Did Lennox Lewis retire prematurely?

Long ago, you declared 36yo Donaire "past it", even though he was on a great run before the Inoue fight and at the time of your posting. You can clearly see that age is relevant even if form appears to be good, then. So why act like you can't?

 

The list of heavyweight boxers (and all boxers, really) who enjoyed success at age 39 is rather small.

 

He did it right. Retired financially set for life, with his health intact, after a come from behind victory over a future champ, having beat every single man he faced professionally.

Should he have fought on into a senior career? To what end? Usually that's just done for money -- he didn't need money. Sometimes it's done because they feel they have something to prove -- he didn't; he's a top 5 ATG and knows it. Sometimes it's done because they're just nuts -- he isn't.

So, why risk his health? What use is money and accolade if you're brain damaged and not yourself anymore?

 

He was smart enough to know when to go which few have been.

If he still has an itch to scratch, he could come out of retirement, declare himself the one true Lineal champion & start racking up title defences until the winner of Fury v Usyk is forced to give him a call.

 

He had 2-3 fights left on his HBO deal and had stated that he would see out the remainder of his deal and then assess. Then the Vitali fight happened and the rest is history

 

No Vitali was beating him till he got cut.

 

Probably not but Lewis vs RJJ would have been epic.

 

And none of them beat a fighter as good a Vitali.

 

Why, because Lewis had slowed down? A younger Lewis would have destroyed Jones.

 

Lennox Lewis retired healthy, wealthy and wise on his own terms while still the champion, "Veni, vidi, vici"

 

Well ... maybe he was "outpointing" Lewis through six rounds.

Lewis was the one delivering the beating.

Vitali wasn't just cut. He needed 60 stitches in his face and mouth to close ALL the CUTS.

I think Hamsho needed 55 stitches to close all the cuts in his face after the first Hagler fight and people marveled at the damage Hagler inflicted on his head in that one.

Vitali looked like a frame out of the Zapruder film when that ended. And they were just at the halfway point of the fight.

 

Better to go out like Lennox than Mike Tyson. Or even worse, Danny Williams.

Compared to a lot of 90s boxers Lewis is in remarkably good health. Watching Holyfield slurring during interviews before the Usyk Joshua fight was sad to see. Lewis doesn't seem to have suffered any cognitive decline whatsoever.

 

You mean the Roy Jones who was laid out unconscious in two rounds by Tarver three months after Lewis announced his retirement?

Yeah, I don't agree.

Killing Roy Jones may have put a damper on his retirement. Lewis just wanted to lay on the beach and get high.

That's what he did.

 

Wish he had fought Vitaly again before he retired but besides that it was fine

 

He left unfinished business. Looked horrible in the Vitali fight, ragged and down on all three cards, knew he wouldn't take the rematch. Maybe he was washed and couldn't do the camp. Steward wanted him to continue with the rematch but he quit.