holyfield

Evander Holyfield is in the middle of what you'd expect a 44-year-old former world champion boxer to do on a routine weekday around his Atlanta neighborhood.

"No. 5 combo with a sweet tea," Holyfield ordered at the McDonald's counter last week. Seconds later, a small crowd gathered, praising Holyfield for his 1996 and 1997 victories over Mike Tyson, and asking for any mementos he could provide.


Return to the ring
click to enlargeBut Holyfield's relaxed diet and basking in past accomplishments are only temporary activities.

He's actually still fighting, and today -- six days shy of his 45th birthday -- the former four-time world champion is pursuing a fifth heavyweight belt when he takes on unbeaten 32-year-old World Boxing Organization heavyweight champion Sultan Ibragimov in Moscow.

"I've taken care of my body," Holyfield said. "I have not done things to damage myself. I can get more out of my 45-year-old body than those who are 25 or 30. I've shown if you do it the right way, you can stay in it longer than most."

The renewed question for Holyfield as he steps into the ring again with a 6-5-1 record since 1999 is, how long is too long?

"People tell me to go ahead and sit down, that my time has passed," Holyfield said. "This is the reason I like our country. People can have opinions, but they can't stop you from doing what you want to do."

Today's bout will be Holyfield's 53rd as a professional, and he's less than three years removed from a beating at the hands of journeyman Larry Donald that caused the New York State Athletic Commission to place him on an indefinite medical suspension.

In that bout, Holyfield "was getting out-punched 4 to 1" and was reduced to "a sitting duck," said a New York commission member.

Back then, New York State Athletic Commission Chairman Ron Stevens told the New York Daily News: "To my practiced mind, Holyfield shouldn't be fighting anymore. It's the responsibility of the state athletic commission to save a boxer from himself."

Boxing fans who have long followed Holyfield also noted how his speech has slowed, causing some writers to draw comparisons between Holyfield and Muhammad Ali, who has Parkinson's disease.

Holyfield would ultimately disclose to New York officials that he labored to defend himself against Donald because of surgeries on both shoulders.

New York's commission, however, demanded Holyfield undergo a series of "seven sophisticated exams," including cognitive tests, according to a commission member, and the boxer's performance resulted in a 2006 decision to amend the suspension to "administrative." That meant other states could use their own discretion in judging Holyfield's physical and mental fitness to fight.

"We tried to make him pause and reflect about what he wants to do with his life," said a New York official who requested anonymity because of the confidential nature of Holyfield's medical results.

Texas cleared Holyfield, and he has fought there four times since, winning two bouts by technical knockout and two more by unanimous decision. Texas allows boxers to undergo a physical by a personal doctor as long as an electrocardiogram and electroencephalography brain-wave test are conducted along with an inspection for possible neurological troubles. Any abnormalities require additional information, said a spokesman for the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation.

After Holyfield's March TKO triumph over Vincent Maddalone, New York lifted its administrative suspension at the request of Holyfield's promoter, Main Events.

"He hasn't made an application to fight here, but we take all circumstances into account before we clear a fighter -- his history, his recent performances, all of his medicals," Stevens said. "I could let a guy fight Fighter A if I felt it'd be a good fight, but not Fighter C, if I thought it'd be a mismatch. Our first responsibility is the health and safety of the boxer."

The problem, added California State Athletic Commission Executive Director Armando Garcia, is that pre-fight medical scrutiny of boxers is uneven among U.S. states. Garcia said Florida, for instance, requires that fighters pass only tests for HIV and hepatitis.

If he were fighting in California, Holyfield would be obligated to undergo a cognitive impairment test that would require him to answer questions, repeat commands and draw things to establish if his skills were below that of a normal person his age, or if he was exhibiting signs of dementia, Garcia said.

"The only way we can all sleep better at night is to have standard medicals and a data bank we can all look at," Garcia said. "It's a problem in boxing."
Be there, round by round, with limited-edition photos, prints and othEvander "Real Deal" Holyfield (born October 19, 1962 in Atmore, Alabama) is a professional boxer from the United States and a multiple-time world champion in both the cruiserweight and heavyweight divisions. Holyfield won the bronze medal in the Light Heavyweight division at the 1984 Summer Olympics after losing a controversial disqualification to New Zealand's Kevin Barry. His secondary nickname is "The Warrior." Evander is also the younger brother of actor and dancer Bernard Holyfield. Evander currently lives and trains in Fayette County, Georgia with his wife and their two children.

Contents
1 Amateur
2 Pro
2.1 Cruiserweight
2.2 Heavyweight
2.3 Years as heavyweight champion
2.4 Losing the heavyweight crown
2.5 Holyfield vs. Tyson I & II
2.6 Bouncing back after Tyson debacle
2.7 Holyfield vs. Lewis I & II
2.8 Trilogy with John Ruiz
2.9 Holyfield vs. Byrd
2.10 Consecutive losses & New York suspension
2.11 The quest for one last title
2.12 Life outside the ring
2.13 Allegations of steroid and HGH use
3 Professional boxing record
4 Trivia
5 See also
6 References
7 External links



[edit] Amateur
Olympic medal record
Boxing
Bronze 1984 Los Angeles Light Heavyweight



Born in Alabama, Holyfield and his family moved to Atlanta in the summer of 1964, at the age of two. Holyfield began boxing at age 12 and won the Boys Club boxing tournament. At 13, he qualified to compete in his first Junior Olympics. By age 15, Holyfield became the Southeastern Regional Champion, winning this tournament and the Best Boxer Award.

When he was 20 years old, Holyfield represented the U.S. in the 1983 Pan American Games in Caracas, Venezuela, where he won a silver medal after losing to Cuban Pablo Romero.

The following year, he was the National Golden Gloves Champion, and won a bronze medal in the 1984 Summer Olympic Games in Los Angeles, California after a controversial disqualification in the second round of the semi-final against Kevin Barry. Referee Gligorije Novicic later apologized, admitting to being out of position when he called for the fighters to "break" and stop punching. Holyfield did not hear the call, and threw a punch, which knocked his opponent down. When he was unable to recover, Holyfield was disqualified. In a highly unusual concession, a tearful Holyfield was awarded the bronze medal. [citation needed]


[edit] Pro
Holyfield started out as a light-heavyweight but very quickly went up to cruiserweight.


[edit] Cruiserweight
Holyfield debuted as a professional boxer with a nationally televised win in six rounds over Lionel Byarm at Madison Square Garden on November 15, 1985.

He began 1986 with a knockout in three over former world cruiserweight challenger Chisanda Mutti, and proceeded to beat Jessy Shelby and Terry Mims before being given a world title try by the WBA's world cruiserweight champion Dwight Muhammad Qawi. In what was called by Ring Magazine as the best cruiserweight bout of the 1980s, Holyfield became world champion by defeating Qawi by a narrow 15 round split decision. He culminated 1986 with a trip to Paris, France, where he beat Mike Brothers by a knockout in three in a non title bout.

In 1987, he defended his title against former Olympic teammate and Gold medal winner Henry Tillman, who had beaten Mike Tyson twice as an amateur. He retained his belt by a knockout in seven rounds, and then went on to unify his WBA belt with the IBF belt held by Ricky Parkey, knocking Parkey out in three rounds. For his next bout, he returned to France, where he retained the title with an eleven round knockout against former world champion Ossie Ocasio. In his last fight of '87, he offered Muhammad Qawi a rematch, and this time, he beat Qawi by a knockout in four.

1988 was another productive year for Holyfield: He started by becoming the first, and as of 2007, only universally recognized world cruiserweight champion after knocking out the WBC's defending world champion Carlos De León in eight rounds at Las Vegas.


[edit] Heavyweight
After that fight, he announced he was moving up in weight to pursue the world Heavyweight crown held by Tyson. His first fight as a Heavyweight took place on July 16, when he beat former Tyson rival James "Quick" Tillis by a knockout in five in Lake Tahoe, NV (Tillis had gone the distance with Tyson). For his third and final bout of '88, he beat former world heavyweight champion Pinklon Thomas, also by a knockout, in seven rounds.

Holyfield began 1989 meeting another former world heavyweight champion, Michael Dokes. This fight would also be named one of the best fights of the 1980s by Ring magazine, as best heavyweight bout of the 1980s. Holyfield won by a knockout in the tenth round, and then he met Brazilian champion Adilson Rodrigues, who lasted two rounds. His last fight of the 1980s was against Alex Stewart, a hard punching fringe contender. Stewart shocked Holyfield early, with quick, hard punches, but eventually fell in eight. Still, some observers felt he had revealed some weaknesses in Holyfield's arsenal.

In 1990, Holyfield beat Seamus McDonagh, taking him out in four, with a vicious series of punches, but not before McDonagh connected with some impressive shots, which Holyfield took rather well. After this fight, Holyfield was the number 1 world Heavyweight challenger.


[edit] Years as heavyweight champion
By this time, in what many consider to be the biggest upset in sports history, relatively unknown boxer James "Buster" Douglas dismantled Mike Tyson in ten rounds in Tokyo to become the new Heavyweight champion. Holyfield had accepted a big paycheck to step aside, since he was the mandatory challenger. As such, he would be Douglas' first defense. Douglas was surprisingly heavy, coming in at 246 lbs (he had weighed only 231 lbs against Tyson, when he was arguably in the best shape of his career).

Holyfield trainer Lou Duva told the story in later years, that he had sent a huge combo pizza to Douglas' room each night, with a note saying, "Compliments of the hotel. Good luck in the fight, champ!" Douglas always accepted the pizza, and in the morning, the box was always empty.

Douglas offered nothing in the fight against Holyfield, with the exception of one right hand over the top of Evander's jab. In the third round, Douglas tried to start a combination with a big right uppercut - a novice mistake - perhaps because this was the big punch that had unraveled Tyson. Holyfield countered with a straight right hand that was lightning quick, and Douglas went down for the count. Douglas could be seen wiping his glove on his brow, checking for blood, as he lay on the canvas, leading some to wonder whether he could have continued, and simply had lost all motivation to do so. In any event, Holyfield was the new, undefeated, undisputed heavyweight champion of the world.

In his first defense, he beat former and future world champion George Foreman by unanimous decision in 12. The fight was billed as a "Battle for the Ages," a reference to the age differential between the young undefeated champion, and the much older George Foreman.

Then a deal was signed for him to defend his crown against Tyson in November of 1991. Tyson delayed the fight, claiming he was injured in training, but was then convicted of the rape of Desiree Washington and sentenced to six years in prison, so the fight did not happen at that time.

Holyfield made his next defense in Atlanta against Bert Cooper, who surprised him with a very competitive and spirited bout. Holyfield scored the first knockdown of the fight against Cooper with a wicked shot to the body, but Cooper returned the favor with a big right hand that sent Holyfield wobbling to the ropes. Referee Mills Lane ruled that, but for the ropes, he would have gone down, so he gave Evander a standing eight count. Having suffered the first knockdown of his professional career, he recuperated and administered a beating that left Cooper still on his feet, but unable to defend himself. Holyfield landed brutal power shots, culminated by repeated vicious uppercuts that would snap Cooper's head. Referee Lane rightly stopped the bout in the seventh.

In his first fight of 1992, he faced former world heavyweight champion Larry Holmes, who had just pulled off a spectacular upset against number one contender Ray Mercer. Holmes had speculated that Holyfield has used steroids to gain sufficient weight to move up to the heavyweight division. Larry was an old man by now, but he could still mix it up. Holyfield suffered the first scar of his career, with a gash opening up over his eye, the result of a Holmes elbow. The main difference in the fight was that the younger Holyfield could muster the energy to fight for the full three minutes each round, while the older and more experienced Holmes could not. The fight ended with a respectable but unanimous decision for Holyfield.

In the beginning of a trilogy of bouts with undefeated Olympic silver medalist Riddick Bowe, he suffered his first defeat when Bowe won the world title by a 12 round decision in Las Vegas. Round ten of that bout was named the Round of the Year by Ring Magazine.

He began 1993 by beating Alex Stewart in a rematch, but this time over the twelve round distance.

Then came the rematch with Bowe on November 6, 1993. In what is considered by many historians as one of the most bizarre moments in boxing's history, Holyfield had been taking solid jabs to the face from Bowe in round seven, when everyone in the crowd got off their feet and many people started to run for cover and yell. Holyfield took his eyes off Bowe for one moment and then told Bowe to look up to the skies. What they saw was a man in a parachute flying dangerously close to them. The man almost entered the ring, but his parachute had gotten entangled in the lights, and he landed on the ropes and apron of the ring, and he was then pulled into the crowd, where he was beaten by members of Bowe's entourage. Bowe's pregnant wife, Judy, fainted and had to be taken to the hospital from the arena. Twenty minutes later, calm was restored and Holyfield went on to recover his world heavyweight titles with a close 12 round majority decision. The man who parachuted down to the middle of the ring became known as The Fan Man and the fight itself became known as the Fan Man Fight. His victory over Bowe that year helped Holyfield being named as ABC's Wide World of Sports Athlete of the Year for 1993.


[edit] Losing the heavyweight crown
His next fight, April 1994, he met former WBO light heavyweight champion of the world Michael Moorer, who was attempting to become the first southpaw to become world Heavyweight champion. He dropped Moorer in round two, but suffered a dislocated shoulder, and lost a twelve round majority decision. When he went to the hospital to have his shoulder checked, he was diagnosed with a heart condition, and had to announce his retirement from boxing. However, watching a television show hosted by preacher Benny Hinn, Holyfield says he felt his heart heal. He and Hinn subsequently became friends, and he became a frequent visitor to Hinn's crusades. In fact, during this time, Holyfield went to a Benny Hinn crusade in Philadelphia, had Hinn lay hands on him, and gave Hinn a check for $265,000 after he was told he was healed. He then passed his next examination by the boxing commission. Holyfield would later state that his heart was misdiagnosed due to morphine pumped into his body.

In 1995, Holyfield returned to the ring, with a ten round decision win versus another former world Heavyweight champion and Olympic gold medalist, Ray Mercer. He was the first man to knock down Mercer who had a famous chin.

Then, he and Bowe had their rubber match, Holyfield knocked Bowe down with a single left hook but Bowe prevailed, by a knockout in eight. Holyfield would later claim that contracting Hepatitis A weakened him in the ring.


[edit] Holyfield vs. Tyson I & II
Main articles: Tyson-Holyfield I and The Bite Fight

Poster publicizing the 28 June, 1997, Holyfield-Tyson II fight, dubbed The Sound and The Fury.However, 1996 was a very good year for Holyfield. First, he met former world champion Bobby Czyz, beating him by a knockout in six.

Then, he and Mike Tyson finally met. Tyson had recovered the WBC's and the WBA's world heavyweight championship, and after being stripped of the WBC title for not facing Lennox Lewis, defended the WBA title against Holyfield on November 9 of that year. Tyson was heavily favored to win, but Holyfield made history by defeating Tyson in a 11th round TKO decision and joining Muhammad Ali and Lennox Lewis as the only three men ever to become world Heavyweight champions three times. He also joined Ali, former rival De Leon, Sugar Ray Robinson and Marvin Johnson among others, in the club of men who have reigned three or more times in the same division, with his victory. After the fight, Holyfield said on TV that "My God is the only true God," a reference to the Muslim Tyson. Tyson was magnanimous after the fight, which only made the events of their rematch seem even more bizarre.

His next fight would also go into the annals of boxing as one of the most bizarre fights in history: He gave Tyson a rematch on June 28, 1997, in what became known as The Bite Fight. In the third round, Tyson bit Holyfield on one of his ears, and he had two points deducted. After biting Holyfield on the other ear and gruesomely removing the top of his earlobe, Tyson was disqualified and a melee ensued. Tyson claimed his bites were a retaliation to Holyfield's unchecked headbutts, which had cut him in both fights.


[edit] Bouncing back after Tyson debacle
Next came another rematch, this time against Moorer, who had recovered the IBF's world title. Holyfield once again unified his WBA belt with the IBF belt by avenging his defeat to Moorer with a knockout win in eight.

In 1998, Holyfield had only one fight, making a mandatory defense against Vaughn Bean, who was defeated at the champion's hometown by a decision.


[edit] Holyfield vs. Lewis I & II
By 1999, the public was clamoring for a unification bout versus the WBC's world champion, Lennox Lewis of the United Kingdom. That bout happened in March of that year. The bout was declared a controversial draw after twelve rounds, where it appeared to most that Lewis dominated the fight. Holyfield claimed his performance was hindered by leg cramps. Holyfield and Lewis were ordered by the three leading organizations of which they were champions to have an immediate rematch.

The second time around, in November of that year, Lewis became the undisputed champion by beating Holyfield by a unanimous decision by three American judges. Holyfield would later dispute the decision, saying that "everyone who watched it knows I won the fight".


[edit] Trilogy with John Ruiz
In 2000, Lewis was stripped of the WBA belt for failing to meet lightly-regarded Don King fighter John Ruiz (he fought Ruiz-conqueror David Tua), and the WBA ordered Holyfield and Ruiz to meet for that organization's world title belt. Holyfield and Ruiz began their trilogy in August of that year, with Holyfield making history by winning on a controversial 12 round unanimous decision to become the first boxer in history to be the world's Heavyweight champion four times. Of course, he wasn't regarded as the real champ as long as Lewis was around. Holyfield blamed his lacklustre performance on a broken eardrum.

Seven months later, in March of 2001, it was Ruiz's turn to make history at Holyfield's expense when he surprisingly managed to knock Holyfield down and beat him by a 12 round decision to become the first Hispanic ever to win the world's heavyweight title.

On December 15 of that year, Holyfield challenged Ruiz for the title, in an attempt to become champion again. The dull fight was declared a draw, and John Ruiz maintained the WBA championship belt.


[edit] Holyfield vs. Byrd
2002 began as a promising year for Holyfield: in June, he met former world heavyweight champion Hasim Rahman, to determine who would face Lewis next. Holyfield was leading on two of the three scorecards when the fight was stopped in the eighth round due to a severe hematoma on Rahman's forehead that was caused by a headbutt earlier in the fight. Holyfield was ahead, so he was declared the winner by a technical decision.

The IBF decided to strip Lewis of his belt after he didn't want to fight Don King boxer Byrd instead going after Tyson, and declared the winner of the fight between Holyfield and former WBO world heavyweight champion Chris Byrd would be recognized as their world Heavyweight champion. So, on December 14 of '02, Holyfield once again tried to become the first man ever to be world's heavyweight champion five times when he and Byrd met, but Byrd came out as the winner by a unanimous 12 round decision.


[edit] Consecutive losses & New York suspension
On October 4, 2003, Holyfield lost to James Toney by TKO in round nine.

At age 42, Holyfield returned to the ring to face Larry Donald on November 13, 2004. He lost his third consecutive match in a twelve round unanimous decision.

In August 2005, the New York Daily News reported that the New York State Athletic Commission had banned Evander Holyfield from boxing in New York due to "diminishing skills" despite the fact that Holyfield passed a battery of medical tests.


[edit] The quest for one last title
Holyfield was initially criticized for his ongoing comeback; but Holyfield is adamant that his losses to Toney and Donald were the result of a shoulder injury, not old age. Indeed, Holyfield has looked better in his last four fights than against Donald, and appears to have answered the critics who say that he lacks the cutting edge and ability to follow up on crucial openings that he had in his youth.

Holyfield defeated Jeremy Bates by TKO on August 18, 2006 in a 10 round bout at American Airlines Center in Dallas, Texas. Holyfield dominated the fight which was stopped in the second round after Holyfield landed roughly twenty consecutive punches on Bates.

Holyfield defeated Fres Oquendo by unanimous decision on November 10, 2006 in San Antonio, Texas. Holyfield knocked Oquendo down in the first minute of the first round and continued to be the aggressor throughout the fight, winning a unanimous decision by scores of 116-111, 114-113, and 114-113.

On March 17, 2007, Holyfield defeated Vinny Maddalone by TKO when Maddalone's corner threw in the towel to save their man from serious injury in the ring. A factor in the decision to do so was a cut on Maddalone's forehead caused by an unintentional headbutt by Holyfield earlier in the fight. Maddalone was visibly upset by the call, but after the fight stated that Holyfield is still "very, very strong."

On June 30, 2007, Holyfield defeated Lou Savarese in convincing fashion, knocking the bigger and heavier Savarese down in the fourth, ninth, and tenth rounds, en route to a unanimous decision win. This was Holyfield's fourth win in ten months, two of them by KO. This victory finally set the stage for Holyfield's title fight, against Sultan Ibragimov.


El Paso Texas, June 30, 2007 vs. Gay Savarese.
[edit] Life outside the ring
By 1992, Holyfield was already a household name, announcing multiple products on television, such as Coca Cola and Diet Coke. He also had a video game released for the Sega Genesis: Evander Holyfield's Real Deal Boxing. He started professing his Christianity everywhere, reminding the public before and after his fights that he is a reborn Christian, and wearing t-shirts with the word Pray in public. In 1996 Holyfield was given the opportunity to carry the Olympic torch when it was on its way to his hometown of Atlanta for that year's Olympics. October 4 of this year he was married to Dr. Janice Itson, with whom he had one child. Holyfield would later divorce Janice in 2000.

In 1998 Holyfield was forced to announce that he believed to have as many as nine children out of wedlock, and his marriage was affected by that announcement.

He founded Real Deal Records who signed the briefly successful group Exhale.

On July 3, 2003, Holyfield wed for the third time, marrying 24 year old student Candi Calvana Smith.

Holyfield's popularity has led to numerous television appearances for the boxer. His first television show appearance was the Christmas special of the Fresh Prince of Bel-Air in 1990, playing himself. In 2005, Holyfield came in fifth place on ABC's Dancing with the Stars with his partner Edyta Sliwinska. He also made an appearance on the original BBC Strictly Come Dancing "Champion of Champions" showdown, which featured the final four teams from the 2005 edition of the British series, plus two celebrities from spinoff versions, paired with British professional dancers, one featuring Holyfield paired with Karen Hardy, and Rachel Hunter paired with Darren Cole. Holyfield also had minor roles in three movies during the 1990s, Summer of Sam, Necessary Roughness, and Blood Salvage (which he also produced).

On August 13, 2007, Holyfield was confirmed to participate in a boxing match at World Wrestling Entertainment's Saturday Night's Main Event against Matt Hardy. He replaced Montel Vontavious Porter, who had to pull out after being diagnosed with a heart condition. The fight ended in a no-contest after MVP entered the ring and Holyfield knocked him out after MVP started verbally abusing him.


[edit] Allegations of steroid and HGH use
On February 28, 2007, Holyfield was anonymously linked to Applied Pharmacy Services, a pharmacy in Alabama that is currently under investigation for supplying atheletes with illegal sterioids and human growth hormone (HGH). He denies ever using performance enhancers.[1] Ironically, Holyfield's name does not appear in the law enforcement documents reviewed. However, a patient by the name of "Evan Fields" caught investigators' attention. "Fields" shares the same birth date as Holyfield -- Oct. 19, 1962. The listed address for "Fields" was 794 Evander, Fairfield, Ga. 30213. Holyfield has a very similar address. When the phone number that, according to the documents, was associated with the "Fields" prescription, was dialed, Holyfield answered.[2] On March 10, 2007 Holyfield made a public announcement that he would be pursuing his own investigation into the steroid claims in order to clear his name.[3]

Holyfield was again linked to HGH in September 2007, when his name came up following a raid of Signature Pharmacy in Orlando, FL.[4] As of September 2007, Signature Pharmacy is under investigation for illegally supplying several professional athletes with steroids and HGH.[5]

er exclusive memorabilia. This is the ultimate Holyfield collection where you can choose from T-shirts, jackets, hats, posters and much more. Click here to start shopping.




Holyfield FoundationThere is much more to being a Warrior than just winning championships. By giving back to his community, Evander Holyfield is inspiring generations of children and teaching us all that a Warrior doesn't forget where he comes from. To learn more about the Foundation, see what organizations they are helping, and find out about upcoming events click here.





Timeline
How does an average boy grow up to be a 4 time heavy weight champion?



Follow Evander's life from the humble beginning through today with an interactive timeline. See Evander like you've never seen him before with clips of his most famous fights, exclusive video interviews and photos from his personal albums. Find out what it really means to be a Warrior. Click Here.

It all began in 1946, when Carl Holyfield opened his photography business in the basement of his Winston-Salem, North Carolina home.

Since then, school portraiture has changed dramatically and Holyfield Photography has too. With the latest digital technology, we continue to the tradition of providing lifetime memories started over a half century ago.


Holyfield challenges WBO champ Ibragimov: American Evander Holyfield, already the only four-time heavyweight champion, goes for an unprecedented fifth title today when he challenges unbeaten WBO champion Sultan Ibragimov in a scheduled 12-round bout in Moscow.

Holyfield (42-8-2), who turns 45 Friday, can become the second-oldest heavyweight champion. At 45 years and 300 days, George Foreman knocked out Michael Moorer to win the WBA and IBF titles in 1994.

The 32-year-old Ibragimov (21-0-1) will be making his first title defense since dethroning New Yorker Shannon Briggs by unanimous decision in June.

Mesi prevails: Former heavyweight contender Joe Mesi won for the seventh time since returning from a brain injury, stopping Shannon Miller at 2:51 of the first round to win the USNBC title in Lincoln, R.I. Mesi is 36-0.

Tennis

Blake seeks third consecutive Stockholm title: Top-seeded James Blake rallied past Jarkko Nieminen of Finland 6-7 (1-7), 6-4, 6-2 to reach the semifinals in the Stockholm Open.

The American improved to 13-0 in the Swedish capital, where he has won the last two titles in one of the world's oldest indoor tournaments. John McEnroe and Boris Becker each won the Stockholm Open four times, but no one has won three in a row.

Blake's semifinal opponent today is Thomas Johansson of Sweden, who defeated Mario Ancic of Croatia 4-6, 7-5, 7-6 (7-3). In the other semifinal, 6-foot-10 Ivo Karlovic of Croatia will face Tommy Haas of Germany.

S. Williams to face Kuznetsova in Kremlin Cup semifinal match: American Serena Williams and Svetlana Kuznetsova of Russia will face each other in the Kremlin Cup semifinal round in Moscow.

Williams beat Nicole Vaidisova of the Czech Republic 6-4, 7-6 (9-7) and the top-seeded Kuznetsova defeated Vera Dushevina of Russia 6-2, 6-2.

In other quarterfinal matches, Elena Dementieva of Russia beat Victoria Azarenka of Belarus 7-6 (7-4), 6-2 and Dinara Safina defeated Vera Zvonareva 6-2, 3-6, 6-3 in a matchup of Russians.



On the men's side, defending champion Nikolay Davydenko of Russia, Janko Tipsarevic of Serbia, Paul-Henri Mathieu of France and Michael Berrer of Germany reached the semifinals.

V. Williams advances: American Venus Williams, Serena's sister, moved into the semifinals of the Bangkok Open in Thailand with a 6-1, 6-1 win over Camille Pin of France.

Williams will meet Italy's Flavia Pennetta, who beat Shahar Peer of Israel 3-6, 6-4, 6-2. Yan Zi of China and Chan Yung-jan of Taiwan play in the other semifinal match.

Tennis leaders note threat: Tennis must remain vigilant against the threat of match-fixing and betting scams, even though the sport's four major organizations say there is no hard evidence of corruption.

The International Tennis Federation, the ATP, the WTA Tour and the Grand Slam Committee met, three days after 18th-ranked Andy Murray said fixed matches are common.

"While we do not believe that our sport has a corruption problem, we do recognize that a threat to the integrity of tennis exists," the group said in a statement.

Track and field

Johnson says he isn't surprised by Jones' confession: Disgraced sprinter Ben Johnson said he wasn't surprised by Marion Jones' confession.

"I believe that everyone on the international level is using performance-enhancing drugs," Johnson said in a radio interview with Al-Jazeera. "And, you know, it's widespread and it's going to continue on. A lot more people [are] going to be also coming forward."

Canadian Johnson ran a record 9.79 seconds to win the 100-meter gold at the 1988 Seoul Olympics, but tested positive for the steroid stanozolol and was stripped of his medal and time.

Jones admitted last week she was using banned substances when she won five Olympic medals in 2000.

Olympics

Kodak to end sponsorship after 2008 Games: Photography icon Eastman Kodak announced it is ending its role as a top corporate sponsor of the Olympics after next year's Games in Beijing.

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