The farcical 'myth' that Lewis would have KO'd Vitali

i completely agree. vitali didnt seem hurt by anything lennox was hitting him with. and lennox was only getting more tired.

 

Vitali looked like he was hurt, getting more hurt and about to get stopped. Sorry if that hurts your feelings lol, but tape doesn't lie. I like Vitali, but it is what it is.

 

Go rewatch round 6.

 

It was obvious that vitali was not going down regardless of what he was hit with. He took some of the most vicious shots for a fighter to not even be wobbled in heavyweight history that night. They tried to make his heart an issue prior to the fight and he responded by eating Lewis's best shots and would have went on to beat lewis if not for the cut.

Lewis knew what he was doing by not accepting the rematch and retiring. He was out of his element when he had to be the stalker as opposed to the boxer. That was the first and only time in lewis's career where he was in that position. Vitali's goofy in and out torso movement and long arm straight shooting were just to much for lewis to outbox on the outside.

 

Lewis was tko'd x1 and ko'd x1, both early. Against McCall was pre Manny, against Rahman was 2 weeks prep for a fight at 5000ft.
Prime Lewis was never ko'd and Vitali doesn't have a history of early ko's vs top opposition.

Explain yourself.

 

If I'm remembering correctly, didn't Lewis pretty much drop down dead tired on his stool at the end of the last round? He looked like he was totally gassed...Don't know what he even would've had left had it not been stopped BUT....The result is what it is....Lewis got the win.

 

The only one getting KO'd in that fight was Lewis. That is why he hijacked the division for six months. Then watches Vitaly destroy Kirk Johnson, and promptly scurries off with whatever was left of his dignity, retiring.

Sorry if this hurts your view of the sport but it is what it is or should I say was?

 

Being ko'd twice doesn't mean that Lewis couldn't ko Vitali. Vitali didn't last long enough as he was cut to ribbons by Lewis. Truth is we don't know what would happen as that scenario wasn't played out. We do know that Vitali lost by tko...

 

Too many people relying onto Foremans words rather than their own eyes I see.
Vitali was just as ****ed as Lewis, look at the mans breathing rounds 5&6.

 

That has nothing to do with nothing. That is so overrated by Lewis's critics... They said what if Sugar had to fight 3 more rounds against Hagler after he dropped to HIS knees. The fight goes on...

 

Wow--I really can't believe this argument still lives after all these years. I was rooting for VK that night and it all comes down to "Coulda, Shoulda, Woulda". It was a legit stoppage if ever there was one so it is a legit win no matter how many "Coulda Shoulda Woulda" you throw in there.

 

Both guys were preparing to fight other guys, and both had short notice. Nobody was in a worse position. Both gave it their all, and Lewis showed why he was a true champion. Vitali didn't deserve a rematch, but Lewis saying he would rematch Vitali, and not give him one gives Vitali fans a bed to sleep on as they think Lewis retired rather than face Vitali again. Neither fighter really hurt each other, and the cut was the difference. Both were tired...

 

This is a hard fight for me to discuss. I saw it live and have re-viewed it countless times. It seems to me that Lewis was so out of shape that night that he just did not really care to prepare at all. :-( He faced a prime and hungry Vitali Klitschko on short notice who was looking to take over on the grandest stage. Therefore, we got a heavyweight brawl instead of a boxing match. :happy

But the ending was bittersweet for both guys. Vitali wanted it sooooo badly. It hurt me to watch his post fight interview because you could hear just how disappointed he was in his voice. That fight was very strongly contested and he gave it his all.

Vitali knew he had a shot that night. He knew Lewis was 37 yrs old, had been stopped twice before, and was not in his best condition for the fight that night. Vitali is a smart guy. He lost the fight but won the event by showing so much heart. The questions about VK's heart, chin, and toughness were answered definitively against Lewis.

In the end, an older and out of shape Lennox Lewis had the tools to hurt and seriously damage a prime Vitali Klitschko. He had the reach to land bombs on Vitali in spite of the "lean back and parry style" that VK has used to shut out most of his opponents today.

Lennox showed that he could still hit VK with meaningful punches from both the outside (overhand right caused the infamous cut) and inside (those massive uppercuts later in the fight). I think the ATG was getting worked in the first two rounds, but he began to take control and made adjustments. That's what ATG's do.

The uppercut was there for Lennox all night on the inside. Lewis recognized that, so he began using it. He landed uppercuts on several occasions, but people only remember the last BOMB he landed. You all know which one I'm talkin about. I think VK would have been hit with many more of those had the fight continued. No man could continue to take those kinds of shots. We'd only seen half of the fight play out.

By RD6, VK's eye was window to his brain. That fight had to be stopped for his well being. The cut was caused by a punch, so it is what it is. Still, a lot was proved that night about both him and Lennox. We'll never know for sure how a rematch would go. All we can do is speculate.

 

Vitali was much better than Lewis in that fight. Lewis was old and out of shape, so fair enough, but Vitali was far more dominant in that fight. To say otherwise is just wrong. Fair play to Lewis for getting the win.

Regarding the comment you made earlier about Lewis in his prime, he was ****ed up McCall, that was in the nineties when Lewis was a beast.

 

Yeah, but Lennox won lol...