Holyfield plans to retire as champion

El Paso, Texas:

Evander Holyfield wants an unprecedented fifth heavyweight championship because he said he planned to retire with the title from the time he was an eight-year-old in a Georgia housing project.

The 44-year-old Holyfield, officially announcing his June 30 fight against Lou Savarese in El Paso, said on Wednesday it doesn't matter that his plan would be more than 35 years in the making.

"Age ain't nothing but a number," Holyfield said.

The first three fights in Holyfield's comeback - all victories - also were in Texas. The latest in Corpus Christi was stopped in the third round because of bleeding from Vinny Maddalone's forehead.

Holyfield, 41-8 with two draws and 27 knockouts, also beat Fres Oquendo in San Antonio in November and Jeremy Bates in Dallas last August, his first fight in two years.

Savarese, a 41-year-old former title contender who came out of retirement in April for a shot at an elusive crown, is 46-6 with 38 knockouts. He didn't attend Wednesday's news conference.

"I'm only going to fight the people that allow me to be the heavyweight champion," Holyfield said.

While dismissing his age as a factor, Holyfield acknowledged that he can't train the same way he did when he won his first title as a 28-year-old.

"I run one day, I have to rest the next," he said. "I can't do it every day. My body won't let me."