Evander Holyfield said in a The 3 Point Conversion interview that George Foreman and three-time opponent Riddick Bowe landed punches that were more punishing than those of Iron Mike in their two fights.
Holyfield defeated 42-year-old Foreman by a unanimous decision in defense of his title in 1991. “The Real Deal” went 1-2 in a classic series with the prime and much bigger Bowe between 1992 and 1995.
Holyfield stopped Tyson to regain the heavyweight title in 1996 and won by disqualification in the rematch the following year after Tyson chewed off a portion of his ear.
“George Foreman hit me with the hardest punch,’ Holyfield said. “But Riddick Bowe hit me more than anybody with big shots. In not winning my first fight with Riddick Bowe, I was kind of inspired by the people saying, … ‘If you hit him (Holyfield), he’s not gonna stop coming.’
“I always remember that was inspiration that I could take something. Everyone was asking, ‘What’s gonna happen if he gets hit by some big guy?’”
He went on: “I guess the first heavyweight fight that was really kinda taxing was when I fought Michael Dokes. But after Michael Dokes, I kind a grew into how to hang with guys who are bigger and had a little bit more experience than I.
“… I remember at one point in time I thought I could never be hurt because it never happened to me. But the first time Bert Cooper caught me with a shot, they gave me my first eight count. Then I realized, ‘Wow.’ When he hit me I didn’t see the shot. All I remember is my legs rubber banding. … But I never got hurt again until I fought Riddick Bowe.
“The art of the game is you only get hit when you do something wrong. So even sometimes you may get by, you do something wrong and the guy didn’t swing, so you’re kinda thankful. Either you’re in a position to hit the guy or the guy is in a position to hit you.
“Either you hit the guy or you move. If you don’t hit the guy and you don’t move, chances are you’ll get blasted. If you miss the guy but you move, the guy tends to miss you.”
Tyson, 53, and Holyfield, 57, have announced their intentions to return to the ring for charity exhibitions. They reportedly are in talks to face one another a third time.