Evander Holyfield vs. Michael Moorer II Evander Holyfield vs. Michael Moorer II Evander Holyfield vs. Michael Moorer II was a professional boxing match contested November 8, 1997 for the WBA and IBF Heavyweight championships. After Riddick Bowe vacated the WBC Heavyweight title in 1992 followed by George Foreman being stripped of both the WBA and IBF Heavyweight titles in 1995, the heavyweight boxing division was in limbo as three different men laid claim to each of the three major heavyweight championships in 1997. Evander Holyfield and Michael Moorer held the WBA and IBF Heavyweight titles respectively, while Lennox Lewis held the WBC version of the title.
International Boxing Federation former heavyweight champion Michael Moorer; IBF's reputation was ruined 1999 with founder Lee's indictment for racketeering and other violations for taking bribes in exchange for high boxer rankings. Indicted on federal racketeering and racketeering conspiracy charges were "president, Robert W. Lee, 65; his son and IBF liaison, Robert Lee Jr., 38; former IBF executive and Virginia boxing commissioner Donald William Brennan, 86; and South American IBF representative Francisco Fernandez." Lee was subsequently convicted of money-laundering and tax evasion in August 2000, then sentenced, in 2001, to 22 months in prison and fined $25,000. In 2000, citing extortion; boxing promoter Bob