Has Ali faced anyone like Lennox Lewis?

And if not, why is he given the benefit of the doubt and routinely picked to win a mythical fight between the two?

Dempsey, Frazier, Louis and Marciano are laughed at in a match up with Lewis. Why isn't Ali?

 

A guy like Lewis had not been invented. Could not exist in the 1960s because the training back then did not benefit what has become the modern Superheavyweight. A guy that size under that training wound up being Ernie Terrell or Chuck Wepner.

 

I agree with that, but do you see the double standard at work regarding Ali? The knock against Frazier et al is "they never fought anyone like Lewis, so big and so good." Neither did Ali.

 

Did Lewis fight anyone as fast and awkward as Ali?

 

None of those men are laughed at in a matchup. As a matter of fact, it's arguable that they're favored most of the time.

 

There is a double standard among the people who don't truly understand or can think for themselves. The dreaded mainstreamers.

They don't have confidence enough in their own opinion to challenge "established opinion". Mostly established opinion is bull sh!t anyway. "Swarmer" this and "styles make fights" that. They want to be able to hide behind the simple answer of the majority. When in truth nothing is that simple and nobody can be completely wrong.

Size only became a beneficial thing once dramatic changes came along wuthin the sports technology side of things. Even then there are drawbacks to exploit that get eradicated once it becomes mainstream.

 

No. Lewis is smart,big,strong,powerful,skilled he used his size and reach pretty well.ali did not have the single ko punch to worry lennox and he was smart enough to dont get gassed late. So its a very hard fight for the greatest , i think that lewis could beat 71 rusty ali,63 green clay and post 74 . peak ali wins by competitive MD .74 ali is 50/50 fight

 

Big guys did not bother Ali.

Lewis is a great big guy so it won't be easy.

But Lewis is still a big guy and Ali had preference over big guys.

 

Well, Alvin Blue Lewis had the Name, Height and Reach, and if he caught you, a Vicious Left Hook, OK Just a silly thought

 

I consider awkward as herky jerky and lacking fluidity, Ali was more unorthodox than awkward.

 

I wouldn't say that. I think the only guys who were clearly taller than Ali were Bugner (twice), Wepner and Terrell - none of whom were nearly as good as Lewis.

And the only one Ali stopped was Wepner, in the 15th round.

And Ali had a very difficult time when people jabbed with him. That's how Norton gave Ali a hard time in three fights. Norton jabbed when Ali jabbed, and Ali couldn't get in rhythm with a glove in his face.

I think Lewis' size, his jab, the distance Lewis could keep between himself and shorter men, and his power would provide Ali with the toughest challenge of his career.

 

On the other hand, Ali had clear advantages like speed, footwork and counterpunching skills (yes, Lennox was never a counterpuncher), and Ali was open for left hook, while almost all Lewis KD's were scored by right hand.

 

Yes, although Lewis had very fast hands when he punched in combination. Ruddock, for instance, never saw the right hand that dropped him in the first.

And if Lewis threw the "look at my left hand over here while I behead you with the right" combination he hit Rahman with, Ali would've gone down hard, too.

The tall guys Ali fought didn't punch, or throw with the speed, Lewis often displayed.

It would be both boxers' toughest fights.

 

I have to wonder if Lewis was avoiding them. Byrd, Donald, Tubbs, and Sanders never made it into the ring with him. The closest he got was beating an old Tyrell Biggs.

In his defense, Wlad wasn't all that different from Lewis at range and beat Byrd and Haye fairly easily. So Lewis might do fine against those types with the same tactics.

 

Wlad was a lot faster than Lewis. Lewis never showed me he could handle that type of opponent.

Ali was impressive in using his speed, movement, foot work to slip and counter long jabs in Terrell and Liston.

That said, Wlad doesn't beat Ali either, even with the skills he demonstrared.
Ali beats and frustrates Wlad and Lewis in my book.