Former Rivals Mike Tyson and Evander Holyfield Pose Together for New Photo 27 Years After Infamous ‘Bite Fight'

Mike Tyson and Evander Holyfield are on good terms, 27 years after Tyson bit off part of Holyfield’s ear during an infamous match. On Tuesday, Tyson shared a picture of himself Holyfield to his social media accounts. "We've come a long way since the bite fight,” Tyson knowingly captioned the photo.

Tyson and Holyfield had a cutthroat rivalry leading up to their “bite fight.” Holyfield nabbed the 1996 WBA title from Tyson, which in turn led to their bloody 1997 scrap at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Paradise, NV. Cornered and facing another loss of the title, Tyson latched onto Holyfield’s ear and took a bite out of it.

It was a hotly debated moment in sports and Tyson’s career. In James Toback’s 2008 documentary Tyson (via Men’s Health) the boxer said he retaliated after Holyfield pelted him with illegal headbutts. However, in an interview with Oprah the following year, Tyson didn’t make any excuses for his outburst.

"It doesn't make no excuse for what happened, but I was just enraged and I wanted to inflict so much pain on him," Tyson reflected. "I was just pissed off that he was such a great fighter, too…I was mad at him.”

Later that year, Holyfield joined Tyson on Oprah’s couch for a joint interview in which they expressed love and forgiveness for one another. "This is a beautiful guy," Tyson lauded Holyfield. "Me and this guy both come from basically the sewage, and we watched each other grow to become established and esteemed fighters, you know what I mean?" And I just want you to know it's been a pleasure passing through life being acquainted with you," he said, shaking Holyfield's hand.

The two also discussed the brawl in 2012 on Larry King Now. “I was bleeding all over the place, and I was frustrated,” Tyson told King of his thought process during the bite. “I wasn’t sorry at the time," he admitted.

In 2022, Tyson and Holyfield went into business together, launching a line of cannabis edibles shaped like Holyfield’s injured ear. They partnered for a “Holy Ears” commercial in which Tyson gifts his former rival a bag of his own edible ears. When Holyfield disputes the candies looking at all similar, Tyson tells him, “I ate your ear, I should know!”