Lennox Lewis Or Sonny Liston?

[Silencers]

I wouldn't count Liston out of a match-up with Lewis even if he were not able to catch Lewis with a big punch, considering the trouble Mercer gave to Lewis. Lewis is not really fleet-footed by any means so Liston would have an easier time catching up to him than Ali. Lewis's height, size and strength could be advantageous though even if Liston were able to force the fight in close. Liston did great against Williams after figuring him out but then again Williams was not the fighter that Lewis was.


Watch from 4:55

I don't count him out at all, I just favor Lewis in a fight between them. Mercer did give Lewis lots of trouble but I remember that ring looked really small, when Lewis took a step back his back would already be up against the ropes. Then again, I don't really know the size of the ring that night, it just looked small to me, especially for heavyweights.

[TheGreatA]

I don't count him out at all, I just favor Lewis in a fight between them. Mercer did give Lewis lots of trouble but I remember that ring looked really small, when Lewis took a step back his back would already be up against the ropes. Then again, I don't really know the size of the ring that night, it just looked small to me, especially for heavyweights.

I don't think Lewis was really using a lot of movement there though, he was actually having the better of the exchanges but lost the battle of the jab.

[Shazam!]

I'm glad that Mercer video was posted, because it just proves that Lennox Lewis had a great chin. There's no other explanation for taking 12 rounds of those punches from a hard hitter like Mercer.

[sonnyboyx2]

Liston catching Lewis with a big shot is entirely possible but I wouldn't say Lewis was at his best for the first McCall and Rahman fights, the first McCall fight was before he got Steward in his corner, he reportedly didn't train well at all for the first Rahman fight and showed up in Africa a week before the fight so that he never got acclimated to the high altitude.

I think Lewis' size, range and skills would've given Liston a lot of trouble and barring him getting caught by a big shot, which as I said is entirely possible, I think he would win.

Stewart made little difference to Lennox Lewis except getting Lewis to avoid the top fighters and instead fight mediocre fighters.. Stewart has failed many times over with fighters he has taken on midway through their careers Wilfredo Benitez is one example

[sonnyboyx2]

I'm glad that Mercer video was posted, because it just proves that Lennox Lewis had a great chin. There's no other explanation for taking 12 rounds of those punches from a hard hitter like Mercer.

Mercer was not a murderous puncher like Sonny Liston was

[TheGreatA]

I'm glad that Mercer video was posted, because it just proves that Lennox Lewis had a great chin. There's no other explanation for taking 12 rounds of those punches from a hard hitter like Mercer.

It's not like Lewis was taking a ton of power punches, most of the punches Mercer landed were jabs. Mercer was also a good, but not truly a great puncher. Lewis didn't have a great "chin" but he could take the punches when he saw them coming.

[Shazam!]

I've watched the Mercer fight quite a few times and Lewis takes quite a few hard shots. He also took a lot of hard shots against Vitali Klitschko and didn't go down. Yes, as mentioned, when he was prepared and focused he was fine.

He was throwing a punch and shocked against McCall and was actually up after a 6 count. He was wobbly but it was a terrible way to strip a guy of his world title. One of those most premature stoppages of a champion I've ever seen.

The Rahman punch was a fantastic punch also. Lewis prepared badly for the fight, looked sluggish during it and may well have been affected by the altitude, as many athletes have in the past.

But when he was ready, as he obviously would be against Liston, I don't see Lewis getting knocked down.

If Ali can KO Liston twice then Lewis could send him in to orbit.

[Silencers]

Stewart made little difference to Lennox Lewis except getting Lewis to avoid the top fighters and instead fight mediocre fighters.. Stewart has failed many times over with fighters he has taken on midway through their careers Wilfredo Benitez is one example

I really can't say anything to this because it's very apparent how much Steward improved Lewis. If you can't see it, then I really can't say much of anything to convince you otherwise.

I don't think Lewis was really using a lot of movement there though, he was actually having the better of the exchanges but lost the battle of the jab.

Yeah but I think ring size played a factor there too, Lewis needed the distance to establish his jab and with the ring being so small he didn't get the space he needed to establish it. Not to say Mercer didn't have success with his jab because he did but I think the ring size helped him out considerably.

[TheGreatA]

I've watched the Mercer fight quite a few times and Lewis takes quite a few hard shots. He also took a lot of hard shots against Vitali Klitschko and didn't go down. Yes, as mentioned, when he was prepared and focused he was fine.

He was throwing a punch and shocked against McCall and was actually up after a 6 count. He was wobbly but it was a terrible way to strip a guy of his world title. One of those most premature stoppages of a champion I've ever seen.

The Rahman punch was a fantastic punch also. Lewis prepared badly for the fight, looked sluggish during it and may well have been affected by the altitude, as many athletes have in the past.

But when he was ready, as he obviously would be against Liston, I don't see Lewis getting knocked down.

If Ali can KO Liston twice then Lewis could send him in to orbit.

You could make the same excuses for Liston. Lewis didn't prepare for Rahman and McCall, Liston didn't prepare for arguably the greatest heavyweight of all time Muhammad Ali. Liston still threw the kind of leather that would have KO'd any other fighter in the division at the time but Ali was just too fast for him. The second fight was a farce and I'd rather not go over it again.

Lewis in my opinion had a solid chin but there's no real proof of him having a "great" chin. It's not like he made a career out of walking through bombs, he made a career out of avoiding them for the most part. Even Vitali is not really a devastating one punch hitter but credit to Lewis for taking his best, he did display a good chin in that fight.

Yeah but I think ring size played a factor there too, Lewis needed the distance to establish his jab and with the ring being so small he didn't get the space he needed to establish it. Not to say Mercer didn't have success with his jab because he did but I think the ring size helped him out considerably.

The ring size may have been a factor. The commentary didn't mention it but the ring did seem smaller than usual.

[TheGreatA]

By the way here are some interesting comments by Lewis's trainer Manny Steward on Sonny Liston:

Q: If Sonny Liston had gotten his shot earlier against Floyd Patterson and if he didn’t have Ali coming up, how good could Sonny Liston have been?

A: Sonny Liston, I watched Sonny Liston when I was a teenager do something that I’ve never seen any heavyweight do—walk through the whole division almost from being the number ten guy all the way up to the champion because he was that devastating like around ’57, and ’58, and ’59. I mean he had unbelievable brutal punching power. He was mean, punched with both hands, and I think that the time that he finally got to the title, I think his best years had gone and right after he won the title he began to live the life of a middle aged wealthy man. He lost the real focus that he had earlier. ’57, ’58, and ’59 he was one of the most vicious machines probably ever in boxing, but after he won the title, from my reports and from what I gather, he started drinking a lot and he was golfing and he just lost that total edge. He was living the life of a comfortable man and then here comes exactly what the computer prints out—the thing in the world for him..

A fast, young fighter, good movement, a solid amateur background, and who had been fighting on a regular basis, so therefore when the match-up came it was just perfect timing for one, terrible timing for another guy who had slipped past his prime—but if they had fought, in like say ’58 or ’59, a prime Sonny Liston and a prime I would still say Cassius Clay or whatever—I don’t know. I don’t know. Sonny at that stage was just such a really powerful wrecking machine and I remember the fights he had with Cleveland Williams—oh my God. I don’t know, Sonny might have won if they would have fought at that time.