Five still alive for hopeful Holyfield

"But Evander's always been the bigger guy, not in stature, but in heart," said Holyfield's trainer Don Turner. Indeed, the 63-year-old Turner, who has been at Holyfield's side for eight years, claims his charge has just enjoyed "his best training camp since before the first Mike Tyson fight".

Holyfield brings a record of 38-5-2 to tonight's bout. The five losses all came against world champions, an unsurprising statistic in that Holyfield would hardly have been able to win four heavyweight titles without losing a few along the way, but that he is 2-2-2 in his last six outings is a more ominous figure as he goes after what would be an unprecedented fifth.

The IBF belt which will be in dispute here tonight became available when the promoter Don King persuaded Lennox Lewis to abdicate that portion of his championship in exchange for a million dollars and a new Range Rover. Lewis will be present at ringside as a commentator for HBO and King will undoubtedly point to his presence as a means of conferring legitimacy on his "Heavyweight Championship Series".

In King's grand scheme, the Holyfield-Byrd survivor would be matched with the winner of his World Boxing Association heavyweight title fight at the beginning of March between John Ruiz and Roy Jones Jr, the undisputed light-heavyweight champion. There is an even vaguer suggestion that the winner of that bout would then meet Lewis.

Byrd began his professional career as a super-middleweight and has ridden a masterful boxing style to success as a heavyweight, though most of his fights have been virtually unwatchable. "I pride myself on making these guys miss and look kind of foolish," said Byrd, who checked in at 15st 4lb at the weigh-in. "I think people will admire that I am a small guy without a big punch."

Holyfield insists that the paying customers could be in for a surprise. "Byrd and I are cut from the same cloth," he said. "We both believe in Christ and are brothers in the Lord. That means we're not quitters and that's what makes this a great fight. Somebody is going to have to go out there, take it and win."