Evander Holyfield is 10 years older than the last time he weighed in for an official fight.
The 58-year-old former heavyweight champion was almost exactly the same weight Friday, however, as he was the day before he stopped Danish veteran Brian Nielsen in the 10th round of their May 2011 bout in Copenhagen, Denmark. Holyfield stepped on the Florida Athletic Commission’s scale at 225.4 pounds Friday for his eight-round heavyweight bout Saturday night against Vitor Belfort.
The legendary Holyfield officially weighed 226 pounds for his previous appearance versus Nielsen. Brazil’s Belfort weighed in at 206.2 pounds Friday at Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Hollywood, Florida.
Holyfield (44-10-2, 29 KOs, 1 NC) and Belfort (1-0, 1 KO), a 44-year-old former UFC light heavyweight champion, will headline Triller Fight Club Pay-Per-View’s four-fight telecast from Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino. Belfort was supposed to box another retired boxing legend, but 48-year-old Oscar De La Hoya withdrew from what was supposed to be an eight-round cruiserweight contest last week because he contracted COVID-19.
Atlanta’s Holyfield replaced De La Hoya on short notice, but Triller Fight Club’s main event was changed to a heavyweight bout that’ll include eight two-minute rounds. De La Hoya and Belfort were supposed to fight at a contracted catch weight of 180 pounds.
The venue was also switched from Staples Center in Los Angeles to Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino, reportedly because the California State Athletic Commission refused to license the aged Holyfield for a professional boxing match. Holyfield will turn 59 on October 19.
The official weights for the three pay-per-view fights that’ll air before the Holyfield-Belfort bout are listed below.
Triller Fight Club Pay-Per-View (fite.tv; 7 p.m. EDT; $49.99)
Anderson Silva (2-1, 1 KO), Sao Paulo, Brazil, 192.6 pounds vs. Tito Ortiz (pro debut), Huntington Beach, California, 200 pounds, 8 rounds, cruiserweights.
David Haye (28-4, 26 KOs), London, 211.5 pounds vs. Joe Fournier (9-0, 9 KOs), London, 195.5 pounds, 8 rounds, heavyweights.
Andy Vences (23-2-1, 12 KOs), San Jose, California, 129.4 pounds vs. Jono Carroll (19-2-1, 5 KOs), Dublin, Ireland, 130 pounds, 10 rounds, junior lightweights.
Triller Fight Club Prelims (fite.tv; 6 p.m. EDT; free)
Anthony Chavez (9-1, 3 KOs), San Bernardino, California, 129.2 pounds vs. Diuhl Olguin (15-19-4, 10 KOs), Guadalajara, Mexico, 128 pounds, 6 rounds, junior lightweights.
Eliezer Silva (pro debut), Sao Paulo, Brazil, 158 pounds vs. Terry Roscoe (2-5, 0 KOs), Albany, Georgia, 155 pounds, 6 rounds, middleweights.
By Keith Idec (BoxingScene)
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