Six months ago, after revamping his career with a victory over Hasim Rahman, Evander Holyfield said Chris Byrd was the only boxer he didn't want to fight en route to his goal of reuniting all three of boxing's major heavyweight belts around his waist.

But the lure of the vacant IBF title proved too great, and Holyfield took the risk against Byrd's confounding southpaw style Saturday. He paid the price.

Looking desperate for much of the fight, Holyfield dropped a unanimous decision to Byrd at the Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City by official scores of 116-112 and 117-111 (twice).

Byrd, a pure boxer, put on a clinic against a pure warrior in Holyfield, choosing his spots to sit on his punches and get respect. The way Byrd stood right in front of Holyfield all night with both gloves held high in front of him would have made Jack Johnson, the controversial former heavyweight champ with a somewhat similar defensive styles, flash his golden smile.

Pure boxers with the courage that Byrd possesses will always beat aging warriors, even great ones. Gene Tunney did it to Jack Dempsey in the 1920s. Muhammad Ali did it to Sonny Liston in the '60s. In the first Liston-Ali fight, Liston threw his left shoulder out trying to knockout his elusive challenger with one shot. Holyfield did the same thing versus Byrd, but unlike Liston, the "Real Deal" would never quit.

After dropping the first round due to Holyfield's aggression, Byrd settled into his rhythm, which was dictated by his sharp, and sometimes slapping, right jab. Holyfield's only success came when he was able to bull the smaller man to the ropes and then get off with right hands to the head and lefts to the body, but from the fifth round to the ninth, the fight belonged to Byrd, who even managed to back up the former undisputed champ with rapid fire punches delivered straight down the pike.

In the 10th and 11th rounds, Holyfield rallied the way a former champion of his caliber should, but it was too little, too late.

Byrd dropped the 11th round, but he made his point -- it was his night, and he controlled the 12th round just to make sure Holyfield got the message.

"Styles make fights," Holyfield, now 38-6-2, said. "I wasn't able to be aggressive like I needed to be against him."

That's Byrd's magic. He somehow finds away to neutralize his opponent's aggression. Few in the heavyweight division have done it better than the light-hitting lefty from Flint, Mich.

Two fighters who come to mind are Jimmy Young and Roland LaStarza, who were feared heavyweights during their respective eras, not because of their punching power, but because of their skills.

Young's awkward style allowed him to beat George Foreman and give Muhammad Ali fits for 15 rounds. LaStarza's sharp technique and attention to defense gave Rocky Marciano hell in their first fight.

"My style is unique," Byrd, now 36-2, told MaxBoxing.com weeks before this fight. "When I'm on top of my game, I get a little cocky because no one can touch me, no one can beat me."

This is why Holyfield said he did not want to fight Byrd. This is why many assume Lennox Lewis, the universally recognized heavyweight champion of the world, ditched his IBF belt rather than fight Byrd.

Lewis said he had the fans in mind when he abdicated the title.

"I didn't think the public was interested in a fight with Byrd," said Lewis, who did commentary for the international feed. "You can't come down from a fight with Mike Tyson to a Chris Byrd fight."

Maybe.

Byrd fought a defensive-minded fight, but he didn't run around the ring or clutch and grab the way Floyd Mayweather did last Saturday versus Jose Luis Castillo. In fact, he stood his ground with the "Holy Warrior" on more than a few occasions. Holyfield-Byrd was a match up of two undersized heavyweights who lacked one-punch KO power, but they put on a better show than the two Goliaths, Wladimir Klitschko and Jameel McCline, who headlined HBO's show last Saturday.

"I wanted to show the world that I can stay in there and fight with these guys," Byrd said after the fight. "I'm going to be doing that more from now on. I told you after the (David) Tua fight, I felt like a real heavyweight. I know now that I can compete with anyone."

Consider this: Although Lewis is still the consensus heavyweight champ, it could be argued that Byrd fought both Tua and Holyfield in a more head-on, straight forward manner than the big Brit did.

So where does Byrd go from here?

He would like to fight the winner of the March 1 WBA title fight between champ John Ruiz and challenger Roy Jones. And there is still a score to settle, at least in his mind, with WBO titlist Wladimir Klitschko, who beat him over 12 one-sided rounds in Germany two years ago. The fact that he holds the IBF title makes those bouts more likely.

Whatever happens after Saturday, Byrd has accomplished one thing with his points win over the great Evander Holyfield: He's won respect.

Byrd is feeling vindicated. He is happy.

"Faith in God has kept me in this sport through all the hard times," Byrd told MaxBoxing. "Now I'm having fun with boxing. This is fun because I can share it with my family. My father, mother and brother work my corner. My wife is my business manager. We all share in this together."