Press Release: FSN and Best Damn Sports Show Period are pleased to present  former four-time heavyweight champion Evander “The Real Deal” Holyfield beginning his quest for a another heavyweight championship. FSN telecasts the live bout from the American Airlines Center in Dallas on Friday, August 18 at 10:30 PM EST/7:30 PM PST.

Holyfield stayed away from the ring for the last two years to recover from the nagging injuries that led to losses in his last two fights. Now healthy, Holyfield is ready to reclaim his place on top of the boxing world. The 43-year-old pride of Atlanta battles veteran Jeremy Bates in a ten-round non-title bout in the headline fight of a special edition of BDSSP’s successful live boxing series.

BDSSP host Chris Rose joins co-host John Salley and analyst Chris Byrd, who defeated Holyfield in 2002 to take the heavyweight title, to preview the evening’s fight card. Veteran announcer Barry Tompkins calls the fights, along with analyst Rich Marotta; Sean O'Grady conducts post-fight interviews.

“Evander Holyfield is a four-time World Champion and one of boxing’s all-time greats,” said George Greenberg, FSN’s Executive Vice President of Programming and Production. “He has not fought on television since 2004, so when this opportunity came along, it was a natural fit for Best Damn Sports Show Period.  This is sure to be a great event.”

Holyfield (38-8-2, 25 KOs), a surefire lock to be in the Boxing Hall of Fame, captured his first title in 1990 with a third-round knockout of then heavyweight champion Buster Douglas.  He continued his steady rise with wins against top opponents such as Larry Holmes, George Forman and Riddick Bowe and defeated “Iron” Mike Tyson twice in pursuit of his four heavyweight titles.