Evander Holyfield famously took part in, at the cost of part of his ear, two huge fights with the iconic Mike Tyson in the 1990s.
Although he wasn’t up against prime Tyson and emerged with two victories, Holyfield is still no doubt aware of just how dangerous ‘Iron Mike’ was back then.
Despite competing at a much lower weight class, Baltimore puncher Gervonta Davis is often compared to Tyson due to his short stature and incredible knockout percentage.
However, in a recent interview with FightHype, Holyfield explained why he believed ‘Tank’ is even more dangerous than his old adversary Tyson was in his heyday.
“He [Davis] is a very good fighter. He’s a very skilled fighter, he kind of reminds me of Pernell Whittaker.”
“Pernell Whittaker was a skilful boxer. ‘Tank’ is a skilful boxer, and a hard puncher – he’s got both of ’em! That would make him even more dangerous than Tyson.”
High praise for Davis from ‘The Real Deal,’ who is widely regarded as one of the greatest fighters of all time.
‘Tank’ has just been released from prison this past week, and fans will hope he kickstarts his career and is back in the ring again before the end of 2023.
After a stunning seventh round knockout of Ryan Garcia back in April, Davis’ profile has never been higher and there are even some who believe he is the biggest star in the sport.
With fights with the likes of Devin Haney, Shakur Stevenson and Teofimo Lopez all potentially on the horizon, there is every chance the three weight world champion’s star power grows even further over the next 18 months.