LENNOX LEWIS EARLY STUFF

[ERIC GUY]

Hope you enjoy watching.

[Coco]

I see you stuck the copyright tag on after the daily mail nicked your footage of Haye v the gypsy who got killed in the ams!

[Tuan_Jim]

Very nice stuff Eric - and i don't blame you one bit for putting your name on it. Hopefully more to come.

Thank you!

[Tuan_Jim]

Eric, do you have any of Lennox's sessions sparring Tony Tubbs, Mike 'the Bounty' Hunter or a young Andrew Golota?

[Kassel]

Great stuff, thanks a lot for sharing this good quality footage

[bennie]

I recognise David Pearce in there with Lennox. Fortunately, Lennox is a gentleman.

[Tuan_Jim]

A relative of D. Pearce mentions these sparring sessions with Lewis in the current issue of Boxing Monthly. Fortunately he doesn't make any bold claims about Pearce's work versus Lewis as he does about Pearce versus Bugner.

[oogiebe]

Fun stuff. LL is my all time favourite HW!!! (not the best, just my favourite)

[ERIC GUY]

A relative of D. Pearce mentions these sparring sessions with Lewis in the current issue of Boxing Monthly. Fortunately he doesn't make any bold claims about Pearce's work versus Lewis as he does about Pearce versus Bugner.

That would be Luke Pearce, they have a statue in newport opening next month, I filmed the session when David sparred with Lennox, dont know anything about Bugner..

[Taansend]

Thanks Eric

[tobyh5]

Loved the early days of LL, was a fan from the off.

I live in a small far flung Cornish town and Lennox paid a visit after one of his earliest fights and was photographed for the tabloids (Daily Star I think), standing on the steps of a house a dozen doors away from where I am writing this. That house was the birthplace of Bob Fitzsimmons which was important back then after all the "Horizontal Heavies" which we were known for.

[bennie]

I was lucky enough to be at ringside when Lennox turned pro in the summer of 1989 at the Albert Hall. Promoter Frank Maloney tagged the show “Be in at the Beginning” as Lennox, the Olympic super-heavyweight champion in 1988, launched his pro career in the country of his birth. He needed less than two rounds to dispose of Birmingham's seasoned Al Malcolm, actually finishing the job with a thumb in the eye. Only Gary Mason had ever previously stopped Malcolm so it was a nice start for Lennox, who was settling into his new home in Crayford in Kent, near to where Maloney ran a pub. Lennox lived there with his mum, Violet.
Gary Jacobs topped the undercard with a quick win over American Rollin Williams, while comebacking Keith Wallace, who had turned pro years earlier with F rank Warren and looked sensational for a while, looked lucky to get an eight-round decision over Londoner Marvin Stone with new manager Ricky Porter in his corner. Keith's comeback ended when Donnie Hood outlasted him up in Scotland and he died tragically young of cancer. Former Olympian Mark Epton and a young Michael Ayers also fought on the bill, with Ayers blasting out someone in the first.

[Tuan_Jim]

I'm sure Lennox got shaken up by Al Malcolm in that fight. There's a brief moment where he gets walloped and looks out of it! Not seen it in years tho so brain may have exaggerated it.

Aside: So strange that his second fight was bottom of the Mike Tyson/Carl Williams bill. Both Lewis and Tyson were there at the 84 Olympics and yet by 1989 Tyson was a glorious 37-0, undisputed heavyweight champion, already an all-time great, the highest earner in sport--and a global icon to boot!--and Lewis was 2-0.

Hardcore Lewis fans love to remind people that in the 2002 Lewis/Tyson spectacle both men are the same age, in order to undermine the idea of Tyson being over the hill--as if one having accomplished everything before the other even turned pro couldn't possibly have doused his fire. Holding out for another Olympics was in the long run enormously beneficial to LL.

[ERIC GUY]

TYSON WAS NOT IN THE OLYMPICS

[oogiebe]

TYSON WAS NOT IN THE OLYMPICS

No but he was in the Olympic trials. Maybe that's what he meant.

[ERIC GUY]

TYSON WAS NOT IN THE OLYMPICS

No but he was in the Olympic trials. Maybe that's what he meant.

not what he said tho...

[oogiebe]

TYSON WAS NOT IN THE OLYMPICS

No but he was in the Olympic trials. Maybe that's what he meant.

not what he said tho...

Ok.

[Tuan_Jim]

No but he was in the Olympic trials. Maybe that's what he meant.

not what he said tho...

Ok.

Tyson was at the 84 Olympics, Eric - as a team alternate, and general dogsbody and go-fer. This has been widely written about, would have assumed you knew.

[oogiebe]

Loved the early days of LL, was a fan from the off.

I live in a small far flung Cornish town and Lennox paid a visit after one of his earliest fights and was photographed for the tabloids (Daily Star I think), standing on the steps of a house a dozen doors away from where I am writing this. That house was the birthplace of Bob Fitzsimmons which was important back then after all the "Horizontal Heavies" which we were known for.

LO! LL was mine too! "horizontal Heavies"...classic!

[oogiebe]

TYSON WAS NOT IN THE OLYMPICS

No but he was in the Olympic trials. Maybe that's what he meant.

not what he said tho...

He said 'there at the Olympics.' just a wording thing for sure.

[Tuan_Jim]

No but he was in the Olympic trials. Maybe that's what he meant.

not what he said tho...

He said 'there at the Olympics.' just a wording thing for sure.

And I was correct too--Tyson was at the 84 Olympics.

[oogiebe]

Nice stuff Eric. Looking forward to your next one!

[bennie]

I'm sure Lennox got shaken up by Al Malcolm in that fight. There's a brief moment where he gets walloped and looks out of it! Not seen it in years tho so brain may have exaggerated it.

Aside: So strange that his second fight was bottom of the Mike Tyson/Carl Williams bill. Both Lewis and Tyson were there at the 84 Olympics and yet by 1989 Tyson was a glorious 37-0, undisputed heavyweight champion, already an all-time great, the highest earner in sport--and a global icon to boot!--and Lewis was 2-0.

Hardcore Lewis fans love to remind people that in the 2002 Lewis/Tyson spectacle both men are the same age, in order to undermine the idea of Tyson being over the hill--as if one having accomplished everything before the other even turned pro couldn't possibly have doused his fire. Holding out for another Olympics was in the long run enormously beneficial to LL.

Lewis was still pretty raw in 1984, even though he was world junior champion going into the Olympics. He lost to Tyrell Biggs in the Games, fighting well at first but Biggs gradually got on top and pulled out a big third round to make sure of the decision. Biggs went on to win the gold medal with a decision over Franceso Damiani so it was a decent display from Lewis.
Biggs and Lewis met again, of course, years later and Lewis really got stuck into the American and stopped him early.

[Tuan_Jim]

I'm sure Lennox got shaken up by Al Malcolm in that fight. There's a brief moment where he gets walloped and looks out of it! Not seen it in years tho so brain may have exaggerated it.

Aside: So strange that his second fight was bottom of the Mike Tyson/Carl Williams bill. Both Lewis and Tyson were there at the 84 Olympics and yet by 1989 Tyson was a glorious 37-0, undisputed heavyweight champion, already an all-time great, the highest earner in sport--and a global icon to boot!--and Lewis was 2-0.

Hardcore Lewis fans love to remind people that in the 2002 Lewis/Tyson spectacle both men are the same age, in order to undermine the idea of Tyson being over the hill--as if one having accomplished everything before the other even turned pro couldn't possibly have doused his fire. Holding out for another Olympics was in the long run enormously beneficial to LL.

Lewis was still pretty raw in 1984, even though he was world junior champion going into the Olympics. He lost to Tyrell Biggs in the Games, fighting well at first but Biggs gradually got on top and pulled out a big third round to make sure of the decision. Biggs went on to win the gold medal with a decision over Franceso Damiani so it was a decent display from Lewis.
Biggs and Lewis met again, of course, years later and Lewis really got stuck into the American and stopped him early.

So too was Tyson in 84 but still he turned pro. Would be interesting to see how Lewis's career played out had he done the same.

That 91 rematch with Biggs is fairly meaningless, Tyson had knocked the stuffing out of poor Tyrell years earlier.

[TheGman]

not what he said tho...

He said 'there at the Olympics.' just a wording thing for sure.

And I was correct too--Tyson was at the 84 Olympics.

When i read what you wrote i was thinkin "no tyrell biggs beat tyson in the trials so tyson didnt go" haha, i didnt know he was there with the US team in 84.