Holyfield Almost Didn’t Get Here : Boxing: In 1986, he suffered from severe dehydration after defeating Qawi.

Among the practices of boxers that cause physicians to wince--besides hitting one another on the head--is the sight of a boxer, between rounds, rinsing his mouth out with water and then spitting it out.

In long-lasting bouts held in hot weather, doctors say, a boxer can dehydrate. At medical seminars, trainers are advised to encourage their athletes to swallow some water between rounds.

Case in point: Evander Holyfield, who will fight Buster Douglas tonight for the heavyweight championship. Challenger Holyfield, who will earn $8,025,000 tonight, has a 24-0 record. But on a hot July afternoon in Atlanta, he nearly lost more than his unbeaten record--he almost lost his kidneys.

On July 20, 1986, Holyfield won two cruiserweight championships with a 15-round decision over Dwight Qawi. Holyfield, as many boxers have long been taught to do, spit out water between rounds.

For more than a century, boxing trainers have believed--incorrectly, doctors now say--that ingesting water during a fight makes boxers more vulnerable to body punches.

A postfight party that day in 1986 was scheduled at an Atlanta hotel. Holyfield never made it. His physician, Ron Stephens, received a call at home from Holyfield’s wife, Paulette, who said that Holyfield was suffering from a debilitating headache.

“Evander was very lucky that day,” Stephens said.

“First, his wife didn’t delay in calling for help. Second, I lived just a mile or so away, and we were able to get a (kidney specialist) at the hospital, who was waiting for us when we arrived.

“We . . . right away diagnosed him as being in severe dehydration. He was unable to urinate. We put a catheter in him and there was no urine in his bladder.

“We put him on intravenous fluids and put 12 liters of fluid into him before he could produce a drop of urine. He was maybe a few hours away from striated muscle breakdown, and if those byproducts had clogged up his kidneys, his boxing career not only might have been over, he could have wound up on a kidney machine the rest of his life. He’s lucky his wife called when she did.”

Holyfield drinks some of the water between rounds now.