No surprise here: Mitt Romney lost his first-ever boxing match to renowned boxer Evander Holyfield Friday night.
The former presidential hopeful and the heavyweight champ went two rounds, with Romney — dubbed “The Glove” — winning the first one and Holyfield being declared the winner after the second.
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“As you can tell, I’m not a boxer — don’t laugh so hard, c’mon,” Romney joked with the crowd after the bout, which was all an elaborate entertainment event to benefit CharityVision. The charity, run by Romney’s son Josh, performs pro-bono surgeries to help blind people around the world.
Romney really got into the sport of it, taking the ring to the strains of “I Will Survive” along with wife Ann Romney, who sported a sideways baseball cap. Mike Leavitt, the former Utah governor who likely would have been a President Romney’s chief of staff, led the charge — and when it came time to fight, he theatrically stripped Romney of a suit and tie so he could box shirtless.
“I was planning on wearing a top, and Evander said, ‘That’s not how you box, alright?’” Romney told msnbc in an interview before the fight.
At one point, Romney had Holyfield back on the ropes — and the heavyweight champ even fell theatrically to the mat at one point. But the tide turned quickly, and in round two, Romney quickly put his hands up. “Help, help!” he said, running around the ring and away from Holyfield.
After the bout, Romney kept punching — at his political rivals this time. He jabbed at Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (who once accused him, falsely, of paying no taxes).“I’m ready to take on Harry Reid’s exercise equipment now,” he joked, referring to the exercise band that snapped and broke bones in Reid’s face.
Romney also didn’t spare Candy Crowley, who served as moderator of a presidential debate in which she challenged Romney, angering his those on campaign. “I’m happy to fight anybody, so long as Candy Crowley isn’t the referee,” Romney added. Before he got in the ring, Romney warmed up in a brief sparring match with msnbc, showing off some of the moves he said Holyfield helped him learn. “Now you see, you tag your forehead, just to remind yourself to keep your gloves up,” he told this reporter. As he pulled the gloves on, wife Ann Romney couldn’t resist jumping in. “Oh, we’ve been waiting a long time to do this with the press!” she exclaimed.
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