Early Friday evening, a small fleet of SUVs slipped quietly through the Ameristar Casino parking lot and to a back entrance of the building. Its occupants exited, unnoticed by the passersby they were about to spend a few hours with, and waited patiently to make their entrance.

The four VIPs were surrounded by an entourage, but the calm scene was far different from a couple of decades ago when they were on top of the world as the kings of boxing.

Milling around the parking lot were four of boxing’s all-time greats — former heavyweight champions Evander Holyfield, Riddick Bowe, Ray Mercer and James Toney — and they were there not to fight, but to take a victory lap among their adoring fans at a meet and greet event at Ameristar.

The two-hour event was a fundraiser for the MLK Scholarship Foundation, and the start of their weekend in Vicksburg. They’ll serve as the grand marshals for the city’s Martin Luther King Jr. Day parade through the downtown area on Saturday afternoon.

“It’s part of the appreciation. You come back after it’s all over, you ain’t got to fight no more, your heart ain’t beating fast. You can go ahead and shake some hands and make some money,” Holyfield said.

Holyfield was the main eventer on this star-studded card. Boxing’s only four-time heavyweight champion, he earned a reputation as a ring warrior in his fights for his heart, grit and skill. He’s also remembered for a couple of bizarre fights he was involved in that forever became part of the sport’s rich history.

In 1996, he beat Mike Tyson with an 11th-round TKO in what was considered one of boxing’s great upsets — even though Tyson was several years removed from his fearsome prime and Holyfield was still in his.

The two legends met again in June 1997. As Holyfield started to take control of the fight, Tyson bit Holyfield on the ear in the third round. Tyson was penalized and the fight continued, but Tyson chomped down again moments later.

Tyson had bitten off and spit a piece of Holyfield’s ear onto the canvas. Two decades later, “The Bite Fight” is still remembered as one of the most bizarre moments in American sports and Holyfield still bears the scar. The portion of ear Tyson bit off was recovered, but it was unable to be reattached. The tip of Holyfield’s right ear is noticeably absent.

Holyfield has mellowed over time about the incident, even appearing in a commercial with Tyson last year in which the two fighters poked fun at it.

“It’s just things that happen and how you handle it,” Holyfield said.

If time has healed that wound, another bizarre fight involving Holyfield still seemed a bit raw when its two combatants shared the same space Friday night.

In November 1992 Holyfield fought Bowe in Las Vegas and suffered his first professional defeat via a unanimous decision. With the victory, Bowe took Holyfield’s WBA, WBC and IBF titles. The fight is often regarded as one of the greatest heavyweight championship bouts ever — and the 11th round one of the all-time great rounds, as the two fighters nearly knocked each other out — but the second part of their trilogy was the most memorable.

Holyfield and Bowe returned to Las Vegas 51 weeks later. After six back-and-forth rounds, the fight was even. Then, in the seventh round, a man named James Miller flew a homemade aircraft into the open-air arena at Caesars Palace. Miller crashed into the seats at ringside, nearly starting a riot and causing a 21-minute break in the action.

Holyfield went on to win the fight by split decision to regain the WBA and IBF heavyweight titles and hand Bowe his only loss in 45 professional fights. The two fought one last time in March 1995, with Bowe winning.

Miller became forever known as “Fan Man,” and much like the Tyson fight three years later Holyfield had unwittingly become entangled in a legend even bigger than his own.

On Friday night, 24 years later, the subject came up as Holyfield was being interviewed in the Ameristar parking lot.

“Riddick and them called a man down and said, ‘Come on. You got to save Bowe.’ They were going to lose all the money,” Holyfield said.

Bowe, standing nearby, overheard Holyfield’s comments and was having none of it.

“I beg to differ, my brother,” Bowe said with a laugh. “Fan Man saved you. He realized, or whoever called him, realized you needed some help. I bet you money. Go watch the tape. When Fan Man came he saved you.”

Bowe, slowed by time and age, playfully pawed at Holyfield as the debate continued. Holyfield, much like he had when the two giants squared off in the ring 2 ½ decades ago, stood his ground and counterpunched — verbally this time.

“Bowe, you were bleeding in three places. Right here, right here, and your nose was bleeding,” Holyfield said, pointing to his forehead.

Before the two boxing legends could set up an impromptu Bowe-Holyfield IV on the banks of the Mississippi River, their business partner, friend and Vicksburg native Lawrence Hardge stepped in to calm things down.

“All right,” Hardge said with a chuckle, as he alerted the boxers that it was almost time to head inside. “We’ve got two minutes.”

And with that, the small gathering started to break up. Holyfield, Bowe, Mercer and Toney headed for the door to enter Ameristar’s Bottleneck Blues Bar and meet their public. Legends fading away into the night, but not without one last fight.