Significantly underrated as a complete fighter but his brilliance as a HW is quite hit and miss. When he began Evan Fieldsing the division there is a noticeable change in musculature, hairline, stamina and alleged heart health. However, Tyson resurgence and a decent second showing against Lewis stand him in good stead. Above all, first two fights with Bowe, beating Douglas for the lineal, irrespective of Buster's fight night conditioning, as well as legendary fights at cruiserweight put him in rare company.
Evander is not underrated by me. He saved the HW category in the 90s, and above all, he’s the one responsible for the 90s being what they are
The only question mark for me is that he lost 2 of 3 vs Bowe and KOd in 7 I believe in last one. Bowe certainly never distinguished himself afterwards where you could say Evander lost to a top 3 all time etc. Other than that Evander fought like a top 10 maybe 5 all-time. At his best he could beat or come close to anyone who ever fought.
I don't think Holyfield is considered underrated compared to someone like Larry Holmes. Holyfield has been rated quite fairly and was one of the stand out fighters of the 80s to the 2000s. Wasn't always the most consistent fighter but he still won some legacy defining fights. He's an ATG who was popular, brought exciting fights throughout his career, and is greatly appreciated by boxing fans.
I don't think so. Most times he seems to make the top ten all time heavy list. My problem with Mr. Evan Fields is that we'll never really know how much the steroids helped his career along, especially at HW. I do think he's a bit overrated at Cruiser though, the division wasn't very rich with talent back then, his fights with Qawi are what made his name.
Yes and no. People forget that he was considered a placeholder champ in the 1990's, merely a guy capturing the flag before bigger, stronger, younger guys supplanted him. And Bowe and Moorer (all excuses aside) seemed to affirm this. That said, he stuck in the game forever, was afraid to face no man, showed heart and skill at the top level. Despite some uneven performances, he was always there and always looking for the next champion shot. Just when you thought he was through, he came back.
He seems rated pretty highly to me. On his best night, he has the beating of any heavyweight in the history of gloved boxing, even if he was the underdog and he wouldn’t be the underdog to many.
I used to admire the guy, he was a great fighter and had tremendous courage, but his infidelities cheating on two wives and fathering 10 kids out of wedlock at least for me has tarnished his image. It also cost him a lot of his money; I remember reading that his second divorce alone cost him $90 million dollars.
A slightly unpopular view, but I've always found him to be slightly overrated at HW. No doubt, he had great heart and skills. But I always found him too inconsistent at top level.