Boxing 1997 0 1997-06-28 1997-06-28 https://r2.thesportsdb.com/images/media/event/thumb/ocmx5e1594241209.jpg https://r2.thesportsdb.com/images/media/event/poster/v5a1fx1594241087.jpg Evander Holyfield vs. Mike Tyson II, billed as "the Sound and the Fury" and afterwards infamously referred to as "the Bite Fight" or "the Bite of '97" was a professional boxing match contested on June 28, 1997, for the WBA Heavyweight Championship. It achieved notoriety as one of the most bizarre fights in boxing history, after Tyson bit off part of Holyfield's ear. Tyson was disqualified from the match and lost his boxing license, though it was later reinstated. The fight took place at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. The referee officiating the fight was Mills Lane, who was brought in as a late replacement when Tyson's camp protested the original selection of Mitch Halpern (who officiated the first fight) as the referee. Tyson and Holyfield fought seven months earlier in Las Vegas. Tyson was making his first defense of the WBA championship he had won from Bruce Seldon in a first-round knockout. Holyfield, despite being a former champion, was a significant underdog entering the match as he had been rather lackluster in several fights since he returned to fighting in 1995 after a brief retirement. However, Holyfield surprised Tyson by controlling the contest and knocked him down in the sixth round. Halpern stopped the fight in the eleventh round, giving Holyfield an upset victory. 628390