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To understand why a boxing analyst would find himself so impressed by Evander Holyfield's performance Saturday night against unheralded Vinny Maddalone, you'd have to rewind to 2004.
On Nov. 13, 2004, Holyfield fought Larry Donald at Madison Square Garden, and Real Deal looked real done.
He lost almost every round to Donald, who is a slick boxer but will never be regarded among the division's elite, even in this watered-down era. And it isn't like the rounds were close or the judges had to peer intently to decipher the action.
The man regarded as one of the finest fighters of his time landed a beyond-paltry 78 punches against Donald, a woeful 6.5 per round.
No, Holyfield looked listless, and fight pundits everywhere reached for their forks. Holyfield, they knew, was done.
The performance was so unambiguously putrid, the New York State Athletic Commission yanked Holyfield's license to perform in New York, citing his diminished skills.
All agreed, it was time for Holyfield to make a gracious exit from the sport that punishes past-their-prime practitioners like no other.
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