Holyfield books ‘Tank’ as tuneup

Former heavyweight world champion Evander Holyfield will fight Sherman “Tank” Williams next month as a tuneup for his March bout in Copenhagen against Dane Brian Nielsen.

Holyfield, who turned 48 last month, is trying to become the oldest man to capture a major heavyweight crown, surpassing the mark set by George Foreman when he stopped Michael Moorer for the title in 1994 at age 45.

Holyfield, 43-10 with two drawn and 28 knockouts, will face 38-year-old Bahamas big man Williams, 34-11 with two drawn, on January 22 at the Greenbrier Resort.

Four-time heavyweight champion Holyfield is then set to fight Brian Nielsen, 45, on March 5 in Denmark.

US veteran Holyfield, who lost the undisputed heavyweight crown to Britain’s now-retired Lennox Lewis in 1999, has vowed to keep fighting until he regains a major world title. Holyfield briefly held the World Boxing Association crown in 2000 before a loss and draw to John Ruiz, then lost world title fights to Chris Byrd in 2002, Russia’s Sultan Ibragimov in 2007 and Russia’s Nikolay Valuev in 2008.

Last April, Holyfield won for the first time since June, 2007, by stopping South African Frans Botha, then 41, in the eighth round.

WHITE SULPHR SPRINGS, West Virginia, Sunday (AFP)