So what is the OFFICIAL reason that Lennox Lewis decided to retire instead of Rematching Vitali?

Stop it! It was obvious Lennox thought he couldn't win the rematch? How do you know what a man, you don't even know and probably never even spoke with, was thinking. If anything, he thought he could beat Vatali due to his lack of preparation in the 1st fight. A fight in which Vatali looked like he put his entire head in a wood chipper after Lennox was done with him. I think a motivated, in shape Lennox does as much and probably more in a rematch.

 

The official reason why he retired and why there was no rematch is exactly the same as stated in the other 246 threads on this very subject.....he had reached the end....no desire to fight again

 

I thought this fight happened in 2003?


HANG ON, JESUS, has my homemade time travelling machine worked?

I Can't believe it, I made it out of an old hairdryer, a KitKat wrapper, chewing gum and a little crystal I stole from my Aunts house.





Anyway, WHATS THE DATE? WHATS THE DATE?

Wow, wow, WOW I'm gonna be a billionaire and also go back and steam through a 23 year old Cindy Crawford.

 

Vitali deserved a rematch and was winning the fight with no question. True, he lost it the legit way, but this wasn't a great victory of Lennox and I think he knew it pretty well and ducked a bit.

 

I've always thought that once Lennox beat Tyson he lost all his passion and drive to be the best. Once he got that win under his belt he convinced himself he was a level or two above everyone else in the division, that nobody was anywhere near his league, and he could coast out the last few years of his career with easy money title defences against fighters who could never challenge him.

So when he came up against Vitali - a younger, hungrier fighter, determined to redeem himself in the eyes of his critics for quitting against Byrd - and found himself against an opponent who could push him to his limits - such as they were given his awful condition for the fight - it was a wake up call, and he realized then that the easy money route wasn't really open to him, and he'd have to actually work and stay focused to stay on top.

At that point I think he realized he didn't have that work ethic in him anymore and chose to walk away.

Now, I think Lennox is a tad guilty of attempting to milk his title for a little extra cash when he stuck around long enough to see if Vitali would slip up against Johnson, and just long enough after that for the WBC to issue him an ultimatum, but even so it's pretty clear his heart just wasn't in it anymore, and hadn't been for some time.

 

Because he felt like it.

He simply didn't view himself as leaving any unfinished business. He was old, rich, fat and tired...so, hard to not see his POV honestly.

 

I'm with you on that one, playing amateur sports psych doc never made sense to me, I just try to imagine the fighters in the ring at their best. That's it.

No ped accusations, no weight bullying, no mental fragility, no scorecard doctoring (Canelo is my only exception here), no whining about boarder line low blows, whining about a cut stoppage (if boxer A slices boxer B into ribbons and the fight is stopped, then boxer A has scored a TKO over boxer B as a result of damage caused by fists), A-side boxers 'timing' a fight to catch the opponent at a disadvantage ala Leonard-Duran 2, etc etc.

Heck, I even give Mike Tyson the benefit of the doubt and say he wouldn't mentally cave in against anyone at his best, even Ali.

 

New baby. Wanted to focus on being a father.

 

He said he wanted to go out on top. He beat everybody in possibly the hardest era, and left.

 

LEWIS TKO6 VITALI

 

He knew it would be a difficult fight so he selfishly ignored the public sentiment that sorely wanted a rematch. I think he did not want to go out on a loss and there was a decent chance that would have happened.

 

Was Lennox lying on your leather couch when he admitted he thought Vitali might beat him in a return bout?

LoL but seriously, what makes you think ATG Lennox Lewis, who showed the fearless heart of a true champion throughout his storied career, would start having doubts about himself? Lewis Never showed even a remote bit of fear that I can remember, facing practically all of the best from his era, which is widely considered one of the greatest ever.

I always remember LL as extremely confident in himself & his abilities. If he wanted the second fight and could still get in shape, I think he would've done so. After all, Lennox was old, in his last ever fight & looked like crap in the first fight. Imo he was in the worst shape of his career, while Vitali was prime and in great shape as always. Vitali would never be better than he was that night, while Lennox never looked worse. In the rematch, a fit LL wins via wide UD or late TKO.

 

The truth as to why Lewis retired becomes quite clear by simply watching their fight.