FLOYD MAYWEATHER once said, “I will not receive my commission as an active soldier. When I retire for 20 years, you will all look back and realize how great I was.” Not as poetic – or unpretentious – as Joni Mitchell's timeless work Big yellow taxiBut the problem in boxing is the same as in real life: Doesn't it always seem to pass, that you don't know what you've got until it's gone?
Lennox Lewis is the perfect case. While he was active, there were question marks on his chin, his fighting spirit, and as his career began to decline at the turn of the century, his place in history. It's been 20 years, today we certainly know what we had back then: Not only one of the most accomplished warriors but also one of the greatest. Better yet, in Lewis, we have one – and only one – fighter who we consider a true champion in the heavyweight division.
We are still waiting for his true successor. No other world heavyweight champion has had his departure leave such a deep hole. It would be unfair for those trying to follow Lewis to blame only themselves because, no doubt, there are many factors at play. Whether it was two brothers who ruled together and thus extinguished any hope of a king, the sanctioning bodies for a time made it all 'undisputed' but unenforceable, the Whether it's a failed drug test or rival managers and promoters don't get along, modern-day heavyweight boxing is unrecognizable from the days when one champion would retire and two contenders would retire. The top contender will compete for the vacant title.
It is fitting, however, that in Lewis's last fight, a bloody and brutal victory over Vitali Klitschko in 2003, he defeated a fighter widely considered the best of the post-Lewis era. So while Joe Louis lost to Rocky Marciano, Muhammad Ali lost to Larry Holmes and Holmes lost to Mike Tyson, Lewis actually beat the guy he was handing the baton to. Take it and run with itLennox might have said, once you've sewn your eyes shut and the wind is back in your gut. It's also possible that his final act as an amateur was winning the Olympic gold medal in 1988 by defeating Riddick Bowe, the fighter who should have been his greatest professional rival – If only “Big Daddy” accepted the challenge.
In between those Bowe and Klitschko-shaped bouts, Lewis took on – and defeated – everyone who came to completely eliminate the division in the final heavyweight era. Is there any other fighter who can say they have done all of the above? Of course, arguments can be made that fighters like Ali and Louis were greater, but both fought for far too long, left behind heavy losses, and forever damaged themselves in this progress. Marciano lost fewer matches than Lewis but his time at the top was relatively short. Perhaps Mike Tyson was more interesting, but unlike Lewis, he behaved badly both in and out of the ring, and failed every time the fight became too difficult.
Perhaps the greatest compliment to Lewis is this: While there were many legends who came before him, how many have dominated in the same way since his retirement? We can't put anyone in the same bracket as Lennox yet, that's for sure. Arguably, when all is said and done, only Oleksandr Usyk or Tyson Fury can come close. And even the winner of that May 18 match will have a lot of ground to cover to do it.
But no one is perfect. And Lewis, although proficient when focused and completely focused, was underrated in his own time – so he lacked the impact of Ali or Tyson – and his two losses came to the boxers Oliver McCall and Hasim Rahman, who will not be in attendance. considered among the best of their own time, let alone creating conversation about the greatest in history. And the manner of those defeats, both of which left jaws agape with just one hopeful swing, means many will always doubt Lewis's ability to pull off a bloody shot.
However the arguments against Lewis is a heavyweight legend who is significantly easier to face than his opposite number. The losses to McCall and Rahman were clearly avenged and can be explained by two momentary lapses of concentration. Despite this, those who believed he could not withstand the blows of a heavyweight boxer, despite having seen him stand up to punches from Evander Holyfield, Ray Mercer, Frank Bruno and Shannon Briggs, also believes that Rahman will repeat the trick.
“Can you believe everyone predicted that Rahman would win that rematch?” Lewis asked when we spoke in 2020. “But I don't blame them. They thought the chink in their armor would last forever. You lose one match and they eliminate you. People ask me what I will do now. What will I do now? What will I do now? I'll tell you what I'll do now. I'll go get my belt back, that's what I'll do. But everyone thought that was the end of me.”
Of course not. Rahman was bombed with surprising ease. And Lewis can hit with the best of them (just ask anyone who has sampled his fists at full strength), or command if an opponent demands such attention. That versatility, sometimes unfairly criticized for his refusal to take risks in certain battles, was another feather in Lennox's cap; While attacking Andrew Golota, he looked every bit as brutal and ruthless a destroyer as a peak Tyson but when he knocked out David Tua in 12 artful rounds, he was simply unbeatable. . I would argue that no other heavyweight in history has demonstrated such a high degree of adaptability.
Behind the scenes, Lewis found his own skin a source of great comfort. He doesn't care whether the media finds him aloof or not, nor does he allow himself to be too concerned about his opponents' reputations. Moments before almost every walk in the ring, Lennox nervously paced the room trying to summon the monster from within, immersed in the blaring music from his headphones, satisfied that the monster was there. “The funny thing is I used to dance in the locker room before the game,” he said. “Mike Tyson would punch holes in the wall and I would dance to reggae music and feel the atmosphere. When I got to the ring, I was crazy and you were in trouble.”
Lewis, after defeating everyone in the ring, left the sport in February 2004 at the age of 38.
“When I first started, there was no straight path for me to become world heavyweight champion. I learned on this trip that if you lose it doesn't mean your boxing career is over,” Lewis said in his closing statement.
“When I lost the first time and everyone said it was the end for me, they really made me believe it for a long time. But because I lost, I thought 'get up, dust yourself off and rush at them'.”
Immediately after that announcement, bookmakers offered odds of 7/2 for him to fight again within two years. Clearly, a lot of punters placed their bets. Whether he decided not to rematch Klitschko because he feared he might lose is a moot point; the fact that he intends to escape when he knows the end is near is just one more reason why he is different from all the rest.
