Simon Jordan reveals he owns the shorts worn by Evander Holyfield from his infamous ‘bite fight’ with Mike Tyson


The ‘bite fight’ between Evander Holyfield and Mike Tyson is arguably one of the most famous bouts in boxing history.

After getting stopped in the first fight, Tyson was disqualified in the third round of his rematch with Holyfield after biting part his ear twice.

The rematch between Tyson and Holyfield became infamously known as the ‘bite fight’

AFP – Getty

The rematch between Tyson and Holyfield became infamously known as the ‘bite fight’

To that end, memorabilia from that night could be extremely valuable and talkSPORT’s own Simon Jordan revealed that he is the proud owner of Holyfield’s shorts from that fight.

Jordan was discussing sporting memorabilia with co-hosts Jim White and Danny Murphy, in light of the fact the ball Diego Maradona scored the famous ‘hand of God’ goal with has sold for £2million at auction.

When asked about the most expensive piece of sports memorabilia Jordan had ever purchased, the former Crystal Palace owner said: “The most expensive is probably the ‘bite fight’ shorts.

“I bought the bloodied shorts that Evander Holyfield wore when he got bitten on the ear by Mike Tyson.”

Jordan did not disclose the fee paid for the shorts, but Holyfield’s gloves from the same fight went for over $35,000 at auction.

This comes as no surprise that Jordan collects expensive boxing memorabilia, as he has always been a huge boxing fan, especially admiring Tyson.

Jordan loves his boxing and is willing to splash the cash to get his hands of memorabilia from iconic moments in the sport

talksport

Jordan loves his boxing and is willing to splash the cash to get his hands of memorabilia from iconic moments in the sport


“In 1989, I went to see my first heavyweight world title fight, which was Frank Bruno vs Mike Tyson in Las Vegas – Bruno was knocked out in the fifth round,” Jordan said.

“Before the Tyson era, the division had stagnated a bit. That might not be fair to Larry Holmes, the Easton Assassin, who had presided over it for five or six years.

“Holmes was a great heavyweight champion, but previous to him you’d had [Muhammad] Ali, [Joe] Frazier, [George] Foreman and Earnie Shavers – really engaging, interesting, flamboyant fighters that had taken the heavyweight division to a high.

“Out of the blue came this phenomenon that was Mike Tyson with Cus D’Amato managing him.

D’Amato honed the young Tyson into a heavyweight destroyer

D’Amato honed the young Tyson into a heavyweight destroyer

“Tyson was an absolute throwback to what you think a fighter should represent in his black boots, very simple introduction, no towel as he came into the ring. He had this unbelievable ferocity that he unleashed upon people.

“I don’t think I’ve ever seen somebody hit so hard the way he hit Michael Spinks to unify the belts [in 1988], a fight I think Donald Trump organised.

“He became the youngest heavyweight in the world by just dismissing Trevor Berbick [in 1986]. I don’t think there’s ever been anything quite like it.

“I know Ali changed it and there will never be another sportsman like him, but Tyson brought a new dimension to heavyweight boxing.”

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