Evander Holyfield (Getty Images/AFP)
LOS ANGELES – Evander Holyfield will step in to face Vitor Belfort on Saturday after former boxing great Oscar De La Hoya was forced out of a one-off comeback bout because of COVID-19.
But the bout has been moved from Los Angeles’ Staples Center to Florida after California boxing authorities refused to sanction a battle between Brazilian mixed martial arts star Belfort and former heavyweight world champion Holyfield — who will be a month shy of his 59th birthday on fight night.
Holyfield hasn’t fought since 2011, but he had signed to fight Kevin McBride earlier this year — with a possible future fight against his old nemesis Mike Tyson on the horizon.
After the proposed McBride fight failed to materialize, Holyfield posted on Instagram in August that he’d been “training hard for months” and added: “I promise my fans I will step back in the ring at least one more time before I lay my gloves to rest for good.”