how did you see holyfeilds controversial fights?

holyfeild-moorer 1
Moorer 114-113.
The KD in the second came when Moorer was winning the round clearly, I can see the 9-9 or 10-10 argument but I stuck with 10-8 Holyfield. Moorer dominated the middle rounds, Holyfield came back in the later ones, and it came down to the last round where I think Moorer definitely won it. Holy just didn't seem as motivated and the cut caused in the fifth seemed to bother him. Having Turner as both trainer and cutman was a stupid cost-cutting move, plus I've always had suspicions Turner was not particularly good at training boxers to fight southpaws.

holyfield-lewis 1
Lewis 117-111.
Holyfield got the 3rd and 10th, and I thought his busier approach deserved him the 9th as well. Apart from that it was a clear shut-out.

holyfeild-lewis 2
Lewis 116-112.
Quiet through four rounds, opens up excitingly in the middle rounds (where Holyfield wins three of the four), before Lewis comes back with body shots and jabs. Holy rallies again in the last but it's not enough.

holyfeild-mercer
Holyfield 96-93.
Actually looked like Mercer was going to win this, Holyfield had a bad cut (even being checked by the ringside doctor), looked tired and Mercer was winning the eighth round easy with about twenty seconds to go. Then Holy got through with that left hook, Mercer took a knee, and Holyfield rallied for the win. Mercer was convinced he was robbed, as he was when he lost to Lewis (though Ray of course kept quiet about the close decisions he got the nod in )

holyfeild-ruiz 1
Holyfield 115-113.
Pretty crap fight, good through the first two but when Holyfield badly shook Ruiz up in the third he went straight into the jab & grab and Holyfield was awkwardly ineffective against it...yet still gave him the narrow nod. I thought the commentators got into Ruiz as the underdog too much, often crediting Ruiz for landing a shot and ignored Holy's shot landing at the same time. Czyz especially bad, at one point talking about Ruiz 'coming on with a burst of energy' when instead he was standing there getting punched. Perhaps Bobby still had some of that mysterious stuff in his eyes?

holyfeild-ruiz 2
Ruiz 114-112.
Even fight, then Holy really started turning it on the from the 8th and was battering Ruiz. Mouse under one eye, cut on the other, nose bloody. Then the doubtful low blow in the tenth, which Ruiz milked it for all it was worth and took about three minutes off to get a breather. Yet undeniably landed that short right that rocked Holy's world and dumped him to the mat in the 11th, and Holyfield was no-where after that. Clutching on, staggering about, really gone. Almost a 10-7 round. He rallied at the start of the twenth but was soon reeling about again, and what was looking like a loss became a Ruiz win instead.

holyfeild-ruiz 3
Holyfield 116-112.
Most even of the fights, which made it the dullest as it didn't have the occasional peaks (nor troughs) of the other two fights. Even fight again, but Holyfield turned up for the championship rounds wheras Ruiz didn't. I thought Holy deserved the win here.

holyfeild-holmes
Holyfield 116-112.
Holmes tried to get his rope a dope going, and actually succeeded in the second round. Then Holy got wise to it and Holmes was reduced to a neutralising and spoiling game instead. Someone once called Tyson-Bonecrusher as 'like watching a Ferrari stuck in the mud' and, while Holmes didn't hug, he did keep killing Holy's momentum which made for a bitty fight. Holyfield's workrate and aggression won it for him. The cut in the middle rounds seemed to bother Holy again and Holmes grabbed a round or two, cutman Ace Mirada doing a great job sorting that out and getting rewarded with being fired to save money not long after

holyfeild-oquendo
Oquendo 114-113.
Godawful fight. Holyfield gets the early KD and then fights one punch at a time, while Oquendo has the skill but his horribly negative way of boxing usually gets the judges against him (see the Byrd and Toney fights for example). I thought he picked and pecked away at Holyfield enough to win, but it was still bad stuff.

holyfeild-valuev
Holyfield 115-113.
Seemed an outright robbery at the time, watching again it wasn't as bad. Make no mistake, it was not because Holyfield fought well, I would strongly argue his individual performance here was worse than even the Donald fight for example. But Valuev was a disgrace pure and simple, befuddled by the complex artform of Holyfield shuffling left a bit then shuffling right a bit. Holy wins nearly all the first half, Valuev nearly all the second half. Anyone seriously making use of any of the terms "looked great", "thrashing", "dominated", "clearly won" and "busy" when it comes to this fight should check in to the nearest psychiatric ward as soon as possible. Round after round being won either by a guy landing just two good punches, or a guy landing five or six weak-sauce jabs. Terrible, terrible fight.

holyfeild-quawi 1
Holyfield but can't remember my scorecard.
I thought he was busier and landed in combination better. Kinda funny in the last round to see Qawi do what Holy did to so many - look hurt, sucker them in then open up with lots of punches - but while he could hit and rock Holy he was taking more back in return. Always wondered if the 'lost twenty pounds' stuff was bull**** though.

 

I watched it today and scored it 97-92 Holyfield. Mercer was doing well in the early rounds, but KD in 8th changed the fight