Holyfield says wife has requested that protective order be dropped

By Christian Boone

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Former heavyweight champion Evander Holyfield told the AJC Friday his wife has rescinded a protective order filed last week in a Fayette County courthouse.

"We worked something out," Holyfield, 47, said by phone from Las Vegas. He would not confirm media reports that he has agreed to seek marital counseling.

In documents filed last week in Fayette Superior Court, Candi Holyfield accused her husband of hitting her in the face, the back of her head and on her back.

"He got up and turned the light on and started looking at my face and told me he was sorry, that he knew he shouldn't have done that," Candi Holyfield stated in the petition for a temporary protective order.

The Feb. 1 altercation started after the heat was cut off in the couple's 109-room Fairburn mansion, Candi Holyfield said in court papers.

"He told me that I was only thinking about myself," she stated. "He started telling me that I needed to start putting God first in my life."

Candi Holyfield claims the abuse began when she was pregnant with the couple's first child, six months into their marriage.

The Holyfields, who have two children, ages 6 and 4, were wed more than seven years ago. Candi, 30, is the boxer's third wife.

The alleged abuse was "mainly emotional" at first, Candi Holyfield stated in the petition: "There was incidents where he had pushed or grabbed me but it has escalated since 2008."

She claims he choked her in 2008 in front of their daughter and the couple's housekeeper. Candi Holyfield said he hit her again last year in the presence of both children.

Candi Holyfield asked that the former bronze medalist not be allowed within 500 yards of her and that he have no contact with the couple's children, according to court documents. She also requested use of a Porsche Cayenne and a Mercedes Benz. Candi Holyfield could not be reached for comment Friday.

It's been a tumultuous last few years for "the Real Deal," who continues to box competitively against the wishes of many close friends and associates. In June 2008 the mother of one of his 11 children filed a petition for contempt in Fayette Superior Court claiming Holyfield was delinquent on child support payments -- an allegation the longtime Atlantan denied. Since then Holyfield's estate, located on 235 acres just south of the Fulton County line, has twice been in foreclosure.

The four-time heavyweight champion has grossed more than $248 million in the ring, but two divorces, several failed business ventures and child- support payments believed to total $500,000 annually have taken a toll. Recent fights in South Korea, Ethiopia and Uganda were cancelled due to a lack of funding but he has a bout scheduled April 24 against Derric Rossy in Las Vegas.