I've written extensively about my desire to see the old Mike Tyson enter the ring. I'd like to see the old Evander Holyfield leave the ring.

The New York State Athletic Commission has lifted its medical suspension of Evander Holyfield. This means that Holyfield, while still banned in New York, can now fight elsewhere. And fight he will. Most likely, the Real Deal will take on journeyman Frank Wood in Italy next month.

Evander Holyfield is 42 years old. He is 2-5-2 since 1999. His last significant win came against Hasim Rahman in 2002. Late last year, the former heavyweight and crusierweight champion lost a lopsided unanimous decision to Larry Donald, hardly a household name. There is no quit in Evander Holyfield. This served him well in the ring--in his 15-round battle against Dwight Muhammad Qawi and in his epic trilogy against Riddick Bowe. This doesn't serve him well for a life outside the ring. Arguably the two greatest fighters in history--Muhammad Ali and Sugar Ray Robinson--suffered through severe neorological problems after their prolonged boxing careers ended. If Holyfield desires more evidence of boxing's dangers he need only have a conversation with his in-ring nemesis Riddick Bowe. The one thing Evander Holyfield was incapable of doing in the ring he needs to now do outside of it: quit.

As much as I'd have liked for New York's ban to stay in force, I know that the Empire State's commission essentially rigged the rules to implement that ban in the first place. Head trauma and other health problems, not "diminished skills and poor performance," serve as legal impediments to a fight license. Despite fitting the disqualifying criteria outlined by the New York State Athletic Commission, Mike Tyson and Hector Camacho don't seem to have Holyfield's problems obtaining a license.

"It’s clear that Holyfield is being singled out," writes Ring Magazine's William Dettloff. "Why? It’s simple: People love the guy."