Holyfield v Douglas. Gary Mason Called it

[Mark TKO]

I watched Holyfield v Douglas again last night, just refreshing my memory as to how out of shape Douglas was.

I always remember Gary Mason calling the fight early but didn't realise how early - watch it, the fight starts around the 8th minute. The other commentator tries to cover up his comments saying it's too early to call it but Gary insists he's willing to put his neck on the line.

Good call Gary and RIP mate ! Not sure Sky used you again though







ps my fucking youtube link probably won't work embedded directly so Master will have to fix it and then not tell me what I'm doing wrong in the first place

[vidgil]

It's amazing how quick Douglas went to shit after pulling off the biggest win in boxing history. He showed up 15lbs heavier than he did against Tyson and that lead uppercut was just dumb as hell.

[El Kabong]

It's amazing how quick Douglas went to shit after pulling off the biggest win in boxing history. He showed up 15lbs heavier than he did against Tyson and that lead uppercut was just dumb as hell.

1. He dedicated the Tyson fight to his mother who had recently passed away...you see that kind of (and God this is trite) "inspired performance" when a boxer has dedicated a fight to a loved one.

2. Holyfield feinted him right into that lead uppercut....just picture perfect upper body movement and footwork paired with a beautifully timed counter. It was a homerun swing from Douglas and Holyfield capitalized brilliantly.

[Master]

It's amazing how quick Douglas went to shit after pulling off the biggest win in boxing history. He showed up 15lbs heavier than he did against Tyson and that lead uppercut was just dumb as hell.

1. He dedicated the Tyson fight to his mother who had recently passed away...you see that kind of (and God this is trite) "inspired performance" when a boxer has dedicated a fight to a loved one.

2. Holyfield feinted him right into that lead uppercut....just picture perfect upper body movement and footwork paired with a beautifully timed counter. It was a homerun swing from Douglas and Holyfield capitalized brilliantly.

It was a good shot but Buster could have got up. He took a bigger shot against Tyson.

[El Kabong]

It was a good shot but Buster could have got up. He took a bigger shot against Tyson.

True, but there's also that light bulb that went off in Buster's head as he lay there on the canvas "That dude just walked me right into that punch....what do I even do to stop that?". Plus it was the 8th round when Tyson finally rocked Buster not the 2nd.

I understand that when a fighter hits the canvas a lot of stuff can be flooding their minds there's fear, there's humility, there's anger, there's confusion, but worst of all the little ember of a thought "I can't beat this guy" gets a breath of oxygen and in the 2nd round with the fight or flight response up and running that's something that can completely shut a fighter down. It's not about WILL, it's not about GUTS, it's not about EFFORT, it's about your brain sapping all of your energy and keeping you safe from a continued beating.

[Spicoli]

That's was a great flashback, hadn't watched in years. Thanks for that Mark. I look at a current heavyweight champ who fights like a new born giraffe and then re watch how polished, poised and sharp Holyfield was here and just want to hit rewind . Douglas wasn't all bad physically and Mason nailed it early with his mental set up. Forgot how accurate the Evander left hook was in 1st and buzzing Douglas pretty good.

[Fenster]

I didn't think Douglas looked that poor at all. Always surprises me looking back at these fights, I imagine Douglas to look like an obese sumo wrestler with all the criticism he's gone down in history with - ate himself out of the title, didn't train and whatnot - but compared to the heavyweights today he looked perfectly normal sized. He also looked quicker and more fluid with his hands and feet than most modern heavyweights his size.

Holyfield at 208 looked electric although a titch.

Mason & Duff went from saying Holyfield will win easy to no-one expected the knockout, even though the other commentator told us during the ringwalk that Duff betted on Holyfield to win by KO Leonard as the MC, Las Vegas carpark with the hotel lit up in the background. Good stuff.

[Master]

Holyfield was a machine that night and I would have loved to see this version of Stander against the Buster that beat Tyson or Mike himself at his best.

[sanatogen]

Douglas still had plenty of awareness in this fight.

Although Jab poor compared to Tucker and Tyson fights.

Wow, Gary Mason called it with the first exchanges.