“Relentless” Lamon Brewster To Return To The Ring August 30th

Lamon BrewsterBy James Slater: Not too long ago, I wrote an article for ESB asking whether or not heavyweight tough guy Lamon Brewster would ever fight again. Well, now we know. According to a news flash on FightNews.com, Brewer is set to fight again this coming August 30th in Cincinnati.

Brewer, currently 33-4(29) will box at Cincinnati Gardens in Ohio on the 30th, against an opponent yet to be named. The question is, will Brewster be anything like the fighter he was a few years ago when he was beating up top names of the heavyweight division such as Wladimir Klitschko, Andrew Golota and Luan Krasniqi?

Now aged 35, “Relentless” has been out of action since July of last year, when he was made to retire on his stool after six rounds in his rematch with “Dr. Steel Hammer.” While before that loss, Lamon was beaten on points by Serguei Lyakhovich in April of 2006 – losing the WBO belt he’d won by beating Wladimir Klitschko in their first fight. So not only has it been a while since Brewster had a fight, it’s been even longer since he won one. The 9th round TKO win over Germany’s Krasniqi is the 35-year-old’s most recent win – this victory occurring almost three full years ago now. Not only that, but Brewster is known to have suffered from retinal problems. Is it wise him coming back now?

It was disappointing seeing the once gutsy and fearless warrior capitulating so meekly in the return match with Klitschko. After what he’d taken in fight number one, and coming on to win, maybe we simply expected Brewster to go to hell and back in each and every fight should it become necessary. But in choosing the, “it’s better to live to fight another day,” option last July, Brewster surprised many. Now that he has decided the day on which he is going to fight again, will we see the old Brewster, or simply an old Brewster?

We’d know more if his opponent had been named. Will this comeback be a serious one, in which the man who turned pro back in 1996 makes a stern effort at challenging for a world title again, or will it merely be a short-lived money-maker? Also, how is Lamon’s eyesight right now? Assuming he has been granted a licence for his upcoming fight, the condition of his eyes must be healthy; one would think and hope so anyway. But aside from his age, his eyesight and his inactivity, the amount of brutal fights Brewster has engaged in must also be a factor regarding how successful his comeback will be.

If he’s half the fighter he was back in 2002 to 2006, Brewster may well make some noise in today’s heavyweight division. If, however, Lamon has regressed further than that, the only noise heard will be of fans calling for his fulltime retirement. We must wait and see what the 35-year-old has left before we cast judgement. Let’s see how the ex-world champ does at the end of the month in Cincinnati.