Before Joshua-Fury, Tyson and Holyfield waited 12 years to finally fight

The wait for Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua has become one of boxing’s longest-running heavyweight stories. The British rivals have talked about fighting for years, but the much-anticipated clash has repeatedly remained out of reach.But heavyweight boxing has seen even longer waits. Mike Tyson and Evander Holyfield first appeared destined to meet in the late 1980s. Contracts were signed, plans were made, and then everything fell apart. It took years before they finally shared a ring, creating one of boxing’s most famous rivalries.Mike Tyson and Evander Holyfield showed how long a heavyweight fight can takeThe Mike Tyson-Evander Holyfield story began long before their professional rivalry. The two heavyweights had crossed paths at the 1984 American Olympic boxing trials. A pool-table incident added another layer to their relationship, and their careers continued moving toward an inevitable showdown.By October 1989, that fight appeared to be finally happening.