Holyfield knocks fight out of Tyson

     It ended inexplicably, with Mike Tyson foggy-headed and tasting his own blood. Mike Tyson, incapable of firing even a single punch in his defense. Mike Tyson, unable to recount what had just occurred; unable to even raise his voice.
     "I really don't know what happened," Tyson said into a microphone from the rin g after suffering an 11th-round technical knockout to Evander Holyfield. "I'll have to watch it on videotape later."
     Tyson wasn't being flippant. Probably, he was still groggy over the 12-punch avalanche Holyfield unloaded to start the 11th round. Referee Mitch Halpern stepped in with 2:23 remaining in the round and waved Holyfield away. The pro-Holyfield capacity crowd at the MGM Grand Garden roared as the WBA heavyweight championship changed ownership.
     Tyson, who had never fought more than 10 rounds in his career, dropped to 45-2 with 39 knockouts. Holyfield is 33-3 with 23 KOs and a rejuvenated career.
     "He fought a good fight," said Tyson, speaking in hushed tones. "I'd look forward to (a rematch)."
     Nothing worked all night for Tyson, once a 25-1 favorite who dramatically dipped to 6-1 at the MGM on fight night. The ripping uppercuts were blocked or came up short. His no-nonsense, bull-rushing offensive style was simply smothered by a surprisingly strong Holyfield.
     Holyfield cut off Tyson's inside body attack by frequently holding and pushing. Tyson, who weighed in at 222 pounds to Holyfield's 215, was frequently forced to backpedal and rarely had leverage to fire off effective combinations.
     "I did what I had to do to win," said Holyfield, who repeatedly thanked God for giving him the strength to beat Tyson.
     The fight turned in the sixth round with two telling incidents. The first, midway through the round, occurred when the two fighters clashed heads after throwing right hands. A gash opened over Tyson's head. Though his corner complained during and after the fight about the head-butt, Tyson didn't use it as an excuse. "He head-butted me, but I probably head-butted him, too," Tyson said.
     Later, with 49 seconds left in the round, Holyfield clubbed Tyson with a short left hook. For the second time in his career, Tyson was down.
     He never really recovered.
     By the 10th round, Holyfield's strategy seemed to have Tyson confused. His flurries were less frequent and he, not the 34-year-old Holyfield, appeared tired. At the end of the round Holyfield had Tyson in trouble, landing a four-punch combination topped with a snapping overhand right. The 10th has proven to be Tyson's most troublesome round; Buster Douglas also floored him in the 10th in Tyson's first loss in 1990.
     This time, Tyson managed to make the 11th. Barely.
     Holyfield started the 11th quickly, flinging left and rights and catching Tyson each time. Late in the flurry, Tyson pawed with a left that failed to make Holyfield flinch, and by the time Holyfield landed punch No. 12 in the series, Halpern had seen enough.
     "It would have been unjust to let it go on," Halpern said. "He had taken a lot of punches and wasn't fighting back."
     Mike Tyson, not fighting back. It might be the biggest surprise of all.