Historic moment Mike Tyson bites ear off Evander Holyfield in 1997

Historic moment Mike Tyson bites ear off Evander Holyfield in 1997\
Mike Tyson will not be getting another serving of Evander Holyfield's ear.

Following talks of an exhibition fight between the two quasi-retired rivals, the 59-year-old Holyfield is choosing common sense over a surefire payday against the 56-year-old Tyson.

'It's too late,' Holyfield told TMZ, adding, 'I'm done now.'

The four-time heavyweight champion reportedly negotiated with Tyson's camp in the spring of 2021, but the two sides were far apart on a potential purse split. Kris Lawrence, Holyfield's manager, told TMZ that 'it appears we just ended up wasting our time.'
He has flirted with the idea of fighting a much younger opponent, albeit an inexperienced one: YouTube star Jake Paul.

The Sun reported in January that the two sides were working on a deal that could generate $50 million, but nothing has come to fruition.

Tyson and Holyfield have obvious history, which is what made an exhibition between the two 50-somethings intriguing.

The two seemed destined to fight in the late 1980s and early 1990s when Holyfield, then a cruiserweight champion, moved up to a heavyweight division ruled by Tyson.

But that highly anticipated matchup was lost in 1990 when Tyson was upset in Tokyo by James 'Buster' Douglas, who then lost his titles to Holyfield in October of 1990.

A poster for the '97 Holyfield/Tyson rematch
A poster for the '97 Holyfield/Tyson rematch

Then, in 1991, Tyson was infamously convicted of rape in Indiana and remained in prison until 1995.

After several preliminary fights, Tyson and Holyfield finally did meet for the first of two bouts in November of 1996.