Lewis by way of style Holmes could not have dealt with. Oh, and by right hand he could not have gotten out of the way of.
I like Lewis in this one... I guess you would rate Larry a notch ahead of him all-time (thanks to those pesky losses to Rahman and McCall) but I think Larry would be driven mad by a guy with a telephone pole reach and really one of the greatest right hands in boxing history... what keeps Larry in the fight and makes it a close one are a terrific pair of legs and a beautiful, quick jab... in many places this would be a pretty boring, a battle of jabs... I just think Lewis would keep Holmes too far away at times and force him to be more aggressive than he wa sby nature... Lennox by decision
isn't the 97 lewis pretty much the same lewis that barely scraped past ray mercer? the same mercer that 40 some year old holmes easily took to school? tough fight, but i pick holmes via decision.
I rather like anybody with an excellent jab to give Lewis problems stylistically. When they're also an ATG to boot I rather like them to win. Holmes UD 15, 9-6
Sure, and Larry is pretty much the same Larry who needed a gift over novice Tim Witherspoon, who didn't do anything better than Lewis. So it works both ways. Both are among the top-5 heavyweights, ranked both by achievement and who beats whom, but I'd lean towards Lewis. His physical abilities are bit too much for Larry to overcome
that's not really fair. Mercer hit a rough patch in his career... lost to Holmes then unsuccessfuly tried to bribe Jesse fuckin' Ferguson of all people into easing off the gas and taking a dive a couple of fights later. He was a bit reborn by the time the Lewis fight came around... not to mention that Lewis looked miles better in subsequent fights. I pick Lewis in this one. Close fight, but like his strengths a little bit more than I do Holmes.
not sure how mercer was reborn. he gave holyfield a tough fight but still got his ass kicked and was knocked down. at least the version that holmes schooled, was unbeaten and feared by many especially after that frightening KO over morrison. regardless, it's hard to assess lewis's ability against top prime fighters since he never fought one. i do admit that he's probably one of the hardest heavyweights to defeat.
Very few heavyweight champions actually have met a fellow great who was in their prime. Holmes didn't, unless you count Tyson and Holyfield
Saying that he met two Heavyweight legends in their primes? Not at all. I never said I was judging him for his performances.
I meant that if you only rate heavyweights based on how they did against great opponents, then it looks very bad for Holmes
Of course, & I agree. The original member was just posing the question as to whether Holmes faced any all-time Heavies while they were in their prime, & I feel he clearly did, in Tyson & Holyfield. No judgement on Holmes per se, for reasons obvious to you & I both. I think, all things considered, he can be somewhat proud of his effort against Holyfield. Sure, any truly solid Heavyweight could go the distance with Holyfield at the time, but most of the ones who did wouldn't be likely to repeat that feat against the '92 Holyfield if they were in their early-40's.
