Should there have been a Vitali-Lewis rematch?

[Weltschmerz]

Should Lewis have offered Vitali the rematch after their fight in 2003?

[FrankieBruno]

No Lewis was past it, he came into that fight looking very sloppy and it was after a year long lay off, his heart wasn't obviously into it anymore seeing he had taken so much time off, guess he wanted to see if he still had it, but he didn't.

He was a true champion, he gave young Vitali his shot, you cant ask more than that

Vitali should learn from Lewis, either put on the gloves and fight or retire, Lewis never ducked anyone, he even took the Vitali fight on short notice. How many undisputed champions do you know that would come back at Lewis age after a year long lay off and fight a dangerous younger and taller contender?

[Ulver]

Vitali should learn from Lewis, either put on the gloves and fight or retire,

That's ****in' hilarious, Lewis held up the WBC HW title for a year while he dithered in fear about rematching Vitali as he had promised or quitting.

Finally his mother, Violet, put her foot down and said no rematch.

Lewis is hardly a saint in these matters and is only portrayed as such in retrospect by people with an agenda.

[Weebler I]

It was up to Lennox, he earned the right to do as he wished with his career and he chose to retire.

[Weltschmerz]

No Lewis was past it, he came into that fight looking very sloppy and it was after a year long lay off, his heart wasn't obviously into it anymore seeing he had taken so much time off, guess he wanted to see if he still had it, but he didn't.

He was a true champion, he gave young Vitali his shot, you cant ask more than that

Vitali should learn from Lewis, either put on the gloves and fight or retire, Lewis never ducked anyone, he even took the Vitali fight on short notice. How many undisputed champions do you know that would come back at Lewis age after a year long lay off and fight a dangerous younger and taller contender?

But Vitali gave Lewis a very hard fight. From a boxing perspective, it would be sportsmanlike of Lewis to offer the rematch, and he would be able to settle things definitively in the ring if he could beat Vitali a second time. It would have further enhanced his legacy as well. There were very good reasons for a rematch, and the fans of course wanted it.

[Jack Napier]

there shoulda been a rematch
Lewis won fair and square, it just wasn't decisive
but Lewis retired, so you can't say he ducked Vit
had he stuck around and fought someone else, you could say he ducked

[Ulver]

But Vitali gave Lewis a very hard fight. From a boxing perspective, it would be sportsmanlike of Lewis to offer the rematch, and he would be able to settle things definitively in the ring if he could beat Vitali a second time. It would have further enhanced his legacy as well. There were very good reasons for a rematch, and the fans of course wanted it.

There was a huge reason to do the rematch that you are missing. It would have been one of the highest paydays for any boxing match ever, maybe THE highest. That's how great the demand was.

And Lewis did agree to a rematch when talking to Larry Merchant after the fight, only to dither for a year and then finally quit.

[Ulver]

there shoulda been a rematch
Lewis won fair and square, it just wasn't decisive
but Lewis retired, so you can't say he ducked Vit
had he stuck around and fought someone else, you could say he ducked

It's true that Lewis won the fight.

It's just as true that Vitali scared him into retirement

Those two facts are not contradictory.

Lewis he had just said before the Vitali fight that he was like a fine wine, getting better with age, and had no intentions of retiring, and the media agreed, citing his win over Tyson as proof.

All of the "he was shot and old" stuff comes from fanboys trying to make excuses for Lewis after the fact.

[Elvizzz]

How anyone can argue that the first fight didn't call for a second fight is beyond me...

Lewis won the first fight, but was scared into retirement...

[Jack Napier]

It's true that Lewis won the fight.

It's just as true that Vitali scared him into retirement

Those two facts are not contradictory.

Lewis he had just said before the Vitali fight that he was like a fine wine, getting better with age, and had no intentions of retiring, and the media agreed, citing his win over Tyson as proof.

All of the "he was shot and old" stuff comes from fanboys trying to make excuses for Lewis after the fact.

gotta give Lewis a pass on retiring
it's not a lie to say he was old and nearing the end anyway
it looked suspect that he waited until WBC time was up to leave
but he did leave, and he never came back, so you can't say he ducked