Lennox Lewis and Mike Tyson shared the ring in 2002 with the Brit securing victory by eighth round stoppage.
Two heavyweights of their calibre stepping through the ropes together will always be a treat for fans, but there’s little doubt that this particular match-up would have been more intriguing had it featured a prime ‘Iron’ Mike.
The reality was that the Brooklyn native, three years off retirement, was past his best. In fact, the general consensus is that his prime was more than a decade prior to the bout, before a prison stint took a chunk out of his career and when he was trained by Cus D’Amato followed by, after D’Amato’s death, Kevin Rooney.
Lewis would retire even earlier than Tyson – just one win later – and was a year older than Tyson, but he was a consistent and active champion who hadn’t had the same troubles outside of the ropes. On fight night this showed clearly, with Lewis taking control early on as the more disciplined and powerful man.
Asked specifically who wins between Lewis from ’99 and Tyson from ’89, another heavyweight great in George Foreman said in a post on social media that he still sees the same result.
“I’d [say] Lewis. So much height and reach.”
‘Big’ George has never been short of praise for ‘The Lion’. In fact, he was commentating for HBO on the very night Lewis beat Tyson and declared, “Lennox Lewis is the best heavyweight of all time, maybe. He’s better than anybody.”
