HOLYFIELD'S SECRET: RISING AFTER A FALL.

Byline: MICHAEL ROSENTHAL Boxing

Eight days before his title-unification bout with Lennox Lewis on Saturday, Evander Holyfield sat on the patio of a Burbank restaurant with a few riveted reporters and did what he plans to do when his boxing career is over: preach.

The born-again Christian didn't spew mundane religious doctrine. That's not what an inspiring preacher does. No, he sounded more like a philosopher than a zealot as he explained how an unruly child born into a dirt-poor family in Atmore, Alabama found success in and out of the ring.

Ironically, Holyfield's secret has less to do with knocking opponents down than getting up himself when he falls. That's how he fights. That's how he lives. And that's the message he hopes to deliver to the world.

Holyfield has fallen many times.

In the ring, there was the 1984 Olympics, when, in the semifinals, he knocked out his opponent with one punch, after the referee ordered the fighters to stop, and was disqualified.

There were his three professional losses, two unforgettable setbacks in his three bouts with Riddick Bowe and a close decision to Michael Moorer.

And there was an uncharacteristically poor performance in a knockout victory over underequipped opponent Bobby Czyz in May of 1996 - subsequent to the second loss to Bowe - that had even the experts believing Holyfield was through as a fighter at 34.

His response?

One of the most dramatic turnarounds in boxing history: two victories over Mike Tyson and a brutal knockout of Moorer in their rematch.

For Holyfield, the most painful and significant defeat was the first to Bowe, in November of 1992. Before that, he hadn't lost since the Olympics and had convinced himself he was unbeatable. The manner in which he went on from there was typical of his life.

``My son (Evander Jr.) was about 8 and he was crying because I'd lost. He'd never seen me lose,'' Holyfield said. ``Well, sometimes you do your best and still fall short. He was 8. He was going to fall short a lot. So the only way to prove that to him was to go back and fight this guy again.

``. . . My son played football. And a team that had already beat his team, my son's team was playing them for the championship. Guys from that team were saying, `Your daddy got whooped by Riddick Bowe, now we're gonna whoop you for the championship.'

``They tried to hold my son's team to the past. Well, I whooped Bowe before the game and told my son, ``What'd I tell you. Don't let anyone hold you to the past.' They went out and beat them boys. How? Encouragement. I let them know you can't let the fact they beat you be the reason they beat you the next time.

``That's what life's about, always overcoming obstacles.''

Holyfield has had a few of those outside the ring recently.

A week after his second wife, Janice, gave birth to their first child, in September, he admitted that he had fathered two children out of wedlock with former girlfriends in the preceding year. That brought the total of children born out of wedlock to five with four women.

Not surprisingly, many reacted to that news by calling Holyfield a hypocrite: He preaches one way of living and lives another. Lewis was among those who made that comment.

``I'm only saying what people are thinking,'' Lewis said. ``If I say I don't drink and I drink, I'm a hypocrite. Simple as that.''

Holyfield admits he erred in a big way, blaming his latest problems on his inability to handle the pressures of a bad marriage he has said he wants to end but continues to work on. However, he doesn't accept the hypocrite label for a simple reason: Everyone makes mistakes.

``I fell short, but I'm not a hypocrite,'' he said. ``A hypocrite is a person who quits.

``. . . When things didn't go well in the marriage, there was pressure. My shortcoming was going back to see girls I used to see. I never beat no one, I never did drugs, I've never been violent, but when there's pressure, you get bitter and you do things you might've done in the past. You look for comfort in the wrong place. ``. . . My problems started when I was a kid and sometimes they stay with you longer than you want them to. But you don't quit. . . . Sometimes, embarrassment makes you work harder to change. I thank God for allowing me to change.''

Lewis' fate: If Holyfield loses to Lewis on Saturday, he'll still be remembered as one of the best heavyweights of his time.

Lewis isn't in that position: This is the turning point in his career. If he wins, his value soars. If he loses, he's just another good heavyweight.

``This is his whole career right here,'' said Emanuel Steward, his trainer. ``. . . You can say he's a two-time champion, an Olympic gold medalist, it don't mean nothin' today unless he wins this title.

``. . . He realizes he must win this fight so in the public's mind, and mine, he'll be a real heavyweight champion.''

Lewis has beaten some big-name fighters: Ray Mercer, Oliver McCall, Andrew Golota and Henry Akinwande among them. However, only Mercer came to fight; the others folded before a fight developed. So, in effect, Mercer, who was outpointed in a competitive bout, provided his only opportunity to show what he's made of - until now.

``I definitely think this is my time,'' Lewis said. ``There were reasons I wasn't able to put my stamp on (the heavyweight division) before, whether it was politics or other reasons.

``Now, finally, I have a chance to make my mark and create history.''

He'll be back: Lance Whitaker of Northridge lost his first fight on Saturday, a split-decision setback to Lou Savarese. He feels he was robbed by a long count when he knocked Savarese down in the sixth round.

So where was his head later that night?

He was disappointed but saw a bright side. He had given a pretty good heavyweight all he could handle on national TV, which he believes made a statement.

``Oh yeah, I think it's a positive,'' he said. ``The guy's a 10-year pro. I've been fighting 2-1/2 years. He's had 30-some fights. I have (19).

``I think I showed the world `Mount' Whitaker can fight.''

He certainly did in the sixth, when he landed 61 of an incredible 122 punches and almost took out Savarese. He didn't have much after that.

``You know how in the (Oscar) De La Hoya-(Ike) Quartey fight they threw so many punches in the last round and couldn't lift their arms? That's how I felt,'' he said.

De La Hoya-Trinidad? Now, word is that a De La Hoya-Felix Trinidad matchup could take place in September - although it remains unlikely. Bob Arum, De La Hoya's promoter, and Don King, Trinidad's, don't work well together and the fighters might be demanding too much money.

A more likely candidate for September reportedly is Quartey, whom De La Hoya outpointed in February.

De La Hoya, the WBC welterweight champ, will face Oba Carr in May in Las Vegas.