Rid**** Bowe ducked Lewis: for the final time

[mickey malone]

Of course Bowe ducked Lewis.. Look at the facts:-

1. As a contender, Lewis wasn't in a position to price himself out of it..
2. Bowe refused to fight for the WBC

When Lewis first appeared on the scene, he made a statement that it had always been his ambition to win every major title in Boxing.. At 18 he was outscored in the LA Olympic quarter finals by Tyrell Biggs, so waited another 4 years to win it in Seoul.. He'd already won the world amateur championship in 1983, so it was Job-Done at amateur level..

As a pro, he systematicaly won the British, European and Commonwealth titles, thus putting him in top contention for a world title shot.. Lewis had done it by the book, and in my opinion, Bowe was already looking for a way out, so once the likes of Duva, Sulaiman, Newman and Maloney started quoting their share, it gave Bowe the perfect opportunity.. It also created a way back in for Don King, who quickly resuscitated Tony Tucker as Lewis's first defense..

Let's face it, as undisputed champion, Bowe had more rights than Lewis which included, deciding which belts to defend and which belts to throw away, and knowing he'd easily hold on to his other belt(s) fighting Ferguson and Dokes, he gave up the WBC title..
I don't suppose Lewis wanted to be handed a belt out of the bin, but what choice did he have?.. The McCall KO was a blessing in disguise, because it actually gave Lewis the opportunity to win his title in the ring for a change..

Despite lacking in ambition and dedication, things worked out perfectly for Bowe too.. He was allowed to carry on eating, and didn't have to train particularly hard for paydays against Ferguson and Dokes.. Furthermore, he got all the acolade for beating a prime Holyfield in the only 2 fights he ever got in shape for, the 2 fights that totally burned him out!.. Then Lewis gets the blame for ducking them both and fighting bums, this inspite of being totally frozen out..

If Bowe beat a prime Holyfield, then I'd say he may well have beaten Lewis in 93, but he didn't want the fight, and that is clearly obvious.. On every single professional write-up i've ever seen, it clearly states - "Bowe refused to fight him."

[oaklandstephen]

Whether the politics is right or wrong doesn't really matter. Who would honestly favour the Lewis who got outboxed by Bruno and later KO'd by McCall over the Bowe that beat Holyfield?

Lennox peaked in the late 90s, in 1992/93 Bowe was clearly the best heavyweight in the world.

u do know that lewis ko'd bruno in that fight . correct?

[Sugarj]

Yes Oakland, but Lennox ate Bruno's workman like jab for 5 and a half rounds. Imagine what damage Bowe's faster jab would have done. Plus Bowe's chin was much better than Frank's, so cant see Lennox getting a from behind KO.

The point I was making was simply that in 1993 Lewis was a bit green, not quite at his peak. The 1997 Lewis wouldn't have been outboxed by Bruno or likely knocked out by the early 90s McCall. But sadly Bowe was very in decline by then.

[Clegg]

Whether the politics is right or wrong doesn't really matter. Who would honestly favour the Lewis who got outboxed by Bruno and later KO'd by McCall over the Bowe that beat Holyfield?

Lennox peaked in the late 90s, in 1992/93 Bowe was clearly the best heavyweight in the world.

Exactly, who cares if you duck people, as long as you can beat them in a fantasty matchup

[True Guru]

Yes Oakland, but Lennox ate Bruno's workman like jab for 5 and a half rounds. Imagine what damage Bowe's faster jab would have done. Plus Bowe's chin was much better than Frank's, so cant see Lennox getting a from behind KO.

So why did Bowe duck him then?
If Bowe was better and would have beat him why not face him?

[StarshipTrooper]

I personally never thought Bowe was all that and a bag of chips. To be honest, I've never seen a fighter get more mileage off of one fight the way Bowe does off of the first Holyfield fight. I'm sorry but one great fight does not an ATG fighter make.

Poet

[Sugarj]

Hi Clegg, Hi Elephant man. Its true fantasy matchups are just that. We'll never really know.

Maybe Bowe did see Lennox as a tough nights work and he wanted an easier ride as champion. Lewis's suspect chin hadn't yet been exposed by McCall. Maybe Bowe did still have some demons from the Olympic final. Maybe as Sonnyboyx had said on many occasion Lewis was demanding too high a purse with options.........I dont know, there was so much bandied round the papers at the time its difficult to know the truth.

My head to head in 1993 was based on both fighters form at the time. No two ways about it, Bowe was showing better form against better opposition.

And hi Poet, yep.....Bowe does seem to get quite an accolade from the first Holyfield fight. I guess its because Evander looked so good that night too. But Bowe did look pretty good in the return, when losing a very close decision. No one can argue with the result of their third fight either even if Bowe's form wasn't quite as good as it was.

[Equinox]

Bowe ducked alot of peoples and thats nothing to argue against but hes still a bad ass.