Lewis did get rocked by guys like Briggs, Bruno, and Mercer to some extent. These guys all have comparable power to Bowe's, so Bowe defintiely can hurt Lewis' at anytime in the fight. I do see this being a 50/50 if it took place in 93, anything can really happen in this one.
Its clear from this confrontation at ringside Bowe thought he could intimidate Lewis but when he found he couldnt he lost his nerve, http://youtube.com/watch?v=4xR4xaTi1_c
Interesting the Lewis interview just after where Lennox said "he fears me, I think he'll sidestep me" Exactly what happened, no-one can spin it any different. Bowe wanted no part of Lennox. I think at that moment in time Bowe would have stood a small chance of beating Lennox too, whereas 3 years later Lewis would have just owned him.
Bowe is constantly overrated. All of this shoulda coulda woulda about him... Bottom line is that Lewis was willing to fight Bowe but Bowe wanted no part of him. Lewis went on to become champ and face nearly every deserving fighter out there and retired with wins over every opponent he faced while Bowe quit after getting outboxed and balls smashed by Golota.
Clearly, Bowe wanted no part of Lewis. He'd lost to him in the Olympica and he was intimidated by him. And Lewis was some years away from prime, then.
Either of the Bowe vs. Golota fights coud've been stopped by the ref for a Bowe TKO loss at multiple times & during different rounds. Bowe was completely out of it.
Bowe had just won an epic battle vs. Holyfield but Lewis just beat down and humiliated the same Razor Ruddock, who Tyson struggled a bit with.
Lewis was the one who was looking dominate & confident. This would lead one to believe that Lewis would've won by late KO or TKO.
This is true, but the first fight was actually a competitive match between the 2, correct me if Im wrong, but didnt Bowe knock Golota down and hurt him a couple times in that match as well. Yes, Bowe certainly looked to be knocked out on his feet a couple times, but so did Lewis when he fought Vitali, and noone stopped that fight. Bowe never been knocked out, and he had what 40 some matches, IMO he probably has a better chin than Lewis. I think some people are forgetting Lewis wasnt a finished product in 92-93, it wasnt until 95-96 did Manny have the chance to fine tune him into a great Heavyweight. Manny seen many flaws in his defense, so much so if you listen to Manny tell McCall what punch to look for in the corner, McCall came out and caught Lewis with the right hand over the top, and that was 94. Bowe was a better fighter than McCall and would of probably seen the opening as well, so who know what would of happend, thats why I think it's a 50/50 overall.