Former UFC Champion Vitor Belfort needed just one round to stop 58-year-old Evander Holyfield in a boxing bout on Saturday night, landing a combination of shots to earn a first-round stoppage win.
The bout headlined a Triller “Fight Night” card, which took place at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Hollywood, Florida, USA.
Holyfield was significantly out-skilled by Belfort during the fight, throwing slow punches and failing to dodge shots coming toward him. He took a hard fall early in the fight, with half of his body falling out of the ring while seemingly attempting to dodge a punch.
The sole knockdown in the bout saw Belfort score a left uppercut that made Holyfield fall forwards. A flurry of shots shortly after caused the referee to wave off the bout while on the feet.
Holyfield was a short-notice opponent for Belfort. He stepped in to replace fellow former boxing prizefighter Oscar De La Hoya, who had to withdraw from the event after contracting COVID-19.
After the short-notice change in opponent for Belfort, the event was moved from the state of California to Florida – a change that many speculated was done to deal with a boxing commission that was willing to sanction the bout.
The result of the bout caused many to express their discomfort with the fight being made in the first place.
“This was an absolute DISGRACE,” said Yahoo Sports writer Kevin Iole via Twitter.
Following his win, Belfort called out celebrity boxer Jake Paul, who has recently defeated former UFC fighters Tyron Woodley and Ben Askren. A Triller representative who was in the ring pledged to pay $30 million to the winner of that bout if it were to be made.
Holyfield was making his first appearance in over a decade. Most of his boxing career spanned from the 1980s to the early 2000s, with one-off appearances happening in more recent years.
The bout marked Belfort’s first appearance in combat sports since 2018, where he was stopped by Lyoto Machida at UFC 224.
UFC Legend Silva Puts Away Ortiz In First Round
Former UFC Middleweight Champion Anderson Silva put away Tito Ortiz within one round in the co-main event, flooring him in the second minute of action with strikes.
Silva was able to put Ortiz away after dodging a slow, laboring flurry of punches that came towards him. He then connected with a combination of shots in a corner of the ring. Starting with a strong right hook, Silva then landed two left hands to an already tumbling Ortiz.
The fight marked Silva’s second boxing victory since departing the UFC roster last year. He competed just two months prior, fighting to a split decision win over Julio Cesar Chavez Jr.
Ortiz was making his first combat sports appearance since 2019, where he defeated former WWE wrestler Alberto Rodriguez within a round with a rear naked choke.
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