if bowe had fought lewis....

Possibly wouldn't make too much of a difference, as Lewis' standing would take a large hit.

 

I think he would make the ATG list, still under Holy and Lennox, but would.

Lennox would take a hit fosho, he gets credit for having Bowe chickening away from him.

 

Beating the guy who beat Ruddock earns you no special history points. A win against Lewis and Holy helps, but he's going to come off the rails soon after anyways, so his place wouldn't be much higher than it is now.

 

That is complicated speculation. It depends very much on how Lewis loses, and what if he hires Steward after that loss, never suffers the McCall loss and/or avenges the Bowe defeat a year later?

 

I think Bowe's rating as a champion could possibly have improved had he managed to beat Lewis, but it would also depend on how Lewis's career unfolded afterward. If the events following a meeting with Bowe had led to Lennox's decline hence diminishing him to anonymity, then we wouldn't be sitting here 16 years later thinking much of it. If Lewis had still emerged as the great champion that we know of, then it may have changed Bowe's standing quite a bit.

Here's the flipside,

If Bowe and Lewis had met, and Lennox had beaten Bowe, then defended the title succesfully against a prime Holy, Moorer, Foreman, Morrison, Tyson, etc. Then how would Lewis be seen today? What if Lewis had never even fought McCall and only stuck to respected top rated challengers, possibly eliminating the factor of complacency? Could he have had a better legacy?

 

I don't know if I agree. Ruddock was in phenomenal shape for Lewis, and had looked pretty good in the tunups leading up to that match. Even if he was a tad diminished from the Tyson beatings, I don't know if it was so significant to where he would have beaten Lewis had he still been 100%. I mean Ruddock didn't even get a decent shot off on Lewis, and to me that's more of a stylistic problem than a sign of deterioration. I could see how if the fight had gone multiple rounds in a grueling battle, and we saw Ruddock's tougness, resolve, and stamina diminish as the fight progessed, then the damaged goods argument might hold water, but showing up in great shape and losing in two rounds, before even working up a sweat?

 

I don't mean to come off as someone constantly sticking up for one fighter, but i think this statement is more than unfair. If you look at his record from when he stepped up to world class fighters against Ruddock in 92, until retirement 12 years later, you'll find fewer "litter" on his record than perhaps any other great heavyweight in the history of the sport. Off the top of my head, only 2 or 3 of his 25 opponents during that period were not ranked in the ring top10. Furthermore, McCall was a ranked top contender, so i don't see how he is not a respectable opponent.

 

I didn't mean for it to sound that way. Lewis's comp was among the best, and even McCall was not that bad of a challenger.

What I meant was, if Lewis had fought and beat Bowe in 1993, then followed up by beating a string of premier fighters like Holyfield, Tucker, Bruno, Foreman, Morrison, Tyson, etc ( some of these he actually fought anyway) , then maybe faced McCall AFTER he had cemented a better legacy EARLIER, could things have been different? I am actually giving Lewis the benefit of the doubt that he lost to McCall on the basis of complaceny, because Oliver did not have the prestige or importance that say a Tyson, Bowe, Holy, etc. had.

 

I think a prime Bowe could have given Lewis all the trouble he wanted ,Bowe was the best "inside" big man I have seen.he had the talent but lacked the dedication . I never warmed to Lennox's style ,but his accomplishments cannot be denied he fought evryone who was out there and willing to fight him,he deserves to be ranked among the top ten best Heavies,imo.

 

This whole thread is fairly difficult to work out, as each scenario has a complete counter scenario.

 

I would think a victory over Lewis by Bowe would have dramatically change his career, provided he dedicated himself to staying in shape, Especially if he won in convincing fashion.

And speaking of staying in shape, a better question might be what kind of career would Bowe have had if he would have dedicated himself to training and staying in shape in the same manner Lewis, or Holyfield, did?