by B. R. Bearden

Watching Lewis easily dismantle Tyson, I found myself considering the state of the heavyweight division and where the current crop of champions and contenders rank historically. While Lennox Lewis has undeniable talent, even his most ardent supporters often bolster their praise with, "moves good for a man his size" or something similar, while his detractors use such words as "boring". Yes, he moves good for a 245+ pound fighter, his jab is powerful, and he can throw a combination, though he doesn't throw many or often; surely not the way Joe Louis threw combinations. Nor does his jab in any way dull my appreciation of Larry Holmes or Muhammed Ali, who could both win a fight with the jab. He is a good fighter, and clearly the best heavyweight of this time, and the best since Holyfield's decline began several years ago. But where does he, and the others, rank?

The top three draws in the heavyweight division are Lewis, Tyson, and Holyfield, men of 37, 36, and soon to be 40 years of age. When was the last time the heavyweight division found itself dominated by men on the downside of 35? I can only think of the late 1940s, when Joe Louis, Ezzard Charles, and Jersey Joe Walcott were playing Hot Potato with the title. And even then Charles was younger than either of the others by 7 years, so you had a man in his late 20's still in the mix. Other than Klitschko, and perhaps Byrd, we don't have a younger man around who might take the title. The heavyweight division hasn't been this bereft of legit young lions in a long, long time. The jury is still out on Klitschko, who's supporters echo those who sing the praises of Lennox Lewis when they qualify his showings with "quick for a big man", "boxes well for a man his size", etc. Byrd has heart, and he has speed, but he lacks power, which one must have to some measurable degree to take and then hold the heavyweight crown.

There are those, Max Kellerman leading the parade, who would have us believe we're in the era of the super-heavyweight. Max likes to say, "these aren't your father's heavyweights." Max is right. They aren't as exciting or as good. They're bigger and. and that's it. They're bigger. If we're in the era of the 240+ pound, 6'5"+ heavyweight who makes Louis and even Ali look like pygmies, then make a list of the ten best at that size, ten who would overmatch Louis or Ali. You can't round up ten to qualify, and neither can Kellerman. How can we be in this era of the "bigger is better" heavyweight when a list can't be made beyond Lewis and Klitschko? Sure, Grant and Gofi and such are big, but are they really impressive fighters? Are they any more impressive than Jess Willard or Primo Carnera?

Let me put this in perspective. If two of the top middleweights were both left handed, but the rest weren't, would Kellerman claim we're in the era of he "left handed middleweights"? Possibly, if they were both flashy; Max is always dazzled by surface hype, trash talk, and sleight-of-hand. But I would require more proof before I dismissed Sugar Ray Robinson, Jake LaMotta, Stanley Ketchel, Marvin Hagler, etc. with the flippant remark, "These aren't your father's middleweights".

So where does Lewis rank? Or Tyson and Holyfield? Early Tyson was one of the most devastating punchers in the history of the division. But, he feasted on a lot of never-weres and mid-80s champions who couldn't have held the title in any other era. Tyson failed almost every big test that came his way, both in the ring and in life. There is not a single of the established Top Ten All-Time Greats I'd feel comfortable removing from the list to insert Iron Mike. He failed to earn their position. Holyfield, on the other hand, should rank high, and in the future, once he' s finished his career, and sadly his health, he'll be listed in the Top Ten. He's the counter to the current "bigger is better" myth, a blown up cruiser weight who was the best heavyweight of the era in his prime. He destroyed the legend of Tyson by proving just how beatable Mike was, he made Lewis resort to holding and leaning on him to eke out a mediocre win. At 39 he gave a great performance against Rahman, though it was marred by the head butt.

Lennox Lewis had the makings of an All-Time Great, but boxing folk will never forget that he was knocked out with a single punch from an average fighter not once, but twice. No other great heavyweight champion, the company to which Lewis aspires, has that distinction,. The legacy he speaks of will always be tainted by loses of a type never seen from Dempsey, Louis, Marciano, Ali, or Holmes. When previous champions were knocked out in their prime or as champion, it was almost invariably by other great fighters. Louis was felled by Schmelling, Dempsey by Tunney, Frazier by Foreman, Ezzard Charles by Walcott, Walcott by Marciano, Corbett by Fitzsimmons. All were KO'd by other future Hall of Famers. And those who were felled by lesser fighters, such as Patterson by Johansson, and vice-versa, and again vice-versa, are rightly never in contention for Top Ten status.

Don't misunderstand me on Lennox Lewis. Once you get by his arrogance and his third person, "so-and-so has never seen anything like Lennox Lewis", he is a good fighter. A very good fighter; except when he catches one flush on the jaw. Then he's very average. Chee from Doghouse Boxing is a big Lewis fan, and I respect him (while others want to lynch him), but even he must admit Lennox becomes ordinary at times. And therein lies the knock against a high All-Time ranking for Lennox. They might have got old and stayed to long, but in their prime years, Ali, Louis, Holmes, and the others on most lists, never had nights when they were ordinary fighters who let lesser men take their titles or knock them out. A non-boxing fan wouldn't watch a film of Ali against a temporary Top-Ten fighter and wonder which one was the legendary fighter.

And except for Ali, no other of the All-Time Greats had to beat their chest and proclaim their greatness. The fans knew. We'd have known with Ali if he' d never uttered a syllable in self-acclaim. We knew with Louis despite his humble, quiet demeanor. Beating a washed up, though game, Tyson won't make us forget McCall and Rahman and their one punch knockout of the best of the "bigger, better heavyweights" know matter how enthusiastic Kellerman and others may appear to be.

And if not the fighters, then what about the fight? Was it on the level of great championship fights of the past? No, it wasn't. It was too one sided, showing Tyson to be barely a shadow of his once formidable self, while Lennox still resorted to repeated and blatant fouls. There's the enigma of Lewis; he wants to be considered an All-Time Great, yet he holds and hits, pushes down on a smaller opponent, and makes a very lop-sided fight go for 8 rounds. Would the Tyson of the other night last 8 with Foreman? Frazier? Louis? Not likely.

The only redeeming features of the fight were Tyson's great courage in continuing to take punishment in a fight he obviously wasn't in from the beginning, the clean manner in which Mike fought, contrasted badly by Lewis' s fouls, and the humble manner of Tyson when the massacre was over. In other words, Tyson contributed more in losing the fight than Lennox did in winning to any consideration of it as a great fight. It was a game effort to lift the battle out of the average run of heavyweight contests, but it wasn't enough. Lennox, as always, heeds the whimper of caution when he should hear the echoing battle cries of great champions who went before him. Ask yourself, if it wasn't Tyson in there, but a barely known fighter, what does the fight look like? A mismatch? A lackluster Lewis outing against an easy to hit opponent? Well, guess what, it looks like that with Tyson, too.

It went eight, which is exactly what I predicted on RSB, not based on any extra-sensory perceptions but on an understanding of Lennox Lewis. There is that spark of greatness in him, but it will never be fanned into a flame. Tyson may have his demons whispering evil thoughts and deeds into his ear, but Lennox hears only the voice of caution.

In terms only of boxing history, Tyson will be remembered for the explosive late 1980s when he was the "baddest man on the planet" and Holyfield will be remembered for being the warrior of the 90s, but poor Lewis will be remembered as vanilla ice cream. And where have you ever seen a sign proclaiming, "We Have 58 Flavors, Including VANILLA!"?