Lewis is a top 5 ATG Heavyweight.

I agree. I feel Holyfield won some of the early rounds when he was working the jab but he gave up like rounds 8-11 by doing nothing but swatting at Lewis' left hand, he just didn't have the gas to keep the pressure up at 38 years of age. He rallied and got round 12 for sure, but I think Lewis edged him by at least two rounds last time I scored it. Holyfield had the most impressive rounds when he was hurting Lewis but he didn't win the most.

I have to disagree with the last comment of course, but let's not go there. Vitali was cut up but it wasn't a beat down for the ages. Maricano's face looked worse against Ezzard Charles in their rematch (cut eyes, cut mouth, and a completely split nostril) but Charles was the one who actually suffered the career damaging beatdown.

[url]http://a.espncdn.com/photo/2013/0503/box_g_charles-marciano_mb_300.jpg[/url]

 

The problem with Lewis is that most of his best wins were against Heavyweights way best their best(Tyson, Holyfield, Tucker, McCall, Bruno and Morrison). Also despite what people say, his own Manager Frank Maloney said that they turned down a fight with Riddick Bowe after Bowe lost his rematch with Holyfield which could have been Lewis' best win plus they also kept Lewis away from Bryd as they felt Chris would be a nightmare for Lewis.

Having said that i would say he was probably Top 10 but not Top 5...someone around 7 or 8 seems right.

 

The only clear rounds Lewis took were the first 4.

What does that even mean? Loads of guys dominated fights with terrible cuts and Lewis was dominated. Im not a fan of either fighter but I know what I saw and that was Lewis getting his ass kicked and lucking out on a cuts victory.
Just like Wlad did against Willianson when he was on route to a loss.

 

Holyfield didn't win a minute of those early rounds.

 

Wasn't this guy knocked out cold, TWICE, each time with ONE punch, by lesser fighters?

I guess you could make a case for best HW of all time.

 

When punches are thrown and landing and the guy on the receiving end of those punches is cut, that's not luck. Learn the sport ffs. And since Lewis won the 6th round clearly the fight was clearly tilting in his favor. The stoppage and Lewis' win wasn't all that controversial only Lewis haters have a problem with the outcome but since boxing has started, fights have been stopped when one of the fighter can no longer see a punch coming at him. Hell that's why Frazier never came out in the 15t round against Ali.

 

When one guy is so desperate for a knockout he resorts to boring straight in blocking punches with his face , albeit to no avail that man is not giving a 'beatdown for the ages'

Don't talk in fanboi language ffs.

 

Nonsense, I recall some being competitive. I think it was Round 3, Evander landed some good shots. Holyfield had two or three rounds where he was working the jab into Lewis' chest very effectively, maybe 7 his last really strong round outside of his second wind in 12.

 

A thread like this shouldn't take more than a single page and perhaps 8 or 9 replies mostly in favor of "yes". But the annoying and persistent ones with the " getting knocked out twice by mediocre fighters, shouldn't place a guy anywhere near a top 5" ****, is what drags these threads out for months and even years..... Wasted space and time if you ask me.

 

KLitchko needed over 60 stitches after the fight ffs and he had not one cut (above the eye) not two cuts (below the same eye) but two more and he also a split lip what the hell else to you call it?

The fight was stopped after the sixth round on the advice of Dr. Paul Wallace, the ringside physician, due to the cut over Klischko's left eye.
Klitschko had four cuts on his face and one in his mouth. The cuts required 60 stitches.


Do you need another picture of his face after the fight to remind you of the beating he took?

 

Im not interested about the medical side of it. Lewis won by a cut , not by outboxing him and thats the botton line.

I used to defend Lewis but i ceased to lie to myself and predend Lewis didn't get his ass served up to him for the majority of the fight.

The stoppage was justified but he never came close to handing him out a 'beatdown for the ages'

 

How can you not be interested in the medical side of it when determining whether or not Klitschko was given a beat down. how badly does one have to be hurt before that term can be used? After the 2nd round, Lewis threw boxing out the window and decided he was going to fight Vitali and only one fighter was going to last the fight, that's what Manny wanted him to do, and that's exactly what happened. You can spin it all you want but the scorecards never mattered and never were going to matter.

Same with Douglas-Tyson, did anyone think after the first couple of rounds that that fight was going to the scorecard?

 

Oh screw this, I thought we were talking Lewis/Holyfield II..

Not another Lewis/Vitali wank fest. I'm out of here.