ruiz and when he was 19 years old he was able to tag me, I knew then [it was over]. I don’t pass my age range where it no longer makes sense to get hit like that by somebody you think you should be able to beat, because experience and all this, but he had speed and I was losing speed.”
Ruiz rose to stardom back in 2019 when he produced one of the biggest upsets in boxing history by knocking out Britain’s Anthony Joshua in the seventh round of their New York City showdown to capture the unified WBA, WBO and IBF world heavyweight titles.
