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Boxing fans and movie buffs must agree Saturday's Heavyweight Championship fight between former champ Evander Holyfield and current titleholder Nikolay Valuev had all the best elements of a major feature film. The 46-year-old challenger, conditioned nearly to his best shape ever and certainly schooled in the subtleties of his craft, takes on the big, ugly menace in the comeback battle of the century. Wasn't this one from the Rocky franchise? And, in the fight's very last seconds, Holyfield almost delivered the knock-out punch for which the script called. The bell about to ring, his whole heart and soul in the punch, Holyfield threw a mighty left hook?and missed. Had that one punch found its target, Holyfield probably would have won the championship for the fifth time. And, way more important to spectators and fans, he would have become the oldest champion in the sport's colorful history. With the exception of those last few moments' suspense, the bout fell far short of action adventure. Holyfield stuck to his game plan, dodging Valuev's punches and throwing very few of his own, conserving his strength to assure he could finish the full twelve rounds. The first six rounds didn't amount to much. But going into the seventh round, Valuev started hitting his target. Valuev's jab more often caught air than chin, but the right cross consistently hit and hit hard. Throughout the second half, Holyfield devoted most of his effort to staying out of range, picking his spots with exquisite care, scoring well when he did venture a punch. Ron Lewis, writing in TimesOnline, suggested, The 7ft Russian, who has appeared in some movies of late, would make a classic Bond villain, his hulking appearance paired with a seeming lack of emotion. Home viewers and commentators agreed a little plot considerably would have improved the fight, which scored more points for dance-choreography than hard punches. In the fight's late rounds, Holyfield stayed out of Valuev's albatross arm span, picking his spots for landing his best punches, scoring strategically rather than frequently. Valuev kept closing and reaching. Holyfield continued skillfully evading. Valuev did, however, satisfy the crowd's desire for a bad guy. Expressionless, mechanical, and just plain mean, landed lots of heavy blows on Holyfield, the crowd's emotional favorite. Eleven years younger and ten inches taller than Holyfield, Valuev frequently reminded viewers of their favorite playground bully taking advantage of an under-sized underdog. Experts were not surprised the scorecards showed the fight was closer than it seemed. In the end, Valuev won by a single point on one card, by just two points on the rest. After the fight, Holyfield and his promoters rewrote the script, demanding a rematch, and assuring loyal hero-worshippers that Holyfield still has plenty of power and endurance. There's no doubt he can go the distance. Holyfield himself still has no doubt he still can land the KO blow. Both he and Ken Sanders, Holyfield's promoter, agreed he will continue scheduling bouts in preparation for another go at Valuev. Holyfield absolutely insisted he still intends to reclaim his standing as the world's undisputed heavyweight champion. For more information, please visit http://www.iwebie.com/holyfield-vs-valuev-boxing-live-stream
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