Triller Fight Club (TFC) welcomed one of the world's most revered and experienced competitors, Evander "The Real Deal" Holyfield, to its roster of top warriors, legends, emerging stars, and leading entertainment figures today.
On Saturday, June 5, Holyfield, the first male to hold the world heavyweight championship four times, will return to the ring to face Kevin McBride in a six-round contest in Florida. Triller is still planning a card in July.
He'll be joining a card that already has a title battle between Teófimo López and George Kambosos Jr. McBride (35-10-1) is well remembered for putting an end to Mike Tyson's career in June 2005, when Tyson retired in the sixth round in Washington, D.C. Triller Fight Club is a collaboration between Triller and Snoop Dogg, spearheaded by Ryan Kavanaugh. Both professional fighting laws will be followed.
The Holyfield vs McBride Live Stream, fight venue and times for Triller Fight Club on June 5 will be publicly revealed in the coming days.
“Our continuing reinvention of boxing as four-quadrant entertainment now includes one of the greatest faces in boxing history, Evander Holyfield, facing one of the strongest opponents, Kevin McBride,” Kavanaugh added.
“He enters a roster that includes some of the most elite fighters making their way through the ranks as well as world-class musical entertainment as we deliver a multifaceted experience for fans of all interests in four action-packed and thrilling pay per view hours.”
“I am honored to be able to enter Triller Fight Club because they are just what our industry need. They have reimagined boxing in a really interesting modern way,” Holyfield added. “Their blend of young talent, music, culture, and special matchups is creating a new precedent for our sport, and my return to the ring for this battle is one that everybody, including myself, can love, and I am honored to help carry this to the next level.”
Negotiations were conducted to stage a third Tyson vs. Holyfield match, but the talks fall apart.
Holyfield is the first professional boxer to have claimed the heavyweight title four times, breaking Muhammad Ali's mark of three. After an outstanding collegiate and Olympic boxing career, Holyfield turned professional and claimed the junior heavyweight championship in 1986 by defeating World Boxing Association (WBA) king Dwight Muhammad Qawi in a 15-round split decision. Through an eighth-round knockout of Carlos DeLeon in April 1988, Holyfield became boxing's first undisputed cruiserweight champion. Three months later, he won his first heavyweight fight, knocking out James Tillis in five rounds. On October 25, 1990, he knocked out James ("Buster") Douglas in the third round to capture the undisputed heavyweight championship of the World Boxing Association (WBA), the World Boxing Council (WBC), and the International Boxing Federation (IBF) (IBF). After strong defenses against former champions George Foreman and Larry Holmes, Holyfield was defeated by Riddick Bowe in a 12-round decision on November 13, 1992. In a rematch with Bowe a year later, he regained the WBA and IBF championships via unanimous decision. On November 9, 1996, Holyfield faced heavyweight champion Mike Tyson in a much-anticipated WBA bout, winning by TKO in the 11th round and becoming the heavyweight champion for the third time. Holyfield reclaimed the IBF championship by knocking out Michael Moorer in the eighth round of their rematch on November 8, 1997. He retired in 2014 with a professional record of 44 victories (29 by knockout), 10 defeats, and 2 draws. Holyfield was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 2017.
Fight Club has produced and called this match the Legends Title Fight, and the winner will receive the Triller Fight Club Legends Champion Gold Belt, the first of Fight Club's championship belts.
López, 23, is the reigning unified lightweight world champion, having won the IBF belt since 2019 and the WBA (Super), WBO, and Ring magazine championships since beating Vasyl Lomachenko in 2020. López is rated as the world's fifth best professional fighter, pound for pound, by ESPN and the Boxing Writers Association of America, and sixth by The Ring. He is also rated as the world's strongest active lightweight by BoxRec, ESPN, and the TBRB.
Since 2017, the Australian Kambosos has kept the IBF Pan Pacific lightweight title. He previously won the Australian NSW, Australian, WBA-PABA, and WBA Oceania lightweight championships between 2013 and 2017. Kambosos (19-0, 10 KOs) became the IBF mandatory challenger after beating Lee Selby by split decision in October.
Jake Paul takes on former Bellator and ONE FC champion Ben Askren in the main event of Triller Fight Club's first event of 2021 on Saturday at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, while Regis Prograis (New Orleans), a former world champion and arguably one of the top two super lightweights in the world, battles Ivan Redkach (Shostka, Ukraine); heavyweight MMA Bad Boy Frank Mir (Las Vegas) opposes Ivan Redkach (Shostka, Ukraine (Envigado, Colombia). Several unbeaten boxers faced off on Saturday, including welterweight Quinton Randall (Houston, 7-0), super middleweight Junior Younan (Brooklyn, N.Y., 15-0-1) and middleweight Lorenzo “Truck” Simpson (Baltimore, Md., 9-0). Simpson will face Francisco Torres (Buenos Aires, 16-3-1), Younan will face Jeyson Minda (Quito, Ecuador/Salem, Mass., 14-4-1) and Randall will face Cincinnati veteran William Jackson (13-2-2, 2 KOs).
The schedule for Saturday's four-hour Pay Per View broadcast includes Justin Bieber, The Black Keys, Doja Cat, Saweetie, Diplo, Major Lazer, and the exclusive world debut of the hip hop supergroup Mt. Westmore (Snoop Dogg, Ice Cube, Too $hort, and E-40) performing for the first time ever together. Bert Marcus, Emmy Award-winning filmmaker, will guide and direct the artistic storytelling for the Triller Fight Club case.
Snoop, in addition to being a co-owner, frequently gives logistical advice to Triller Battle Club, assisting in the selection of fighters and musical acts for the spectacular activities. Snoop, a television analyst who has consistently navigated a multitude of campaigns in a number of diverse areas, secured his place as a crowd favorite during Triller's first sporting game, Tyson vs. Jones.
