Evander Holyfield was known for his never say die attitude in the ring.
The boxing legend was the first man to become undisputed at cruiserweight and then repeat the feat at heavyweight, until Oleksandr Usyk matched his achievements last year.
During his reigns at heavyweight, Holyfield shared the ring with some of the best the sport has ever seen, including Mike Tyson, Larry Holmes and George Foreman.
It was two other names that ‘The Real Deal’ mentioned though when revealing which fights he had where he felt like he did want to quit.
Holyfield had three fights with Riddick Bowe, winning one and losing two, whilst also having two memorable encounters with Lennox Lewis, claiming a controversial draw in the first meeting and then losing the rematch.
‘The Real Deal’ told Boxing News that his third fight with Bowe and his initial bout with Lewis were the ones where he considered quitting.
“If it wasn’t for my son I would have quit. In those situations you don’t just think about yourself. All things go through your mind. I didn’t want anyone telling my son, ‘You’re going to be like your dad and when the pressure builds up, you’ll just walk out.’
“I didn’t want my son to be criticised for something I had done. That is what made me take the beating, because if it wasn’t for my children, I would have walked out of there.”
Holyfield ended his career with a record of 44 wins, 10 defeats, 2 draws and 1 no contest.
