Is Evander Holyfield vs. Vitor Belfort as low as boxing's crossover events can go?

Holyfield and Belfort are just the latest in boxing's era of freak show fights

Summer 2021 was set to be a massive period for boxing. Instead, most of the biggest fights on the calendar were either canceled or postponed while celebrity and MMA crossover fights were again the focus of the sport. That trend continues on Saturday night with a bizarre fight between 58-year-old boxing legend Evander Holyfield and 44-year-old former UFC champion Vitor Belfort in the main event of Triller Legends 2. Holyfield is stepping in on relatively short notice after Oscar De La Hoya was forced out of the fight due to a positive COVID test. De La Hoya is more than 12 years removed from his last professional bout and his in-ring return at 48 already had many questioning if the parade of legends, mixed martial artists and celebrities had already jumped the shark. Replacing De La Hoya with Holyfield, who had reportedly just entered into legal proceedings with Triller over allegations of non-payment, has done nothing to lessen those concerns. With California refusing to sanction the bout, Triller was forced to move the event to Florida in hopes of salvaging the fight's status as a professional contest with fan confidence in exhibition bouts waning after several have played out as a series of glorified sparring sessions. Now, the promotion has added to the absurdity by offering an alternate commentary feed featuring former president Donald Trump and his son, Donald Trump Jr.