London, the Royal Albert Corridor, June twenty seventh, 1989. Lennox Lewis, a Canadian/British heavyweight who had received Olympic gold as a super-heavyweight on the Seoul Olympics, went professional. Going through a good journeyman in Al Malcolm, 23-year-old Lewis scored a second-round stoppage win. It will be some implausible trip Lennox would take us all on.
A wonderful novice who competed at two Olympics—Lennox dropping to Tyrell Biggs in ’84 and sticking round at novice degree to strive once more to get his palms on the gold in ”88—Lewis completed with an 85-9 novice file; he was stopped solely by Valeriy Abadzhyan of the Soviet Union.
Taking his time selecting a promoter, Lewis was hunted by massive names and promotional teams. However Lewis needed to go professional within the UK – for 2 essential causes. One, he stated he at all times “felt British” (Lennox was born in London however moved to Canada on the age of 12), and two, Lewis said how “there wasn’t the infrastructure to develop boxers in Canada” at the moment. It positive took time for therefore many followers to simply accept Lewis as a “true Brit.”
Lewis stunned many by signing with Frank Maloney. Gifted, athletic, massive, and highly effective, Lewis was immediately seen as a future world heavyweight champion. Lewis would develop into the primary Britisher to carry the world crown since Bob Fitzsimmons if he might do it.
Early wins over Jean-Maurice Chanet (for the European title), Gary Mason (for the British title), and Glenn McCrory confirmed Lewis’ capability. In November 1991, on the Evander Holyfield-Bert Cooper card in Atlanta, Lewis avenged his earlier novice loss to Biggs. In April 1992, Lewis stopped Derek Williams so as to add the Commonwealth belt to his British and European titles.
The world awaited.
Lewis shocked the world by crushing the scary Donovan “Razor” Ruddock in October of ’92, and now Lewis was seen by many because the inheritor obvious to the throne. However Riddick Bowe, who Lewis had stopped in Seoul, needed no half of a professional rematch, with Bowe famously dumping the WBC belt within the bin. This left Lewis to combat Tony Tucker for the vacant strap. Lewis received a reasonably broad choice in Could of 1993 and made historical past. After many years of drought, the UK lastly had one other world heavyweight champion. Form of. Lewis must do a complete lot extra to win over the world’s followers. And this Lennox did in time. After struggling a surprising upset TKO by the hands of Oliver McCall in September of 1994, Lewis fired coach Pepe Correa, and he employed Emanuel Steward (who had masterminded McCall’s massive win).
Now, after 5 years as a professional, the world would see the true Lennox Lewis.
With the good Kronk guru guiding him, Lewis beat all of them: Tommy Morrison, Ray Mercer, and McCall in return, with Lewis regaining the WBC title, Andrew Golota Shannon Briggs. After which Lewis boxed ‘that’ draw with Holyfield. The world was up in arms over the most recent ‘worst theft in boxing,’ and the rematch duly got here. Lewis received a more durable combat this time, and he was, finally, the undisputed world heavyweight king.
Now 35-1-1, Lewis was just about at his peak. Large wins adopted over Michael Grant, Frans Botha, and the deadly David Tua. Earlier than monster upset quantity two got here calling. Unwell-prepared in South Africa, Lewis was leveled by Hasim Rahman and the boxing world was once more despatched into actual shock. Lewis craved revenge and he actually needed to place Rahman in his place faster than Rahman had crushed him. Lewis made good, scoring a brutal fourth-round KO seven months after the primary combat.
Now closing in on retirement, Lennox nonetheless needed one man’s title on his file: Mike Tyson. The combat that will have been a basic had it taken earlier when Tyson was nonetheless Tyson got here, amid a lot controversy, in June of 2002. The 2 had brawled at a pre-fight presser, however now it was for actual. Lewis crushed Tyson in a one-sided combat, stopping the person he had sparred with in The Catskills so a few years earlier than.
Now all completed, with nothing left to show, Lewis had one remaining combat. Vitali Klitschko, a late sub, gave a previous his greatest, considerably chubby Lewis hell, however the 37-year-old dug deep and, having busted Klitschko’s face up badly, he obtained the TKO win after six of the hardest rounds he ever endured in his profession.
However what a fantastic profession it was for Lewis. 35 years in the past, it started, and now, revered by all as a real nice, Lennox is aware of he defeated each single man he ever confronted. That provides quite a bit to a legacy, and Lewis is aware of it.
