BoxRec

When I saw the thread title. I immediately thought Tua.

Old bones Ian wrote: ↑31 Oct 2026, 03:52 The Tua fight needs to up there, prefight a lot of experts were predicting a Tus knockout.
No one saw the complete domination by Lewis.
I watched this fight in a bar in Sydney surrounded by Kiwis , they couldn't believe what they were seeing.

I was working as a Casino Host on a cruise ship.

I'd run a sweepstake for casino staff with a $20 entry. There were 27 outcomes so there was a $540 pot.

Casino staff on ships would gamble on anything big or small so they were all dealing & I was updating them via the microphone after each round. You'd see them dropping out as the round they'd picked pass by.

Soon the players were getting into it so people were waiting for my updates every 4 minutes.

Difficult, Golota was highly rated, bashed up Bowe and destroyed.
Tyson was over the hill, completely dominated, but it was safety first.
Tua was easily handled but safety first.
Good finish with Bruno but had too many difficult moments.
Klit and Mercer also had too many difficult moments, but showed a champs mentality and overcame.
Rudduck was dangerous and blasted out.
The basketball player was supposed to be dangerous but humiliated.
Botha shouldn't have been there either.
Rahman was put in his place, Morrison too.

His wins against live opponents like Mercer and Briggs are, in my opinion, his best performances.

It’s interesting that such a highly regarded champion doesn’t have an obvious outstanding win. Partially because he could have patchy fights against good opponents - still win but not brutally. Like Holyfield, Klitschko

Then he’d have top performances that were regarded as dominant at the time, but looked less impressive over time because the fighters were not as good as we thought. Like Ruddock or Golota.

Or against a past his best fighter where Lennox was dominant but the opponent was over the hill. Like Tyson.

I think his most brutal and impressive performance was flattening Rahman after being knocked out previously. But then again Rahman wasn’t that special.

I think with Lennox is just that he had so many good wins against the top heavies of the day… in a variety of manners but that it’s his overall record that makes him one of the best. It’s difficult to find a single standout win.

The only disappointing thing about Lewis’s career, and it’s not his fault, is that we never saw him fight Bowe. That’s was the true superfight of the 90s that got away….

Holyfield 1 or Rahman 2

He dominated those fights. The draw with Holyfield was absurd

I thought he was superb in the Rahman rematch albeit against a limited opponent who he'd also been knocked out by. He didn't impress in either Holyfield fight despite Holyfield being old and shopworn. Tyson was completely shot.

The Ruddock and Golota performances deserve praise but Ruddock had taken a life changing beating from Tyson while Golota's prep was terrible, showing up late, not warming up and nearly fainting pre fight.

Did good jobs on Tua and Morrison. Boxed very well versus Gary Mason.

He dominated Holyfield in their 1st fight more than anybody ever had really. Even Bowe when he defeated Holyfield was rocked or hurt by him in doing so. Lewis never had any real trouble with him.

gilgamesh wrote: ↑01 Nov 2026, 04:37 He dominated Holyfield in their 1st fight more than anybody ever had really. Even Bowe when he defeated Holyfield was rocked or hurt by him in doing so. Lewis never had any real trouble with him.

Well i think Toney destruction of Holyfield was more dominant. Holyfield looked decent in 1st Lewis match despite it was clearly Lewis win. He looked hopeless against Toney. But he was well past prime there tbf.

Lot of great performances. For me, it was Rahman rematch, Golota and Grant, and Tua fight. Flawless. Three different approaches: Tacticaly outbox oponent and wait for perfect shot to KO and avenge the loss (Rahman 2). Just jump on oponent and destroy him (Golota, Grant). Methodicaly and carefully outbox dangerous and powerful man on the outside (Tua). lewis was total package.

He gets way too much stick for the Klitschko performance when it should really be celebrated. At age 38, having trained for a very different opponent, Lewis pulls it out against a bigger taller fighter (almost the only one he ever fought!) after a rotten start.

People remember the first few rounds and the cut and the scorecards, but they forget that the final round featured Klitschko losing the snap on his shots, eating a steady diet of much bigger ones in return, finally clinging onto Lewis to stay upright after a short right hook to the temple and taking an age to get back to his corner. The momentum was clearly with Lewis and he would stopped him within a few rounds, cut or no cut

dookus wrote: ↑02 Nov 2026, 20:40 He gets way too much stick for the Klitschko performance when it should really be celebrated. At age 38, having trained for a very different opponent, Lewis pulls it out against a bigger taller fighter (almost the only one he ever fought!) after a rotten start.

People remember the first few rounds and the cut and the scorecards, but they forget that the final round featured Klitschko losing the snap on his shots, eating a steady diet of much bigger ones in return, finally clinging onto Lewis to stay upright after a short right hook to the temple and taking an age to get back to his corner. The momentum was clearly with Lewis and he would stopped him within a few rounds, cut or no cut

Lewis' win over Vitali is one of the greatest last hurrahs in the history of the sport. There's really no other fighter I can think of that retired on a better win.

We also should remember that Vitali wasn't prepared for Lewis either, just a guy on the undercard before the Lewis-Johnson fight fell through.

The fight for me will always be in that context

This thread had perfectly formulated the problem with Lewis' career. Through no fault of his own he never fought anyone who was considered world class at their peak. Therefore he has no elite level wins

Therefore when he fought the likes of Tyson and Holyfield they were varying levels of past their best.

The 'up and comers' like Grant and Tua were hardly seen as world beaters. Grant in particular had had a very 'questionable' win vs Golota last time out, 'Land of the Giants' (as the SKY PPV was known) was destined to be a blow out.

However, it also helps Lewis that because he never fought great fighters at their peak, people can now say he would have beaten King Kong and there is no way you can 100% prove he couldn't have.

I would say Golota was the one where I thought 'ooh, this guy was good I didn't expect him to blow him out'. History would tell us Golota was fragile, but at the time it was a huge moment.

dookus wrote: ↑02 Nov 2026, 20:40 He gets way too much stick for the Klitschko performance when it should really be celebrated. At age 38, having trained for a very different opponent, Lewis pulls it out against a bigger taller fighter (almost the only one he ever fought!) after a rotten start.

People remember the first few rounds and the cut and the scorecards, but they forget that the final round featured Klitschko losing the snap on his shots, eating a steady diet of much bigger ones in return, finally clinging onto Lewis to stay upright after a short right hook to the temple and taking an age to get back to his corner. The momentum was clearly with Lewis and he would stopped him within a few rounds, cut or no cut

Lewis slumps on his stool at the end of the sixth like a man who needs oxygen.

The fact he didn't rematch Klitschko speaks volumes. Especially after promising in the ring that he would.

Rahman rematch, stone cold concentration, almost like he wanted to kill him...

Signing with Frank Maloney was such an odd move. Maloney seemed out of his depth, didn't really pick the best opponents or do a good job getting his name out there. John Davenport was a terrible trainer.

The Gary Mason win was impressive. Razor Ruddock was perceived going in as a major threat but the manner of his collapse made it clear Tyson had taken a lot out of him -- even the partisan Sky team and Boxing Monthly & Weekly conceded that.

It's not Lewis's fault Rock Newman steered his new champ clear of a fight with him in 93. However, it IS his fault that when he was champ and in the driving seat he botched the McCall fight and lost out on the Bowe defence that was scheduled for 95 on TVKO.

Dunno. He just wasted so many years. Turned pro late, regressed under Davenport and the awful Pepe Correra, as a result failed to impress in his first reign, boxed on Sky when relatively few people in the UK had a Sky dish. Had a stiff, aloof manner, was dull and spoke in the third person like an utter twat. Boxed in such a pedestrian, boring fashion in the first Holyfield fight when the world was watching. He really didn't help himself.

overhand_right wrote: ↑03 Nov 2026, 05:02

dookus wrote: ↑02 Nov 2026, 20:40 He gets way too much stick for the Klitschko performance when it should really be celebrated. At age 38, having trained for a very different opponent, Lewis pulls it out against a bigger taller fighter (almost the only one he ever fought!) after a rotten start.

People remember the first few rounds and the cut and the scorecards, but they forget that the final round featured Klitschko losing the snap on his shots, eating a steady diet of much bigger ones in return, finally clinging onto Lewis to stay upright after a short right hook to the temple and taking an age to get back to his corner. The momentum was clearly with Lewis and he would stopped him within a few rounds, cut or no cut

Lewis slumps on his stool at the end of the sixth like a man who needs oxygen.

The fact he didn't rematch Klitschko speaks volumes. Especially after promising in the ring that he would.

And Klitschko takes ten whole seconds to wander back to his stool like a man who doesn't trust his legs or know where he is.

Lewis was 38 and had fought everyone. He had nothing left to prove and reneging on that promise proves absolutely nothing apart from he was smart enough not to risk his health unnecessarily. Given the fates of many of his peers, it's ridiculous to criticise him for that.

Don't forget the Mason fight when Lewis was relatively inexperienced as a pro and Mason was a handful for anyone.

Noxy wrote: ↑03 Nov 2026, 09:00 Don't forget the Mason fight when Lewis was relatively inexperienced as a pro and Mason was a handful for anyone.

Great point

Tua for me.

Noxy wrote: ↑03 Nov 2026, 09:00 Don't forget the Mason fight when Lewis was relatively inexperienced as a pro and Mason was a handful for anyone.

He looked good but it's hard to gauge Mason as he fought either cans or Lennox Lewis with nothing in between

overhand_right wrote: ↑03 Nov 2026, 09:21

Noxy wrote: ↑03 Nov 2026, 09:00 Don't forget the Mason fight when Lewis was relatively inexperienced as a pro and Mason was a handful for anyone.

He looked good but it's hard to gauge Mason as he fought either cans or Lennox Lewis with nothing in between

A bit harsh that, what about guys like Tillis or Biggs?

Noxy wrote: ↑03 Nov 2026, 09:27

overhand_right wrote: ↑03 Nov 2026, 09:21

Noxy wrote: ↑03 Nov 2026, 09:00 Don't forget the Mason fight when Lewis was relatively inexperienced as a pro and Mason was a handful for anyone.

He looked good but it's hard to gauge Mason as he fought either cans or Lennox Lewis with nothing in between

A bit harsh that, what about guys like Tillis or Biggs?

Biggs at that point was fighting A-Sides once a year in their hometowns and despite being rusty and disadvantaged in every way he won every round until Mason knocked him down and referee Larry O'Connell waved him off with a five count.

Tillis similarly was fat and on a losing run, and despite coming over at short notice showed no sign of going down so his own trainer threw the towel in.

Watch both fights. The endings are outrageous. Mason didn't exactly announce himself as a force on the world stage.

Mason was brutal with Jess Harding