Is Lewis also the HW of the 2000's? Discuss.

Agreed........Couldnt have said it better myself..:-(

 

And while Lewis was champ people said 'HW boxing died with 80s Tyson'. And during the 80s people said 'HW boxing died with Ali'. And during the 60s people said 'HW boxing died with Marciano'.

Do I need to go on? :deal

 

Wladimir, quite clearly is the best HW from the 2000-09 decade.

His record is 22-2 in the decade compared to Lennox's 5-1. Lennox just didn't fight enough in the decade, period.

Wladimir's wins:
Chris Byrd I
Chris Byrd II
Ruslan Chagaev
Samuel Peter
Sultan Ibragimov
Lamon Brewster II
Tony Thompson
Calvin Brock
Jameel McCline
Ray Mercer
Hasim Rahman
Plus the infamous losses:
Corrie Sanders
Lamon Brewster I

 

atschscared of Byrd and Ruiz... please. At least Lewis faced off with Rahman which is more than what Vitali managed by pulling out 3 or 4 times, the rematch showed everyone what they needed to know with one of the most beautiful KO's we will ever see. As for the retirement issue, you dont force a 37yr old fighter into retirement in losing by TKO6, its the worst we had ever seen Lewis and Vitali still couldnt get the job done.

As for the question it cant be Lewis because he retired a 1/3 of the way through it. I think it can only really be Wlad, that era was so poor he's the only real candidate.

 

It doesn't really matter does it? In any event it is a subject where American opinions are neither rellevant, nor required, as their fighters dont come into the equation.

 

But surely their opinion is impartial, this considering that the majority of them cannot stand anyone from outside their country holding the heavyweight title.

 

This.. Lewis has the best single win, but simply didn't fight enough in the decade to claim that title..

 

With all due respect a victory over either Byrd or Ruiz would have been much more impressive than going 1-1 with Rahman.

 

But scared of them little bit extreme. I honestly dont blame Lewis for not fighting Ruiz, Lennox unfairly or fairly depending on who you ask had a reputation for being a tad boring at times. A fight with Ruiz would have been Wlad vs Ibragimov before its time, until Lewis lands the big shot. In fairness im a fan of Byrd and would have liked to see that fight, again it would have had the potential to get quite scrappy hence why i think Lewis decided against it. I dont think thst constitutes as ducking in the most true sense of the word, as in being afraid of those fighters, more afraid of how damaging those fights could be to future earning potential.

 

Really?

Lennox KO'ed Vitali in 2003.

Exactly WHO did Wlad beat during that decade?

 

He was active for a 1/3 of that era, its difficult to rate him no1 if he had so few fights.

 

Don't get me wrong, I don't think Lewis was scared of them but I think he knew of their ability to make him look bad.

Lewis v Ruiz would have been Lewis v Akinwande 2.

Regarding Byrd though I saw an interview on the web about a year ago and Lewis was talking about how he hated fighting southpaws as he couldn't figure them out and it got me thinking of whether he did avoid Byrd.

Again I'm not saying Byrd would beat him but as you already said it could have got scrappy and I think Byrd would have made Lewis look bad at times.

On a side note does anyone know how many southpaws fought in his career?

 

I agree, however, Lewis does have the TKO6 over Vitali and was the Linear HW champion in that decade up until his retirement in 2004.

Meanwhile, Wlad is getting knocked senseless by nobodies and NEVER managed to win the Linear title.

This is a no-brainer...

 

I dont actually think Lewis fought any, i rate Byrd higher than most and think he would have taken some rounds off Lewis and probably taken him the distance. Lewis' ability to keep the fight at range would probably get him the victory though.

 

You stretching again ... Vitaly got injured several times, and that wasn't Rahman
who caused such injuries, when you pass 35 you got to be more careful.
Lewis officially said he rather leave his belt than fight Ruiz ...
we know Ruiz ain't ATG and that was just shot in his own leg for Lewis

Re Rahman vs Lewis ... It was beautiful just because Lewis got his a..s whooped
by an underdog .. Rahman defined his whole career just because of this one shot.
Lewis started toying with rahman, his careless unprofessional behavior
resulted in surprise KO ... simply he asked for a free punch and he got it,
Mayorga thou had better chin than him when he asked for a free one ....

so in retrospection: person who drops his belts, is acting unprofessionally,
runs into retirement when had unfinished business .... cannot be #1.
In 2000 my top 5 list is:
1) Wlad
2) Vitaly
3) Ruiz
4) Byrd
5) Lewis