Classic Boxing Fights: Evander Holyfield vs George Foreman

When George Foreman returned to professional boxing in 1987, following a decade of retirement from the sport, most audiences saw it as little more than a publicity stunt. A feared Heavyweight champion in his day, boxing fans were unsure how much he’d have to offer at the age of 38.

Meanwhile, undefeated and newly-crowned Heavyweight world champion Evander Holyfield was awaiting out his first title defence. Having defeated Mike Tyson’s conqueror, James ‘Buster’ Douglas, in dominant fashion, he agreed to take Foreman on.

By this point, Big George was 24 fights into his comeback. For a Heavyweight, especially these days, this is unheard of – he’d fought (and beaten) two dozen fighters in just four years. Clearly, the Texan was making up for lost time.

Following Holyfield’s win over Douglas, the fight was on. Billed as ‘The Battle of the Ages’, noting the age difference between the two combatants, Foreman was just under 12 years older than the champion.

Foreman had aimed to come in heavy and bully Holyfield around the ring. Weighing in at 257lbs, 49 pounds heavier than Holyfield, he was disappointed after the weigh-in.

In a contemporary article in the LA Times, Foreman said: “I thought I’d come in at 265. I don’t how in the world I got down that low.”

Nevertheless, the press was swift to ridicule Foreman for his physique. Even after the fight, a piece in the New York Times referred to him as the ‘fat man’.

Holyfield was expected to win this one without too much trouble. Regardless of audience expectations, Foreman had other ideas in mind.

Previously in our series of classic fights on EssentialBoxing, we’ve taken a look at Dillian Whyte vs Derek Chisora and Marvin Hagler vs Tommy Hearns.

Round 1

Foreman looked spritely after the opening bell and quickly took hold of the centre of the ring. Holyfield, meanwhile, circled the veteran and fired off jabs whilst keeping out of harm’s way.

With Foreman using his cross-guard effectively, Holyfield was unable to land any telling punches early on. An errant volley of fireworks erupted outside the ring – the fans in attendance would have to wait before such a display would be replicated in the ring.

Foreman landed his first punch, a solid jab, eliciting a big reaction from the crowd. Holyfield wasn’t playing the pantomime villain by any stretch, but the audience in Boardwalk Hall was generally in George’s corner.

Holyfield responded with a one-two, followed by a left hook to the body. A spearing body jab pushed Holyfield back, then a swinging right hand barely failed to connect on ‘The Real Deal’.

As expected, Holyfield had the speed advantage and was throwing far more than Foreman was. The 42-year-old kept him honest, but the Champion did more than enough to out-work him and win the first round.

Holyfield 10-9 Foreman

Round 2

Foreman rejected his stool and opted to stand in between rounds, while Holyfield was seated. This was customary for Foreman during his comeback run, perhaps to gain a mental edge over his younger competition. 

Nevertheless, Holyfield was undeterred, immediately tagging Foreman with a solid jab. The aging challenger aimed a left hook to the body at Holyfield, landing well below the belt line. 

‘The Real Deal’ was in full control at this point of the encounter, landing numerous clean shots while Foreman swung wildly at thin air. 

Nevertheless, Foreman managed to force Holyfield onto the ropes briefly, landing a powerful lead uppercut that snapped his head all the way back. Smelling blood, Foreman continued the assault, landing a cuffing right hand and a sickening hook to the ribs.

Holyfield fired back, only to take another heavy right hook to the side of the head. To his credit, he absorbed all of this and survived the round. Foreman ended much stronger, but Holyfield’s superior sustained work in the opening two minutes nicked the round for him.

Holyfield 20-18 Foreman

Round 3

By now, Holyfield knew he was in a real fight. He started the round aggressively, throwing combinations, but Foreman took all of it on his elbows and his gloves.

Foreman was landing some sneaky shots, including a jab and another left uppercut, both of which managed to breach Holyfield’s guard. Not long after, a wide body hook found its way through on Holyfield’s torso. 

By now, George had found his timing and looked much harder to hit. A left hook caught Holyfield right on the temple, sending him backwards. Holyfield landed a left hook of his own, but it had minimal effect on the challenger.

Foreman’s jab was proving to be an effective weapon, preventing Holyfield from establishing a rhythm as he had done in the previous two rounds. Additionally, whenever Holyfield looked to take a rest and hold on, George simply shrugged him off and resumed his pursuit.

All of a sudden, Holyfield uncorked a volley of hooks that rocked Foreman right at the end of the round. Foreman landed a stinging left to the body, but it wasn’t enough to silence Holyfield’s attack. Despite this, on account of him controlling most of the session, we’ll still give it to Foreman.

Holyfield 29-28 Foreman

Round 4

Foreman missed with a double jab to start the round, while Holyfield landed with four of his own. Neither man was doing much in the early stages of the fourth session, as Foreman finally found the mark with his jab after a minute into the round.

Holyfield landed another left hook to the body, but these were having little effect on Foreman’s tree trunk of a torso. Even so, Foreman was not as aggressive as he had been, as Holyfield found the mark with a right hand over the top.

Foreman missed with a one-two, prompting Holyfield to spring up and counter with a left hook. Holyfield sat down on a right hand, forcing Foreman to gingerly step backwards. The challenger had very little success in round four – a clear 10-9 for Holyfield.

Holyfield 39-37 Foreman

Round 5

Again, Holyfield started the round a lot quicker, only for Foreman to block everything thrown his way. Letting Holyfield work his way inside, he responded by landing two canny blows to the midriff. 

As effective as Foreman’s cross-guard looked, Holyfield still managed to breach it by throwing a lead uppercut from an awkward angle, followed by a wide right hand. Foreman aimed to body twice, but again landed below the belt. This was Foreman’s second warning for low blows.

This didn’t stop Foreman from targeting the body, landing a right and a left downstairs in succession. George was having much more success when he was allowed to lead the action, particularly with his jab, but Holyfield’s far superior work rate often negated this possibility. 

Foreman landed with the jab, only for Holyfield to respond with a rapid-fire combination of his own. George then missed with a lunging overhand right that almost left him off balance. Still, just after this, a left hook from Foreman forced its way through Evander’s guard to land on the chin. 

Encouraged by this, Foreman pushed on, landing two heavy right hands to end the round. Holyfield had done enough to win the session, but Foreman showed him that he wasn’t done yet.

Holyfield 49-46 Foreman

Round 6

Foreman started by doing some effective work on the inside to the body, only for Holyfield to land upstairs with a left hook. A stiff jab from Foreman was also met with a response, as Evander connected with a nasty right hook to the jaw. 

Both were looking lively to start this one. They exchanged jabs, followed up by two left hooks from the former Cruiserweight king. Not too long after this, Foreman’s high guard allowed Holyfield to sit down on a hard left hand to the torso.

Foreman still continued to plod onwards, though. He feinted with a jab, then turned it into a clever left hook that briefly staggered Holyfield. 

George landed a pair of jabs at the end of the round, while Holyfield registered some work to the body. A difficult round to score, but Foreman probably took it by a minimal margin.

Holyfield 58-56 Foreman