Lennox Lewis: Father time or False Assumption?

Photo© NAOKI FUKUDA

By Steve Trellert

29.06 - To many watching the fight Lennox Lewis must have seemed anything but a champion walking away from the squared-circle with a chorus of boos haranguing him. Inside the ring the challenger Vitali Klitschko gave more than he got in an action packed fight that to most seemed to end abruptly on a technicality rather than on the abilities of the incumbent. While bitterness at the stoppage embodied most minds the more reflective members of the audience asked a far more pertinent question: Was this inferior version of Lennox Lewis on display an anomaly or the arrival of father time? The answer was vital in the grand scheme of things not only because it would signal the impending conclusion of the Lennox Lewis era, but also the end of a monumental generation of heavyweight history that began with the arrival of Mike Tyson in the mid-1980's.

Although calling Lewis' performance egregious would be an exaggeration, it is probably not too far off. Not since his fight with Frank Bruno a decade ago has Lennox performed this poorly in terms of his boxing ability. Against Vitali Klitschko he was unanimously two rounds behind on all the judges scorecards at the time of the stoppage, even in his flash knockout losses to Hasim Rahman and Oliver McCall this was not the case. Almost from the start Lennox appeared amateurish in terms of stamina, punch output and punch discipline. Here we had the consistent calculating captain of caution uncharacteristically throwing wild punches as a matter of routine. What was going on here? Was this the first sign of a desperate fighter that had lost his once supreme technical abilities and was over relying on the last thing to go in his punch?

There are many reasons to think this is more of an anomaly rather than the precipitous decline of a once great fighter. Obviously, despite protestations, Lennox came in out of shape as his weight was above the norm. Secondly, Lewis was also out of action for over an entire year, which would diminish any fighter irrespective of their age. Add to this only two weeks preparation for a fighter completely different in stature and style to his previously declared opponent and you have a volatile mix of circumstances that certainly could only result in some kind of fairly dramatic decline in performance at least initially. Of course many people took this into account going into the fight and so had diminished expectations to a point, but to this extent? Sure the weaknesses in stamina and even punch output could be explained away in part to weight and fitness, but the precipitous diminishment of his technical ability? That must indicate something far more profound.

If Lennox Lewis had started off the fight as his normally well-measured self and then discarded that strategy due to desperation, fatigue or general impotence then I can understand why one would suggest he has turned the corner in regards to age. But Lewis' wild swinging and slugging it out was initiated from the opening bell and therefore would indicate something in the way of a conscious strategy. In between rounds Lewis' trainer Emmanuel Steward encouraged this and made nothing in the way of derisive complaints regarding his fighters aggressive approach. He never asked Lennox to be more measured and even told him to be aggressive and 'take it to him'. Why?

Implicitly, or perhaps explicitly, the Lewis camp wanted to take Vitali into a style of fight to which he was unaccustomed and allow Lennox's experience in this area win out. Vitali would flounder and suffocate just as a fish out of water. This as opposed to the expectedly measured jab fest appeared to be the best option from their perspective. This conclusion is puzzling as Lennox Lewis ended up taking Lennox Lewis into a fight he had never experienced before, when in his illustrious career had he ever been involved in a slugfest such as this? Now many would harken back to the classic fight between him and Ray Mercer as a case in point but this is not accurate. Yes Lennox brawled his way to a narrow victory over the 'Merciless' one but it was not he who initiated the aggression but Mr. Mercer. Lennox still fought within his usual 'comfort zone' style of counter-punching. There is a distinction between being involved in a slugfest and being the aggressor within that format. In the fight with Mercer, Lennox tended to backpedal more than his opponent, while in his last fight the opposite occurred. Against Vitali Klitschko, Lennox vacated his safety-zone and worked against his own strengths, he was the fish out of water that could hardly look anything other than awkward and lacking proficiency. Why would Lennox Lewis take such a step? As it was rationally based on the overwhelming evidence of glaring weaknesses in Vitali Klitschko. Just as in war, it is always the best strategy to attack your opponent at their weakest point.

Lennox Lewis' call to fellow Heavyweight Corrie Sanders before he went on to knockout Vitali's brother Wladimir Klitscko was no accident. Lennox had told Sanders that the Klitschko's could not handle direct pressure and would fold under it, Corrie took this to heart and destroyed Wladimir Klitschko with his unbridled aggression, Lennox had called it correctly. In previous fights in those rare moments where the Klitschko's briefly did not set the ring agenda they seemed at a loss of what to do outside their element. A good case in point was Vitali Klitschko against Chris Byrd where he had a tendency to make the defensive mistake of pulling straight back under pressure. This basic mistake not only exposes a fighter to the full extension of their opponent's punches but also allows them to retain the initiative whereas smothering the punches levels the playing field. If that mistake was not enough to exploit then most certainly the widespread view that Vitali Klitscko lacked heart most certainly was. Against Chris Byrd, Vitali was so far ahead on the scorecards near the end of the fight that all he had to do was survive against the feather fisted Byrd and retain his belt. Instead his corner chose to quit after an unapparent injury occurred and sent a signal that when the going gets tough Vitali gives up. The combination of these two factors probably made Lewis make the call to Sanders, while Sanders victory all but confirmed Lewis' observations on how to defeat the Klitschko's.

Corrie Sanders victory over Wladimir more than proved Lewis' assumptions regarding the Klitschko's. Wladimir completely folded under pressure and had no inkling of what to do under siege. What would have strengthened Lennox's conviction even more was the fact that Wladimir Klitschko was the more highly regarded of the two brothers and he was defeated by a lesser man than himself in Corrie Sanders. Clearly Lewis would be way too much for Vitali to handle especially when using a tried and true strategy that worked to perfection against the superior Wladimir. Lennox Lewis had the strategy, had the evidence that it worked, and had a large experience gap if not in that style of fighting, than at least in terms of past opposition fought. Even with only two weeks warning Lennox knew he had a slam dunk before him in fighting Vitali, there was no reason to think otherwise considering the evidence.

Of course boxing is frequently the art of the unexpected and in this case it most certainly was. Vitali Klitschko unexpectedly handled the pressure without any problems at all; in fact he was downright courageous. Although he did still tend to pull straight back under pressure (and in fact that may have seriously contributed to the damage over his eye) he also demonstrated he had a good chin and could take a punch. Despite bleeding profusely there was no hint that he was going to throw in the towel though in all honesty one could understand if he had. Lennox Lewis made a rational strategic decision based on the evidence before him; it's just that the pattern indicative in that evidence never arrived.

Although many have concluded that Lennox Lewis should now retire based on his performance, they may be prematurely jumping to a conclusion. Though his performance was clearly subpar, it may not be due to the advent of father time. A layoff over a year long, weight gain and poor conditioning all played their part, but most significant is the fact that Lennox Lewis chose to fight in a style that worked against his own strengths. Based on the evidence of the weaknesses inherent in his opponent, he chose to fight in a style that in retrospect may have seemed foolish, but in the context of pre-fight time seemed wise. A miscalculation and misinterpretation of Vitali? Perhaps, but then he would most certainly not be alone in those previous conclusions as most of the boxing press concurred. If anything Lennox Lewis always tends to learn from his mistakes, and one would expect to see a strategy adjustment in terms of any prospective rematch. If that adjustment calls for a return to his strengths, we may very well see the old formidable Lennox Lewis of the past. But if he returns to his strengths and we see a repeat performance, then its not only time for a eulogy for Lennox Lewis but also the true end of the 1990's in terms of the Heavyweight Division.

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