ATLANTAûMaybe now we know why former heavyweight champion Evander Holyfield wants to keep fighting at age 45. The “Real Deal” appears real broke. His $10 million estate in suburban Atlanta is under foreclosure, the mother of one of his children is suing f
A legal notice that ran recently in a small local newspaper said Holyfield’s estate will be auctioned off "at public outcry to the highest bidder for cash" at the Fayette County courthouse on July 1. The 54,000-square-foot homeûlocated on Evander Holyfield Highwayûhas 109 rooms, including 17 bathrooms, three kitchens and a bowling alley.
Meanwhile, Holyfield’s handlers allegedly told the mother of one of his children that he will no longer be able to make his $3,000-a-month support payment. Toi Irvin claims the boxer has already missed two payments, so she has gone to court seeking restitution. "My concern is there may be a lot of other mothers not be getting paid, and I would like my client to be at front of the line," said Randy Kessler, Irvin’s attorney.
Evander Holyfield’s Atlanta-area home has 109 rooms, including 17 bathrooms. Kessler said Thursday evening he has yet to hear from Holyfield’s attorney and hopes to go before a judge in 30 days. He will request the boxer be jailed if he doesn’t pay up. "This is such a small amount given the scope of what he has," Kessler said.
"If Evander Holyfield can get away with it, anybody can. There are guys making $15,000 a year who go to jail for missing a $100 payment." Holyfield, the only four-time heavyweight champion, has at least nine children. Further compounding his financial woes, a federal lawsuit was filed about two weeks ago in Utah seeking repayment of $550,000 in loans allegedly made to Holyfield in late 2006 and early 2007 to pay for landscaping on his 235-acre estate.
The case, filed two weeks ago in U.S. District Court in Salt Lake City, said Robert Hall met Holyfield through a mutual friend and agreed to the loan, with the understanding it would be paid back, with interest, after the boxer’s next bout. Since the initial transfer of $50,000 was made to Holyfield, he has fought four times but failed to pay back any of the loans, the suit claims. It also says he did not respond to a Sept. 10 letter demanding repayment.
Holyfield didn’t return a message left on his cell phone by the Associated Press. His attorney, Frederick Gardner, did not respond to an e-mail nor a call to his Atlanta office. (AP)
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