Lennox Lewis was called the greatest by George Foreman and Ali. He beat the "greats" of his era, Bowe, Holyfield, Tyson and Klitschko of the next era. This content is protected
He didnt beat the greats of his era in their respective prime. He never faced a complete fighter like himself, and lost to guys he shouldnt have lost to on two occassions. Hardly the best of all time, more like lower top ten in my opinion.
Top 10 for sure and one could argue top 5. Definitely not the greatest. Even if we forgive his embarrasing losses because he avenged them, lennox's resume still has problems. For some reason he decided it was more important to get a gold medal rather than join his contemporaries who were becoming ppv stars and household names. This definitely made him a more skilled, seasoned fighter when he finally turned pro but when he did, tyson, holyfield, and bowe were already pretty shopworn after beating the crap out of each other. Lennox doesnt get to accusd them of duxking or complain about the top fighters not facing him sooner when he was a complete nobody and chose to turn pro late. To his credit he beat tyson and holyfield fair and square but theres an asterisk* because they clearly didnt have much left in the tank. Lennox fans like to make fun of bowe for dumping his belt, but lennox chose to do the same thing when he was told to fight john ruiz and chris byrd. Obviously those wouldnt have been blockbuster mega ppv fights but that isnt the point: byrd and ruiz were legitimate, qualified contenders. Lennox had unfinished business with ray mercer and vitali, he would have done wonders for his career and popularity if he set the record straight and beat them convincingly. Its ironic because those were two of his most excitinf fights and rematchs would have sold well. But once Lennox tasted true success and starting winning championships, he became a bit of a diva and money was the bottom line. He was a true professional and didnt care if the audience booed as he stunk up the joint with a safety first approach (see the david tua fight). Lennox had technical flaws too. He didnt move his head enough and relied on his heigh, reach, and smother tactics to avoid danger and getting hit. He had a great jab but could be very lazy and paw with it. He had good lateral movement when he was younger but starting getting very heavy and slacked off with his cardio. It wasnt hard to time Lennox and he didnf have the best chin either. He didnt throw enough combinations and either threw pitter patter punches making it obvious he was going for a decision win, or on the rare occasions where he was being aggressive he wouldnt always follow up or go to the body enough. Overall, lennox wasnt just a good fighter he was great. Atg power, skill, ring generalship, and beat most of the top contenders of his era. I dont remember anyone opponents complaining about him cheating or fouling. With just a little more mustard, matchmaking, and marketing he could have been the goat.
Not sure about the greatest? But I have him top 5, sharing my 3-4 tier with Holmes. Great fighter though and glad I got to witness his era.
He is definitely top five and capable of beating anyone in history. An honorable champion that didn't duck anyone.
Well no. He's not the greatest and if you count his amateur fights (Bowe), then please count also wins over Bowe and Lennox for Jorge Luis Gonzalez as he did beat both. Therefore JL Gonzalez resume is far better than anyone thinks. But Lennox is great HW, and prime Lennox would be competitive against HW in history.
Top 3 in my book. Every fighter and every fighter's record has flaws. Lewis's flaws, few as they were, are less in number and degree than almost any other of the folks in the discussion. Reading the above detractions only enforces this truth.
the best ran from him in their "prime". and if losing to lesser opponents is a Problem...…..where does dempsey or Louis rank?? top twenty??
Yes he is great in hypothetical imaginary fights that never happened. He could hypotheticaly beat any imaginary boxer who never existed.
Agreed. I rate him 3-4 along with Holmes. I just see Ali/Louis as the 2 top dogs in this division if we are looking at real life accomplishments rather than hypothetical imaginary ones.