So now that he's officially retired, I want to ask you guys what you think of Holyfield's 10 losses and 2 draws. How much do they affect his legacy? Let's try and leave strong emotions out of it and be objective, please.
I view his losses with the context of not being able to think of a fighter in his weight range who has faced a decidedly better roster under anything approaching similar circumstances with significantly better results.
great career. Probably top 10 heavyweights ever. Not dominant heavyweight but effective . One of the best resumes
Best fight KO 3 Dougas 1990- won undisputed world heavyweight championship.... Worst fight- getting KOD 2003 by James Toney..... Should have retired after losing to Valuev in 2008, he looked tired and couldn't even let his hands go, horrific fight... Turned pro 1984- Holy smokes 30 YEARS:yikes Amazing...... Too bad he's gotta wait 5 long years to get inducted into the HOF, oh well at least he's got plenty of time to plan and write his speech What a career, enjoy retirement champ...
I don't hold Holy's past prime lossses against him when rating him...just like I don't hold Ali's against him when he was past prime. I try to rate the greats head to head as well as when they were probably at thier best when trying to place them on an all time list....resume comes second though of course it is significant and relevant. At his best, Holyfield would've been a tough night for any champion before him or after him and he would've had his share of wins against them as well.
**** happens when you fight the best as long as he did while artifically inflated in weight. Bowe is still recognized as one of the all time best super heavies and he fought the absolute greatest fight of his career against Holyfield, who didn't bring the smartest strategy to the table. Holyfield clearly had health issues and gave a strong effort against Moorer and Bowe, who were top fighters. He may have deserved the nod against Moorer anyway. Lewis was a peaking all time great, and Ruiz, and Byrd were top younger fighters when the 37-40 year old Holyfield was competitive and lost to them. The shoulder surgery after Byrd at 40 ended his run as a top fighter for good. Toney, Donald, Sultan, and Valuev losses mean about as much as Charles' post-Maricano losses.
I think this 44-10-2 isn't a 100 percent heavyweight record. I think his heavyweight record is weaker. -Douglas fight: Douglas was very fat/total out of shape and somehow too fragile. -Bowe? Bowe is overrated. Golota fights showed this. -Tyson? He was a post-prison guy with weak mental and physical stamina I think these wins were extreme outstanding in his carrier. These wins don't show the real/typical Holyfield. I think the following fights show better Holyfield's quality:Bert Cooper,Holmes,Foreman, Bowe 1,Lewis 1 & 2,Ruiz 1&2&3. But i think Holyfield is lucky because the douglas/bowe/tyson wins rule his legacy by so many boxing fans. Plus i think lots of fan respect him like a hero: the main reason is the Tyson bite fight.(poor holyfield, what a nasty situation, ugly mike tyson- type stupid things)
About 8 of those 10 losses came when he was between the ages of 33-46 years of age, and practically ALL of them were against elite or very good opposition. So my answer to the question of " how it affects his legacy" is, not very much.
