Question of the Day - 27 May 2008

The boxing match, billed prior to the fight as Holyfield-Tyson II (and after as the Bite Fight) took place on June 28, 1997, at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas. This was a rematch of a Nov. 9, 1996, bout between the two, with Tyson defending his Undisputed World Heavyweight Boxing Champion title against Holyfield -- 34 years old and a huge underdog. Holyfield thoroughly outboxed and outfoxed Tyson for 11 rounds; when the referee stopped the fight in the 11th, Holyfield had achieved one of the most famous upset victories in the history of boxing.

In the rematch, Holyfield took the first two rounds, but Tyson was riled by some apparent head-butting, which had also taken place in the first fight between the two. In the third round, Tyson bit Holyfield, first in the right ear, then his left, ripping off a large piece of lobe in the process.

The fight was stopped when referee Mills Lane disqualified Tyson for the two incidents.

A lot of tension filled the air as the fight-goers worked their way from ringside at the MGM Grand into the casino.

This championship rematch had been billed as one of the greatest fights of all time. It drew the largest pay-per-view audience in boxing history up to that time, with 1.8 million households buying the fight on pay-per-view.

Las Vegas prizefights are always magnets for a menagerie of American culture — movie stars, dot-com moguls, pro athletes, L.A. gangbangers, and every breed of whale and high roller, along with the square tourists, pikers and fanny-packers from middle America who happen to be in the gargantuan MGM Grand at the same time. It’s an odd and volatile mix. And especially so on this night of the severed ear.

As 15,000 particularly aroused fight fans made their way through the packed casino, the crowd was suddenly startled by a loud bang, which many ear witnesses identified as a gunshot.

Quickly, the rumor spread that gunfire had erupted in the MGM casino and a mini-stampede erupted in the casino. A horde of people panicked and began running in every direction, pushing and shoving to escape whatever caused the big pop. The situation quickly got out of control. Slot players clung to their machines, blackjack tables were pushed over, and dice shooters ducked under crap tables to avoid the crowd.

Order was finally regained and the dust settled. MGM executives later explained away the loud bang as the pop of a champagne bottle in a nearby restaurant.

I was in the MGM the night of the "Bite Fight." I was playing poker when the old tele ticker in the sports book read, "Tyson bites Holyfield, Tyson DQ" (disqualified)..." About 10 minutes later the fans boiled down the hall from the events center into the casino and yes I heard a loud "pop" (the broken champagne bottle)... As poker players are wont to do, we continued to play amidst the mayhem breaking out in the casino. Well, about 2 minutes later the poker manager shut down the room and directed everyone to take their chips and return when they open. I made my way into the casino and was amazed! There were 2-4 armed (w/assault rifles) guards in front of the cage. The pit bosses were trying to "shut down" the tables (note the "lowest minimum" table I saw that night was $100). There was a notice that the MGM Grand Casino was "closed," and everyone was to either vacate or return to their hotel room. My family was in the room, so I made my way to the elevator cluster and there were guards securing them and verifying access. I went to my room and watched the folks pour out from the casino. The casino was closed for the rest of the evening and did not open until the next a.m. I understand they lost a boatload of money from the lack of drop from the $100 tables and the canceling of all the "private parties" scheduled for MGM. My family and I made it out of the casino later in the evening for dinner and sightseeing, but seeing MGM closed on a weekend was eerie.