The last heavyweight that retired while still champ was Rocky Marciano, back in the day!! what a sucka!
all he did was beat everybody... i know he gets the overrated tag...but it's true. he beat everyone he had to beat, sometimes multiple times. that's the very definition of a champion.
You can only beat what is put in front of you... Lewis's biggest problem was that he was a shy, private man. He didn't enjoy giving of himself to the media, and the boxing public tends to enjoy watching extrovert fighters. A class act.
I would've loved to see a rematch between him and Klitschko. The heavyweight division has sucked for a long time -- now, it's worse. I bet Evander is just aching to get into the ring again for a chance for the belt. What's sad, is he has a pretty good shot of beating most of the contenders out there.
He beat everyone he had to, and he avenged both of his losses. He was a great and highly underrated champion. I too would have loved to see a rematch with Klitchko. I think Klitchko would have won, and I think Lennox knows it. That is why he is retiring, IMHO.
i don't blame him for getting out now. He's beaten everyone that they've thrown in front of him and there is nothing left to accomplish. Why wait until you slur your words and no longer realize what day it is? poor Evander
The question is, who was better in their prime, Lewis or Holyfield. Also, were Bowe and/or Tyson better than both of them. Out of: Lewis Tyson Holyfield Bowe The only ones to beat another from the list in their prime were Holyfield and Bowe. Lewis actually beat all 3, if you count the Olympic beating of Bowe, but none while they were in their prime.
Don't forget, that at one stage, Bowe flat out refused to fight Lewis. I remember seeing it on the news, with Bowe throwing his belt into the bin, because the authorities instructed him to make a defense against Lewis.
Tyson, in his prime, was among the best fighters I've ever seen. Even though I don't like him, I can't deny that. I think Lewis and Holyfield were pretty evenly matched, even in their primes. But like in basketball, sometimes it's more about matchups than it is about who is the objective best.
Lewis' one loss was against Holyfield... and I saw that fight. Holyfield got whupped but won the decision. Lewis should have been undefeated. Lewis' character never appealled to me very much, but the man was the beast heavyweight boxer I've seen in a long, long time. -- droxford
I thought the first Lewis/Holyfield fight was a draw...maybe I'm wrong. Pretty sure Lewis lost to Oliver McCall.
Was it that, or was it more that the competition was inferior? He never went against any of the other big 3 of the era. I think Razor Ruddock gave him a couple of good fights...and of course Buster Douglas.
i've never seen anyone hit as hard as Mike Tyson. ever. not in my lifetime, anyway. he beat michael spinks...who beat larry holmes. now i'm not sure the fight was real...but he did beat him. tyson was amazingly quick...and a great fighter. all you had to do was look in the eyes of his opponents after he landed the first body blow, and you knew something was different about this guy
Actually that article has Lennox listed as 41-1-2 when he actually lost 2 fights by KO to fighters who should never have beat him (Rahman, McCall). I vote for Iron Mike as the best (in his prime) not the circus he has become now. His combination of speed and power was just amazing.
No way. Speed and power was all he had. He didn't have good footwork. He didn't have any boxing strategy. He didn't control positioning. don't get me wrong, he had a great punch. He was a great fighter, but not the greatest boxer. -- droxford
