Is Lennox Lewis a top 10 heavyweight (from 606)

First topic message reminder :

Since today appears to be a day of importing old articles from the old 606 and to prove I can discuss fighters who fought in colour thought I would offer up this one about Canada's finest ever fighter (saves you time Truss) Lennox Lewis

Appreciate this is one of those can of worms type of subjects on here but Lennox Lewis is one of those guys along with Frazier who I really struggle with when ranking the heavyweights, so would like to get some kind of opinions as to whether guys think he deserves to be considered a top ten heavyweight.

In his defence he only lost two times and both losess were avenged in decent fashion. Also at his best he could be a devastating guy, in fights such as Grant, Ruddock and Briggs and a guy who showed an ability to vary his tactics for the opponent such as in the Tua victory and finishing his career with a win over a guy who is widely accepted as the best of the next generation in Vitali at an age when most fighters are reaching for the pipe and slippers is IMO very impressive and probably doesn't get the credit it deserves.

Against Lewis is is level of opposition isn't great, but as a thread demonstrated yesterday that is probably true of many a heavyweight we consider great. Another rap which I feel is a bit harsh is that Lennox never fought a lot his natural rivals in their prime, although he can't be blamed Bowe chucked the belt in the bin or that Tyson went to prison and he did beat a version of Holyfield who proved through subsequent results he was not quite as finished as often portrayed.

Guess for me though the thing that really counts against Lennox is the two guys he lost against are really not from the top drawer, could probably forgive one loss to such a guy as we all know one punch can turn a heavyweight fight round at any time but to make the same mistake twice is sloppy in the extreme.

For me Lennox probably resides just outside the top ten but is the kind of guy I would have no issue with if guys want to include him in there, but he is a guy who I to and fro with a lot and so would be interested to see where other guys have him and if they have him in the top ten on what criteria they include him.

Perfessor, it looks like you come on this site about once a week.Is that how long it takes you to concoct your laborious put-downs and mug up on "Ring Magazine " ratings...?Or is it because you are spending your time pilfering phrases from "the Go-Between"?Actually no, I suspect that you have an unhealthy reliance on your "Ripping Yarns" dvd. All good stuff ,Sir,however it's all a bit "Jaime Gumm". if you spend your time making masks from umpteen human faces and waddling around hiding your genitalia do the decent thing and help police with their enquiries.
Good day!

Riddick Bowe wouldn't have beaten Lennox Lewis and his manager Rock Newman knew that. He didn't throw the WBC belt in a dustbin cos he wanted to face his mandatory challenger.
Bowe then defended against Dokes and Ferguson. Riddick Bowe struggled to get inshape and I don't believe he was "shot" when he faced Golota just met his match physically.
Bowe had the skills, ability but was only really good at being the 'bigger man'. He lacked focus and real power and could be outboxed. But any Heavyweight in history has struggled with opposition at times. Sometimes it's due to style, inexperience or lack of focus.

With regards to Ray Mercer and his fights against Holyfield and Lewis. This was at a time that Mercer actually tried to dedicate himself. Both fighters beat him in close fights. Holyfield did better though I put that down to the styles. Mercer certainly wasn't "outboxing" Lennox as someone wrongfully said earlier. Don King put on the Mercer vs Lennox show and the ring was small, which suited Mercers style rather than Lewis. (on the same show Holyfield was struggling with former LH Bobby Czyz and accused of cheating)

With regards to Hasim Rahman and Oliver McCall, I feel people are being overly harsh in trying to make them look like 'wastes of space'. Both had some decent wins in their careers apart from Lennox Lewis.
Hasim Rahman vs Corrie Sanders is one of the best Heavyweight fights your'll see. Sanders went on to flatten Wladimir Klitscko.

More excuses for Lennox's poor performances. Next to Tyson I dont believe there is a single boxer in history which more excuses next to their names.

Rahman is Grade A useless. A truly awful champion. McCall is mediocre.

I think those two losses alone coupled with a lack of big significant wins to override them is enough to disqualify Lewis from a top five spot. Outside the top 5/6 guys the margins are pretty fine and Lewis has as good an argument as anyone else to be to in the top ten.

andygf wrote:Perfessor, it looks like you come on this site about once a week.Is that how long it takes you to concoct your laborious put-downs and mug up on "Ring Magazine " ratings...?Or is it because you are spending your time pilfering phrases from "the Go-Between"?Actually no, I suspect that you have an unhealthy reliance on your "Ripping Yarns" dvd. All good stuff ,Sir,however it's all a bit "Jaime Gumm". if you spend your time making masks from umpteen human faces and waddling around hiding your genitalia do the decent thing and help police with their enquiries.
Good day!

Think you are being a bit harsh Andy. Cannot have been easy to wholesale adopt the writing style of LRR but remove any of the traces of the wit, charisma or humor that made his writings tolerable whilst still retaining the smug air of intellectual superiority which made him so irritating at times.

Think you are being a bit harsh Andy. Cannot have been easy to wholesale adopt the writing style of LRR but remove any of the traces of the wit, charisma or humor that made his writings tolerable whilst still retaining the smug air of intellectual superiority which made him so irritating at times.

I'm absolutely sure he is LRR. He had the same cycling obsession and same writing style and same opinions on Ali on 606.

LondonRingRules is a Legend of boxing forums. I remember him from the old 5Live boards on the beeb and then on BoxingBanter and he still posts on Budweisers.

Not everyones cup of tea but he knows his stuff.

Well being somewhat of a newbie I 'm not sure I remember LRR,however the Perfessor is SO smug and SO superior. There's no bally need for it.
Classic signs of being thin-skinned and purporting to deal in
"facts" whilst saying certain boxers are not top level.I mean, take that guy back to philosophy school and give him a grounding in the concept of relativism...bleat bleat, "I can write a better argument than you!".
If you're reading this ,matey, popping up with a mixture of statistics and rhetoric does not make your ramblings any different to anybody else who posts here. Try posting an article yourself for once.
Bit I don't hink that's gonna happen though, it's so much more satisfying popping up and spraying everyone with a dose of manure isn't it?

Unfortunately dont get on here as much as I would like too some great articles on the forum I'd love to discuss but the powers above have a man of my age working so much, hope everyone is well and some cracking posts thanks.
Thought I might wade in with a little historical perspective regarding Lennox, looking from the outside you'd have to say Lewis is in the same class as historic greats like Sullivan, Jeffries, Johnson, Dempsey, Louis, Marciano and Ali in terms of resume. He had around seven title defences and I am pretty sure all of them were ranked. He has multiple wins over guys ranked in the top 10, he beat everybody he ever faced, he is not by any means the only all time great to get starched by lesser fighters, we'd all agree the current beltholders are pygmies by comparison. I was very sceptical around Lennox but from spending my time on the old 606 I can honestly say I was enlightened on Lewis and probaly is the fighter I began to rate higher due to knowledge from the chaps on the old forum.

He never used to feature in my top 10, but is a prominent figure in mine today.

andygf wrote:I mean, take that guy back to philosophy school and give him a grounding in the concept of relativism...bleat bleat,

~ Ho~Ho, so it's relativism that's the hot topic on the beeb's relocated Barney's World is it?

Relatively speaking, your opinion is no better than a flat worm, though fairplay, your droppings have a brilliant 3 dimensional quality to them that Mr. Flatworm is unable to duplicate.

I grace your wayward meanderings by offering to properly correct the record of Mr. Lewis to give proper context that is indubitably indisputable sir.