In a mostly tactical match-up, Sultan Ibragimov decisions Evander Holyfield. Ibragimov retains WBO Championship.
A 44-year-old Evander Holyfield lacked the speed or reflexes to defeat Sultan Ibragimov in Moscow, Russia today. Ibragimov 23-0-1 (17) used hand speed and lateral movement to keep the "Real Deal" from getting his feet set long enough to turn the fight in his favor.
While Holyfield 41-9-2 (27) landed the harder punches, especially in the 12th round, there weren't enough of them to sway the judges, who scored the fight 118-110, and 117-111 twice.
In a rare post-fight conference call, Holyfield told reporters that his defeat wasn't the result of eroding abilities, but a simple case of "styles make fights." "He (Ibragimov) did smart things that allowed the judges to feel that he won," said Holyfield. "I didn't expect that he would move as much as he did, but he did. I actually expected him to be more aggressive towards me."
Holyfield Pressured to Quit Boxing
In 2004 The New York State Athletic Commission revoked Holyfield's boxing license, citing a string of poor performances against Chris Byrd, James Toney, and Larry Donald. Holyfield blamed his poor showings on an injured left shoulder. After surgery to repair his shoulder, Holyfield retained a boxing license in Texas and had won four fights in a row, against Jeremy Bates, Fres Oquendo,Vinny Madalone, and Lou Savarese, going into today's fight.
Holyfield has repeatedly stated that he won't retire until he is once again the undisputed heavyweight champion of the world.
The Theater of the Absurd
His has been a storied, if sometimes bizarre, boxing career. As a member of the dominant 1984 US Olympic team that boasted Mark Breland, Pernell Whitaker, Meldrick Taylor, and Henry Tilman, Holyfield was disqualified in his championship bout for hitting after the bell. Settling for a bronze medal, he went on to the pro ranks and in 1986 defeated Dwight Muhammad Qawi to win the WBA Cruiserweight Championship.
In 1990 Evander knocked out James "Buster" Douglas to become the undisputed heavyweight champion of the world. Besides swapping the title back and forth between himself, Riddick Bowe, Michael Moorer, and John Ruiz; Holyfield has had a career threatening heart condition inexplicably disappear, a fight interrupted by "the Fan Man," a parachutist trying to fly into the ring during the seventh round of his rematch with Bowe, and had a portion of his ear bitten off by Tyson in their 1997 rematch.
Kathy Duva, president of Main Events, who promotes Holyfield, said that too much of the post fight attention has been on Evander. "I don't think we should make the mistake of not giving enough credit to the guy who won tonight," she said during the conference call. "He (Ibragimov) had a very excellent, excellent game plan."
Statistics: BoxRec.com
