W. Klitschko's two wins over Byrd are much better than Lewis's two best ever wins

Lets not carried away with Moorer. Holyfield really deserved the decision in the first fight, despite it being an ugly performance due to heatlh issues and stylistic reasons.

Now Moorer was convincingly outboxing Evander in the rematch year later, until Holyfield started dropping his hands on the ropes and inviting him to exchange. Moorer being Moorer, fell for the trap and got beat up. Evander tried the same thing against Lewis in their first fight, but Lewis didn't bite.

 

-McCline actually picked up better wins than Ruddock and had a more sucessful career. Ruddock's reputation is built on a highlight reel knockout of a washed up coke head and the tough fights with Tyson..which I've always pinned on Tyson just being in such rough mental shape at the time. Tyson could knock Ruddock around at will, but let himself get clinched and wrestled everytime he tried to go for the finish.

-He was rusty against Botha but started regaining some form, as he looked fantastic against Golota, but after the drug suspension he fell apart. For the first time, he really let himself go, showing up in bad shape for Neilsen and Lewis.

 

Moorer wasn't that good, he hung around the top 5 for 10 years without really doing anything except get that disputed Evander decision. EVen Tommy Morrison had the good sense to move away from Old George's right. The guy's ring IQ was non-existant. He does deserve credit for taking care of business agianst a vulnerable Holyfield, but people often ranking him as a top fighter of the 90s...I never saw it as such.

Evander was a 180 lb boxer who tried to become a 220 lb brawler entering his 30s, we know he took short cuts, and health problems are going to manifest. He certainly didn't look himself against Moorer and Bowe III, I see no reason to doubt something was wrong with him.

He certainly hurt his shoulder against Byrd and the surgery that followed ended his career as a top level fighter, but just the same as Vitali did, because Byrd stays close, lets guys wind up, and than slips the punch. At some ponit you have to ask, why are all these guys tearing out their shoulders agianst Byrd?

 

No, as much as it pains me to say..the Tua that Byrd beat was more dangerous than that shadow of Mike Tyson. Hovering over 230 and not againg gracefully, Tyson would likely injure himself chasing Byrd, he's just a fight away from destroying his knee against Danny Williams.

 

Evander hoyfield wasn't 10 years past his prime when he fought Lewis he was in his prime.

Lewist 4 best wins in my opinion are
the two holyfield fights
the vitali klitscko fight (punching a cut is part of boxing, if you happen to not know this by know)
Razor ruddock

 

I would also have Lewis' best three wins as Vitali, Holyfield, and Tua. Which Byrd roughly does match though not as convincingly, though he also has McCline, whom did set himself apart briefly by matching Lewis' wins over Grant and Briggs, and beating Oleg's recent conqueror, Whitaker.

On the next level you have Ruddock, Grant, Golota, Mercer, Briggs, Akinwande, and Rahman. Byrd's resume thins out here, he just has the four really excellent wins and not too many good solid ones, he had trouble finding opponents(Lewis, Sanders, Roy Jones, Toney, Vitali, Ruiz, all refused him at different points) and started to slip drastically during his tenure as IBF Champion.

 

lewis>klitschko..........not even close. lewis on his last legs beat vitali. prime by prime vitali is better than wlad. both the klitschkos resumes suck

 

Than you shouldn't use Vitali as the arguing point. I'm also hard pressed to think of a better opponent Lewis beat, maybe the 37 year old but still tough Holyfield or a completely shot Tyson ? Surely the only Lewis scalps with a better resume than Vitali.

 

Yes, Tua was in poor shape for Lewis. Blamed a rib injury but its not like coming in out of shape was unusual for him anyway.

Byrd was a winnable cross roads fight and he got in shape for it and tired, last time he was in really good shape. I believe Byrd beat the better Tua for what that's even worth.

Lewis beat the slightly better Holyfield, though the first fight has to be one of Evander's worse performances of the 90s along with Moorer I and Bowe III, banked everything on Lewis brawling with him and the "3rd round prediction" psych out, but didn't have a plan B it seemed. Second fight he had a sound strategy of jabbing the body and had alot of success before tiring out from Lewis' clinching.

Agree about Vitali, both won by legal injuries while down on the cards.

No, I'm assuming credit and adding JAB to my scalps. Hopefully Lady Nay will join him this Spring, but that one is up to chance.

 

I'm thinking Bradley/Pac II will go down like Lewis/Holyfield II, we'll see better performances from both men but the right guy is going to go over. We'll see.

Lady Nay certianly backed off his original claim of Bradley knocking out Pac, he wanted no part of that bet. And didn't want any part of this one until after weeks of taunting. First time he's commited to a fight prediction, so its the only opening to get rid of him.

 

Vitali has a bad injury, over 2.5 hours of surgery. He was easily beating Byrd. Byrd had no real chance against Vitali. Byrd had nothing to do with the injury........Byrd said that Vitali was harder to fight than Vlad.............

 

Lewis dumped the belt to avoid Byrd. That says it all.

 

Scratch Brewster, he got is arce kicked
and Purrity fight was different too. Corrie had the only legit win
Wlad should have rematched Purrity and Sanders