The boxing world is discussing the long-awaited rematch between Ukrainian Oleksandr Usyk and Briton Anthony Joshua, scheduled for August 2022. The unprecedented excitement around the heavyweight championship fight is understandable – rivals will meet in the ring, each of which is world-class.

But it is always worth remembering that a loud poster does not guarantee a bright spectacle. As at one time the fight between Nikolai Valuev and Evander Holyfield did not become a striking sight.

Victory smacked of disappointment.

Bitten veteran instead of Klitschko

Nikolai Valuev in August 2008 regained the WBA champion title, which he lost a year earlier, losing to Ruslan Chagaev. It is curious that the rival of our boxer in the fight for the vacant belt was again John Ruiz, from whom the Russian giant had already taken away this very belt.

After the second victory over the American, Nikolai’s team had to think about the issue of a “voluntary” title defense, which the promoters were not going to mess with. Valuev himself wanted to fight Vitali Klitschko, but as the boxer later admitted, he was offered an “extremely insulting amount of money” for the fight. Sauerland Event, which represented the interests of the Russian, decided to slip the champion a controversial opponent. For some reason, the best possible contender turned out to be 46-year-old Evander Holyfield.

Photo: © Douglas P. DeFelice / Stringer / Getty Images Sport / Gettyimages.ru

The former merits of the American veteran really aroused respect. But some time before the fight, it was clear to many that a victory over an age-old boxer would not do much honor to a Russian, and he risks losing a lot. Bookmakers, however, did not doubt Valuev too much, who was 25 cm taller than his opponent, 44 kg heavier and 11 years younger. The odds for his victory were about 1.2, the success of Holyfield could quadruple the amount bet.

True, not only in size and age was a problem – Holyfield went to the championship fight without entering the top 15 of the WBA rating. The age athlete did not appear in the ring for more than a year, and besides, in the last fight he lost to the Russian Sultan Ibragimov. Couldn’t you find better opposition for a Russian than a veteran bitten by Mike Tyson?

“You stand like a young lady”

The beginning of the fight made boxing fans ask another question. How did Nikolai Valuev end up as a champion? In the first rounds, the Russian looked against the background of the age Holyfield, to put it mildly, it doesn’t matter. Evander showed nothing supernatural. He “danced” around the Russian giant, not inflicting any particularly dangerous blows, but still acted more actively.

– You move very nicely. Keep up the good work,” said the coach to the American.

Valuev answered mainly with a left jab and a right uppercut, which, however, did not pose any particular danger to the enemy. And this state of affairs persisted for a long time – until about the beginning of the sixth round. Fans of the Russian Giant had already begun to fear the worst case scenario – it was problematic to keep the belt, continuing the fight in this manner.

Photo: © Vladimir Rys / Staff / Bongarts / Gettyimages.ru

– Why are you standing like a young lady? He surrenders, more aggressively! – was heard in the corner of Valuev.

The neutral audience was most upset by the low pace of the championship fight, which looked like some kind of farce. Nervous and the lack of sharpness in the actions of opponents. The fans were whistling, trying to somehow provoke the boxers, who, as it were, were not too eager to show something in this fight.

In the sixth round, Nikolai finally began to listen to the requirements of his corner – he made several sensible combinations, remembered the right jab. The fight began to look a little more fun, but still it was impossible to say with complete certainty that the champion turned the tide of the confrontation.

“Worst refereeing”

In the next three rounds, Valuev’s advantage was not significant, and in the end, Holyfield again decided to remind himself. The Russian giant failed to finish the meeting convincingly, before the referee’s decision everyone had to worry. In the end, two judges gave preference to Nikolai with a slight margin – 116:112 and 115:114. The third did not dare to give preference to someone, fixing a draw – 114:114. The victory, thus, remained with our athlete.

The fans did not like such mathematics – they, without hesitation, booed Valuev. Some Western experts rated the refereeing as “the worst in the history of sports.” Yes, and Holyfield himself, paying tribute to his opponent, was indignant at the final decision.

– My opinion about the result of the fight is different from the judges’ assessments. But I’m not upset with the performance. I landed more accurate shots. Thought he won. Such judges should have their licenses taken away,” Evander was indignant.

Valuev did not doubt the correctness of the referee’s decision, and many Russian experts were inclined to believe that he won fairly. However, in any case, there was no need to talk about a convincing victory over an older opponent. Success with a hint of disappointment made one doubt that the Russian giant could deal with Vitali Klitschko. Fortunately or unfortunately, the fight with the Ukrainian did not take place – after the victory over Holyfield, Nikolai appeared in the ring only once, lost to David Haye and ended his career.