Heavyweight legend Evander Holyfield has revealed the exact moment he believed his head was going to explode after facing one man in particular.
‘The Real Deal’ had a professional career that the majority of fighters could only dream of which culminated in him becoming the undisputed champion at both cruiserweight and heavyweight.
Holyfield is widely considered to be one of the greatest heavyweights of his entire generation, producing a number of legacy-defining victories over the likes of Mike Tyson, Riddick Bowe and George Foreman to name just a few.
Despite his experience in facing some of the best heavyweights of all time, ‘The Real Deal’ believes the greatest victory of his career came when he conquered Dwight Muhammad Qawi to capture the WBA cruiserweight title back in July of 1986.
In a resurfaced interview with The Guardian, Holyfield claimed that he felt like his head was going to explode at the conclusion of his gruelling 15-round encounter with Qawi in what he says was the best victory of his entire career.
“I have no idea how I got back to my hotel after beating Muhammad Qawi over 15 rounds – a fight I still consider the best victory of my career. My next memory was being in the shower and getting socked with a series of intensely painful cramps. Not just in my legs and back but my arms and even my neck. My head hurt, too, so bad I thought it was going to explode.”
Holyfield’s victory over Qawi was the beginning of a memorable run for the Alabama-native as he would go on to achieve undisputed status at cruiserweight with a win over Carlos De Leon in the spring of 1988.
‘The Real Deal’ locked horns with Qawi just before his showdown with de Leon although the American great needed just four rounds to dispatch of his countryman this time around at the Convention Hall in Atlantic City.
