LENNOX LEWIS: Could he be the greatest heavyweight in history H2H?

Let me begin by saying I do NOT think Lennox Lewis was the greatest heavyweight ever pound-for-pound. Of course guys like Muhammad Ali and Joe Louis were clearly greater fighters. It could be argued many more are too.

But, this is not an argument to be had on this thread. This thread is about peoples' opinions on head-to-head at heavyweight.

And the question at hand is: could a peak Lennox Lewis on the best night of his career beat any other heavyweight in history? Is this an acceptable viewpoint? Is it even possible??

I look at peak Lewis- I take this pretty approximately to be from around 1997 (his redemption against Oliver McCall) through to his brilliant 2000 just before the Rahman defeat (in 2000 he won a landslide points decision over the dangerous David Tua, and stopped both Michael Grant and Frans Botha in 2)- and I see a heavyweight who was 6'5", with an 84' reach, and who regularly weighed around 240-250lbs in this period. I see a guy with true and proven KO power in either hand (the only guys to last the distance with him in this period were Tua, Holyfield and the iron-chinned Mavrovic), excellent jab and skills, strength, mobility, good handspeed, solid defence - in short, I think he had the whole heavyweight package. I think Riddick Bowe agreed.

I know some people will point out his chin as a big weakness in an h2h discussion, but for anyone who does, click this video link and enjoy:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u4SQmxIP5Bk

Lewis's chin was spectacularly underrated. Yes he was KO'd twice in his career, but if a 240lbs man takes a huge swing and it catches you on the chin, chances are you're going down. That can happen to anyone. If you watch that video the consider: Lewis fought absolute wars with guys like Klitschko, Mavrovic and Ray Mercer. He went 12 rounds with a guy as explosive as Tua, destroyed the notorious puncher Razor Ruddock. He was caught cold twice in his entire career - many other great heavyweights were too.

And before the olden days aficionados start their usual responses: there is no way that guys like Rocky Marciano (5'10" and average fighting weight of 185-190lbs) or Jack Dempsey (6'1" and around 190lbs) or Ezzard Charles (6' and 180-200lbs) would beat peak Lewis, purely on account of size, as this is an H2H discussion remember.


I don't know if Lewis could beat the Tyson of the late 1980s, or any version of Ali. But I think there is a very real possibility that the greatest heavyweight of our generation could possibly be the greatest in history head-to-head.

Or couldn't he???


(*if you say NO he couldn't, please say who you think could beat him and why)

 

I wouldn't count Ali out, but I'm not confident in saying he wins definitely though, so that leaves the possibility open for me.

I can't see Foreman beating Lewis, no way IMO. Lewis's jab and superior skills would control the fight, he'd stop George late on. Lewis's 2 defeats were 1-punch aberrations. Foreman's performance against Ron Lyle showed his inherent vulnerabilities.

 

If I'm a troll, WTF are you doing commenting on my thread?

Pot

Kettle

GET LOST.

 

It's in the wording of the question. He could be, and it is certainly possible when we consider his attributes and size. He has no real weakness, except very occasional lack of concentration.

 

You can't label someone a troll and expect them to lap it up. You implied I was one, so you can forget the smiles and sunshine from me. Why would you want to comment on a thread started by a troll? If I am in fact one, then obviously this thread is some hoax to start arguments. Bye :hi:

 

I understand, but there are many who would completely rule him out. I myself would immediately rule out great heavyweights like Joe Frazier or George Foreman if this question was asked about them. I think they definitely could not be considered the greatest heavyweight of all-time h2h. That's just my opinion. I wanted to see how many people believed Lewis is a legitimate contender for this crown. I believe he is, but I genuinely have no idea what the ESB consensus will be on this.

 

Tyson and Ali are the two other contenders IMO.

Late 1980s Tyson was a truly sensational fighter. He is underrated now because of his performances post-prison. Had he never gone to jail and had learned from the kick up the arse of the Douglas fight, he may have proved to be the best h2h. Could Tyson have beaten Holyfield, Bowe and Lewis in the early 1990s? I think so. Good call.

 

Nice to read a post from you containing no sniping.

Do you really think Joe Louis of the 1930s and 40s could cope with the explosive brute force of young Tyson or the size and power of peak Lewis in an h2h match-up in the ring? Genuine question.