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Mike_Tyson_vs_Lennox_Lewis_(2002-06-08)

Mike Tyson vs Lennox Lewis (2002-06-08)

Lennox Claudius Lewis, (born 2 September 1965) is a retired boxer. He holds dual British and Canadian citizenship. As an amateur he won gold representing Canada at the 1988 Olympic Games after defeating future heavyweight champion Riddick Bowe in the final.

Lewis turned professional in 1989, winning his first 21 fights. In 1992 he knocked out Donovan Ruddock to take over the number one position in the World Boxing Council (WBC) rankings and eventually be declared WBC heavyweight champion in 1993. Lewis lost the title to Oliver McCall in 1994 but defeated McCall in a rematch to win the vacant WBC title in 1997. He went on to defend the title four times, becoming the Lineal Champion after beating Shannon Briggs by KO in 1998. He became undisputed champion after defeating Evander Holyfield in November 1999. After defeating Mike Tyson by KO in 2002 and stopping Vitali Klitschko in 2003, Lennox Lewis retired from boxing in 2004.

Early life[]

Lewis was born on 2 September 1965, in West Ham, London, England to Jamaican-born parents. Lewis moved to Kitchener, Ontario, Canada in 1977 at the age of 12. He attended Cameron Heights Collegiate Institute for high school, where he excelled in Canadian football, soccer and basketball.

Amateur career[]

Lewis eventually decided that his favorite sport was boxing. He became a dominant amateur boxer and won the world amateur junior title in 1983.

At the age of 18, Lewis represented Canada as a super heavyweight at the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles. He advanced to the quarter-finals, where he lost a decision to American Tyrell Biggs, the eventual gold medalist.

Lewis chose not to turn professional after the Olympics, and instead fought four more years as an amateur, hoping for a second chance to win a gold medal. At 1986 World Amateur Boxing Championships, he lost in the preliminary round to Petar Stoymenov of Bulgaria. After winning several more amateur titles during those years, he travelled to Seoul, South Korea for the 1988 Summer Olympics and achieved his goal. In the gold medal match, Lewis defeated future world champion Riddick Bowe by a second round referee stopped contest (RSC).

Professional boxing career[]

Having achieved that goal, Lewis declared himself a professional boxer and moved back to his native England. He claimed he'd always considered himself British but many British fans regard him as "a Canadian at heart and a Briton for convenience," as he had trained only in Canada and the United States and already lived half his life in North America.

He signed with the boxing promoter Frank Maloney and the early part of his pro career was filled with knockouts of journeymen. After he signed with American promoter Main Events he captured the European heavyweight title late in 1990 against Frenchman Jean Maurice Chanet. In his next fight in March 1991, Lewis won the British title against the undefeated world ranked Gary Mason, then won the Commonwealth title in April 1992 against Derek Williams.

By this time, Lewis was a consensus top-five heavyweight in the world. During this period Lewis defeated former WBA heavyweight champion Mike Weaver, 1984 Olympic Gold medalist Tyrell Biggs, former world Cruiserweight title holders Glenn McCrory and Osvaldo Ocasio, and journeymen Levi Billups and Mike Dixon.

WBC champion[]

On 31 October 1992, Lewis knocked out Canadian Donovan "Razor" Ruddock in two rounds for the number one contender's position in the WBC world rankings. At the time it was Lewis' most impressive win, and established him as one of the world's best heavyweights. Sportscaster Larry Merchant declared following the win "We have a great new heavyweight."

The win over Ruddock made Lewis the number one contender for Riddick Bowe's heavyweight championship. Bowe refused to face Lewis, and held a press conference to dump the title in a trash can and relinquish it. On 14 December 1992, the WBC declared Lewis its champion, making him the first world heavyweight titleholder from Britain in the 20th century.

Lewis successfully defended the belt three times, defeating Tony Tucker, who he knocked down for the first time in Tucker's career, and he followed this up with knockout victories over Phil Jackson and Frank Bruno. The Lennox Lewis vs. Frank Bruno fight was the first time that two British-born boxers had fought for a version of the world heavyweight title in the modern era.

Loss to McCall[]

Lewis lost his WBC title to Oliver McCall on 24 September 1994 in a huge upset at the Wembley Arena in London. In the second round, McCall connected with a powerful right hook, putting Lewis down on his back. He was up at the count of six, but stumbled forward into the referee in a daze. Referee Jose Guadalupe Garcia felt Lewis was unable to continue and ended the fight, giving McCall the win by technical knockout. Lewis and others argued that the stoppage was premature and that a champion should be given the benefit of the doubt. They also contended that Garcia, a Mexican referee working for the Mexican-based WBC, had been persuaded by promoter Don King to end the fight early if the opportunity arose, in order to bring back the heavyweight title to his promotional stable.

After the fight, Lewis decided he needed a new trainer to replace Pepe Correa, who had become increasingly difficult to work with. Correa would subsequently denounce Lewis in public after being fired. Renowned trainer Emanuel Steward, who had been McCall's trainer during their fight, was one of Lewis' first choices for the task. Even before the fight with McCall, Steward had seen much potential in Lewis and immediately expressed a desire to work with him. He set about correcting several of Lewis' technical flaws over the course of the next few fights, which included maintaining a more balanced stance, less reliance on the right hand, and a particular focus on using a strong, authoritative jab; the latter of which would become a hallmark of Lewis' style throughout his career. Their partnership would last until Lewis' retirement, with both having mutual praise and respect for each other to this day.

Regaining the WBC title[]

In his first comeback fight Lewis was given a chance to fight for the mandatory challenger position within the WBC and won it by knocking out American contender Lionel Butler. However, at the behest of promoter Don King the WBC chose to bypass him and give Mike Tyson the first shot at the title that had recently been won by fellow Briton Frank Bruno against Oliver McCall. Bruno had previously lost to both Lewis and Tyson.

While Lewis had the No. 1 contender's slot in the WBC rankings he knocked out Australian Justin Fortune, then defeated former WBO Champion Tommy Morrison in October 1995, and Olympic gold medallist and former WBO champion Ray Mercer by a close majority decision in May 1996. Lewis successfully sued to try to force Tyson to make a mandatory defense of the WBC title against him or force Tyson to give up the title, winning a four million dollar settlement from promoter Don King. Rather than fight Lewis, Tyson relinquished the WBC belt to fight Evander Holyfield, and the title was declared vacant. This set up a rematch between Lewis and McCall, who squared off on 7 February 1997 in Las Vegas, Nevada for the WBC title. In one of the strangest fights in boxing history, McCall (having lost the first three rounds) refused to box in the fourth and fifth rounds, then began crying in the ring, forcing the referee to stop the fight and award Lewis the victory and the title. As newly re-crowned WBC champion, Lewis successfully defended the title during 1997 against fellow Briton and former WBO world champion Henry Akinwande, who was disqualified after five rounds for excessive clinching. Lewis then met Poland's Andrew Golota, whom he knocked out in the first round. During 1998, Lewis again retained the WBC world title when he knocked out lineal champion Shannon Briggs in five rounds (Briggs had recently outpointed George Foreman in a controversial fight, to win the lineal title) and beat formerly-undefeated European champion Željko Mavrović from Croatia in a 12-round unanimous decision. Lewis stated in 2006 that his fight with Mavrovic was the most awkward win of his career.

Lewis vs. Holyfield[]

On 13 March 1999, Lewis faced WBA and IBF title holder Evander Holyfield in New York City in what was supposed to be a heavyweight unification bout. Lewis fought a tactical fight, keeping Holyfield off balance with a long jab and peppering him with combinations almost at will. Although most observers believed Lewis had clearly won the fight, the bout was declared a draw, to much controversy. The raw statistics of the fight suggested the bout belonged to Lewis, who landed 348 punches compared to Holyfield's 130. Lewis also out-jabbed Holyfield 137 to 52.

Lewis vs. Holyfield II[]

The sanctioning bodies ordered a rematch. Eight months later in Las Vegas (13 November 1999), the two men fought again in a more open and entertaining contest than the original fight, with the two boxers having some heavy exchanges from rounds 6 to 9. The punch stats however still clearly favoured Lewis who landed 195 punches to Evander Holyfield's 137 punches, although interestingly Lewis landed 119 power shots and 76 jabs, showing a definite shift in his tactics from the first fight when he focused more on the jab. This time around the 3 Judges did score the fight unanimously (115–113, 116–112 & 117–111) all in favour of Lewis who became undisputed heavyweight champion of the World.

In 1999, Lewis was given one of the most prestigious sports awards in Britain, being voted the BBC Sports Personality of the Year.

Reign as Undisputed Champion[]

After Lewis defeated Holyfield the WBA ordered Lewis to defend the title against John Ruiz of Puerto Rico, then an obscure Don King fighter who had been made the WBA's #1-ranked contender. The WBA gave permission for Lewis to fight his WBC mandatory Michael Grant first if he would fight Ruiz next, which Lewis agreed to. Opposed to this, Ruiz's promoter challenged this decision in court on the basis of a clause in the Lewis-Holyfield rematch contract that said Lewis's first bout as undisputed champion would be against the WBA's number one contender. Lewis was therefore to be stripped of his WBA belt if he fought Grant first. It was because of this that the WBA instated its "Super Champion" title, giving unified titleholders who also hold a WBA belt more time to defend against mandatory challengers.

Lewis proceeded to fight the 6 ft 8 inch American Michael Grant who he considered the best contender available. He successfully defended his WBC, IBO & IBF titles against Grant with a second round knockout victory in Madison Square Garden in April 2000.

Later that same year Lewis knocked out South African Francois Botha in two rounds in London, before winning a 12-round decision against New Zealander and IBF mandatory opponent, David Tua in Las Vegas.

Lewis vs. Rahman[]

On 21 April 2001, Lewis was knocked out by 15-to-1 underdog Hasim Rahman in a bout in South Africa. Prior to the bout, Lewis had a role in the film Ocean's Eleven in which he "boxed" against Wladimir Klitschko.

Lewis vs. Rahman II[]

Lewis immediately sought a rematch with the new champion; however, Rahman, now being promoted by Don King, tried to secure another opponent for his inaugural title defence. Lewis took Rahman to court to honour the rematch clause in their contract. Rahman was ordered to honour the clause and give Lewis a rematch in his first title defence. While promoting the rematch with Rahman on ESPN's Up Close, the fighters got into a brawl similar to the one between Muhammad Ali and Joe Frazier in front of Howard Cosell on Wide World of Sports. Many[who?] felt the brawl was staged to promote the fight, so the reality of the episode is still a matter of debate. Lewis regained the title on 17 November by outclassing and then knocking out Hasim Rahman in the fourth round of their rematch.

Lewis vs. Tyson[]

On 8 June 2002, Lewis defended his title against Mike Tyson. A fight many had hoped would be a classic turned out to be one-sided as Lennox used his jab and superior reach to score a dominant knockout victory over "Iron Mike." By the end of the seventh round Tyson was tired and sluggish, his face swollen and his eyes cut. He was knocked out in the eighth by a right hook from Lewis. After the fight was over, George Foreman declared "He [Lewis] is, no doubt, the best heavyweight of all time. What he's done clearly puts him on top of the heap. This fight was the highest-grossing event in pay-per-view history, generating $106.9 million from 1.95 million buys in the U.S., until it was surpassed by De La Hoya-Mayweather in 2007. Ticket sales were slow because they were priced as high as $2,400, but a crowd of 15,327 turned up to see Memphis, Tennessee's biggest-ever sporting event. Tyson also had to pay Lewis $335,000 out of his purse for biting him at the news conference to announce the fight, which was originally scheduled for 6 April 2002 in Las Vegas. Las Vegas, however, rejected the fight because of Tyson's licensing problems and several other states refused Tyson a license before Memphis finally bid $12 million to land it.

Lewis vs. Klitschko[]

In May 2003, Lewis sued boxing promoter Don King for $385 million, claiming that King used threats to have Tyson pull out of a rematch scheduled with Lewis then scheduled a fight with Kirk Johnson, but when Johnson suffered an injury in training, Lewis fought Vitali Klitschko, the WBC's #1 contender and former WBO champion. Lewis had planned to fight him in December, but since Klitschko had been on the undercard of the Johnson fight anyway, they agreed to square off on June 21. Lewis entered the ring at a career high 256½ pounds. Lewis was dominated in the early rounds and was wobbled in round two by solid Klitschko punches. Lewis opened a cut above Klitschko's eye with a right cross in the third round and gave a better showing in the fourth round, but was exhausted in the fifth and sixth rounds. Before the start of round seven the doctor advised that the fight should be stopped because of a severe cut above Klitschko's left eye, awarding Lewis victory by TKO. Klitschko was leading 58–56 on all three judges' scorecards when the fight was stopped.

Interviewed about the fight by HBO, doctor Paul Wallace explained his decision:

"When he raised his head up, his upper eyelid covered his field of vision. At that point I had no other option but to stop the fight. If he had to move his head to see me, there was no way he could defend his way against a punch."

Klitschko's face required sixty stitches.

Because Klitschko had fought so bravely against Lewis, boxing fans soon began calling for a rematch. The WBC agreed, and kept the Ukrainian as its No. 1 contender. Lewis initially was in favour of a rematch:

"I want the rematch, I enjoyed that fight. It was just a fight. We went at it. You have to play dollars and cents but I'm opting more for the rematch."

Negotiations for the rematch followed but Lewis changed his mind. Instead, Klitschko fought and defeated Kirk Johnson on December 6 in WBC Eliminator, setting up a mandatory rematch with Lewis. Lewis announced his retirement shortly thereafter and vacated the title. Lewis stated when he had decided not to fight:

"So, when it came time for me to see if I should fight Klitschko again, I thought – at my worst, at my worst! I beat Klitschko and look what I did to his face! I was at my worst – just think [what would’ve happened] if I’d trained just a little bit harder. I didn’t need to fight him again."

Hanging up the gloves[]

Lewis announced his retirement in February 2004 and decided to pursue other interests, including sports management and music promotion. Lewis said he would not return to the ring. At his retirement, Lewis's record was 41 wins, 2 losses and 1 draw, with 32 wins by knockout. Though it was rumoured in an article published by the Daily Mail on the February 24 that he would return to fight Klitschko once again, Lewis quickly shot down those rumours on his personal website. In 2008 Lewis commented on a possible match up with Riddick Bowe. "He waits until I am in retirement to call out my name," said Lewis. "I will come out of retirement to beat up that guy. I'll beat him up for free."

Along with Gene Tunney and Rocky Marciano he is one of three world heavyweight champions to have retired with no unavenged defeats.

Outside boxing[]

In 2000, Lewis appeared on Reflection Eternal's debut album Train of Thought, giving a shout out on the track "Down for the Count."

In 2002, Lewis was reportedly offered £5m by WWE chairman Vince McMahon to take up wrestling with WWE. His camp held discussions over a possible match with former WWE superstar Brock Lesnar in February 2003, at the No Way Out pay-per-view event. He had borne the Union Flag for the British Bulldog before his match against Bret "The Hitman" Hart at SummerSlam in 1992.

In 2003, Lewis made a brief cameo appearance in the Jennifer Lopez and LL Cool J video "All I Have".

Lewis played in the World Series of Poker in both 2006 and 2007, and was knocked out without winning any money.

Lewis appeared on NBC's Celebrity Apprentice in 2008. He came in fourth place (out of 14).

Lewis has also done a public service announcement against domestic violence for Do Something. In 2008, Lewis was inducted into Canada's Sports Hall of Fame. In 2009, in his first year of eligibility, Lewis was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame.

On 8 May 2010, Lewis was let go by HBO as a commentator for Boxing After Dark.

In 2011 he was awarded an honorary Doctorate from Wilfrid Laurier University in Waterloo, Ontario.

Personal life[]

Upon retiring from boxing, Lewis moved to Miami Beach with his wife, Violet Chang, a former Miss Jamaica runner-up. They have four children. Lewis told AventuraUSA.com in 2007 that he is contemplating opening an "international boxing academy" and perhaps one day starting a record label, but he has yet to embark on either endeavour. Lewis supports the English football team West Ham United, the local team for the place of his birth. Lewis has a villa at the Tryall Club in Montego Bay, Jamaica.

Lewis is an avid amateur chess player, and funded an after-school chess program for disadvantaged youths, one of whom earned a university chess scholarship at Tennessee Tech.

Amateur highlights[]

  • Record: 75–7 (58 KOs)
  • 1983 Junior World Super Heavyweight Champion
  • Represented Canada as a Super Heavyweight at the 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles. Results were:
    • Defeated Mohammad Youssuf (Pakistan) TKO 3
    • Lost to Tyrell Biggs (United States) points
  • 1985 Silver Medalist at World Cup competition.
  • 1986 Super Heavyweight Gold Medalist at the Commonwealth Games in Edinburgh, Scotland
  • 1987 Super Heavyweight Silver Medalist at Pan American Games in Indianapolis. Lost to Jorge Luis Gonzalez of Cuba in the final.
  • 1987 Won the North American Super Heavyweight championship competition, defeating Jorge Luis Gonzalez
  • Won the Super Heavyweight Gold medal for Canada at the 1988 Olympics in Seoul, South Korea.
    • Defeated Chris Odera (Kenya) TKO 2
    • Defeated Ulli Kaden (East Germany) TKO 1
    • Defeated Janusz Zarenkiewicz (Poland) forfeit
    • Defeated Riddick Bowe (United States) TKO 2.

Professional boxing record[]

41 Wins (32 knockouts), 2 Losses, 1 Draw
Res. Record Opponent Type Round,
Time
Date Location Notes
Win 41–2–1 Ukraine Vitali Klitschko TKO 6 (12), 3:00 2003-06-21 United States Staples Center, Los Angeles, California Retained LinealWBC/IBO/The Ring heavyweight titles.
Lewis announced his retirement some time after this fight.
Lewis vacated his IBF title on September 5, 2002.
Win 40–2–1 United States Mike Tyson KO 8 (12), 2:25 2002-06-08 United States The Pyramid, Memphis, Tennessee Retained Lineal/WBC/IBF/IBO/The Ring heavyweight titles.
Lewis was awarded The Ring Magazine championship belt in 2002.
Win 39–2–1 United States Hasim Rahman KO 4 (12), 1:29 2001-11-17 United States Mandalay Bay Resort & Casino, Las Vegas, Nevada Won Lineal/WBC/IBF/IBO heavyweight titles.
Loss 38–2–1 United States Hasim Rahman KO 5 (12), 2:32 2001-04-22 File:Flag of South Africa.svg Carnival City Casino, Brakpan, Gauteng Lost Lineal/WBC/IBF/IBO heavyweight titles.
Win 38–1–1 File:Flag of Samoa.svg David Tua UD 12 2000-11-11 United States Mandalay Bay Resort & Casino, Las Vegas, Nevada Retained Lineal/WBC/IBF/IBO heavyweight titles.
Win 37–1–1 File:Flag of South Africa.svg Francois Botha TKO 2 (12), 2:39 2000-07-15 File:Flag of England.svg New London Arena, Millwall, London Retained Lineal/WBC/IBF/IBO heavyweight titles.
Win 36–1–1 United States Michael Grant KO 2 (12), 2:53 2000-04-29 United States Madison Square Garden, New York, New York Retained Lineal/WBC/IBF/IBO heavyweight titles.
Lewis was stripped of his WBA title on April 29, 2000, for refusing to fight John Ruiz.
Win 35–1–1 United States Evander Holyfield UD 12 1999-11-13 United States Thomas & Mack Center, Las Vegas, Nevada Retained Lineal/WBC heavyweight titles.
Won WBA/IBF/IBO heavyweight titles.
Draw 34–1–1 United States Evander Holyfield SD 12 1999-03-13 United States Madison Square Garden, New York, New York Retained Lineal/WBC heavyweight titles.
For WBA & IBF heavyweight titles.
Win 34–1 File:Flag of Croatia.svg Željko Mavrović UD 12 1998-09-26 United States Mohegan Sun Casino, Uncasville, Connecticut Retained Lineal/WBC heavyweight titles.
Win 33–1 United States Shannon Briggs TKO 5 (12), 1:45 1998-03-28 United States Boardwalk Convention Center, Atlantic City, New Jersey Retained WBC heavyweight title.
Won Lineal heavyweight title.
Win 32–1 File:Flag of Poland.svg Andrew Golota KO 1 (12), 1:35 1997-10-04 United States Caesar's Hotel & Casino, Atlantic City, New Jersey Retained WBC heavyweight title.
Win 31–1 File:Flag of England.svg Henry Akinwande DQ 5 (12), 2:34 1997-07-12 United States Caesars Tahoe, Stateline, Nevada Retained WBC heavyweight title.
Akinwande disqualified for repeated holding.
Win 30–1 United States Oliver McCall TKO 5 (12), 0:55 1997-02-07 United States Hilton Hotel, Las Vegas, Nevada Won vacant WBC heavyweight title.
Win 29–1 United States Ray Mercer MD 10 1996-05-10 United States Madison Square Garden, New York, New York
Win 28–1 United States Tommy Morrison TKO 6 (12), 1:22 1995-10-07 United States Convention Center, Atlantic City, New Jersey
Win 27–1 File:Flag of Australia.svg Justin Fortune TKO 4 (10), 1:48 1995-07-02 File:Flag of Ireland.svg Point Theatre, Dublin
Win 26–1 United States Lionel Butler TKO 5 (12), 2:55 1995-05-13 United States ARCO Arena, Sacramento, California WBC heavyweight Final Eliminator.
Loss 25–1 United States Oliver McCall TKO 2 (12), 0:31 1994-09-24 File:Flag of England.svg Wembley Arena, Wembley, London Lost WBC heavyweight title.
Win 25–0 United States Phil Jackson TKO 8 (12), 1:35 1994-05-06 United States Boardwalk Convention Center, Atlantic City, New Jersey Retained WBC heavyweight title.
Win 24–0 File:Flag of England.svg Frank Bruno TKO 7 (12), 1:12 1993-10-01 File:Flag of Wales 2.svg Cardiff Arms Park, Cardiff Retained WBC heavyweight title.
Win 23–0 United States Tony Tucker UD 12 1993-05-08 United States Thomas & Mack Center, Las Vegas, Nevada Retained WBC heavyweight title.
Lewis was declared the WBC heavyweight champion on 14 December 1992, after then-champion Riddick Bowe refused to defend against him.
Win 22–0 Canada Donovan Ruddock TKO 2 (12), 0:46 1992-10-31 File:Flag of England.svg Earls Court Exhibition Centre, Kensington, London Won Commonwealth heavyweight title.
WBC heavyweight Final Eliminator.
Win 21–0 United States Mike Dixon TKO 4 (10), 1:02 1992-08-11 United States Harrah's Atlantic City, Atlantic City, New Jersey
Win 20–0 File:Flag of England.svg Derek Williams TKO 3 (12), ? 1992-04-30 File:Flag of England.svg Royal Albert Hall, Kensington, London Retained British/European heavyweight titles.
Win 19–0 United States Levi Billups UD 10 1992-02-01 United States Caesars Palace, Las Vegas, Nevada
Win 18–0 United States Tyrell Biggs TKO 3 (10), 2:47 1991-11-23 United States The Omni, Atlanta, Georgia
Win 17–0 File:Flag of England.svg Glenn McCrory KO 2 (12), 1:30 1991-09-30 File:Flag of England.svg Royal Albert Hall, Kensington, London Retained British/European heavyweight titles.
Win 16–0 United States Mike Weaver KO 6 (10), 1:05 1991-07-12 United States Caesars Tahoe, Stateline, Nevada
Win 15–0 File:Flag of England.svg Gary Mason TKO 7 (12), 0:44 1991-03-06 File:Flag of England.svg Wembley Arena, Wembley, London Retained European heavyweight title.
Won British heavyweight title.
Win 14–0 File:Flag of France.svg Jean Chanet TKO 6 (12), 0:16 1990-10-31 File:Flag of England.svg National Sports Centre, Crystal Palace, London Won European heavyweight title.
Win 13–0 United States Mike Acey KO 2 (10), 1:34 1990-07-11 Canada Superstars Nite Club, Kitchener, Ontario
Win 12–0 File:Flag of Puerto Rico.svg Ossie Ocasio UD 8 1990-06-27 File:Flag of England.svg Royal Albert Hall, Kensington, London
Win 11–0 United States Dan Murphy TKO 6 (8), ? 1990-05-20 File:Flag of England.svg Sheffield Town Hall, Sheffield, Yorkshire
Win 10–0 Argentina Jorgé Dascola KO 1 (8), 2:59 1990-05-09 File:Flag of England.svg Royal Albert Hall, Kensington, London
Win 9–0 File:Flag of Zambia.svg Michael Simuwelu TKO 1 (8), 0:58 1990-04-14 File:Flag of England.svg Royal Albert Hall, Kensington, London
Win 8–0 United States Calvin Jones KO 1 (8), 2:34 1990-03-22 File:Flag of England.svg Leisure Centre, Gateshead, Tyne and Wear
Win 7–0 File:Flag of England.svg Noel Quarless TKO 2 (6), 1:25 1990-01-31 File:Flag of England.svg York Hall, Bethnal Green, London
Win 6–0 United States Greg Gorrell TKO 5 (8), 0:51 1989-12-18 Canada Memorial Auditorium, Kitchener, Ontario
Win 5–0 United States Melvin Epps DQ 2 (6), 0:30 1989-11-05 File:Flag of England.svg Royal Albert Hall, Kensington, London
Win 4–0 File:Flag of England.svg Steve Garber KO 1 (6), ? 1989-10-10 File:Flag of England.svg City Hall, Hull, Yorkshire
Win 3–0 File:Flag of Wales 2.svg Andrew Gerrard TKO 4 (6), 0:33 1989-09-25 File:Flag of England.svg National Sports Centre, Crystal Palace, London
Win 2–0 United States Bruce Johnson TKO 2 (6), ? 1989-07-21 United States Convention Center, Atlantic City, New Jersey
Win 1–0 File:Flag of England.svg Al Malcolm KO 2 (6), 0:19 1989-06-27 File:Flag of England.svg Royal Albert Hall, Kensington, London Professional debut.

External links[]

Awards
Preceded by
Michael Owen
BBC Sports Personality of the Year
1999
Succeeded by
Steve Redgrave
Preceded by
Shane Mosley
BWAA Fighter of the Year
1999
Succeeded by
Felix Trinidad
Sporting positions
Preceded by
Riddick Bowe
Stripped
WBC Heavyweight Champion
December 14, 1992 – September 24, 1994
Succeeded by
Oliver McCall
Preceded by
Mike Tyson
Vacated
WBC Heavyweight Champion
February 7, 1997 – April 22, 2001
Succeeded by
Hasim Rahman
Preceded by
Shannon Briggs
Lineal Heavyweight Champion
March 28, 1998 – April 22, 2001
Succeeded by
Hasim Rahman
Vacant
Title last held by
Riddick Bowe
Undisputed Heavyweight Champion
November 13, 1999 – April 29, 2000
Titles fractured
Vacant
Preceded by
Evander Holyfield
WBA Heavyweight Champion
November 13, 1999 – April 29, 2000
Stripped
Succeeded by
Evander Holyfield
Preceded by
Brian Nielsen
Stripped
IBO Heavyweight Champion
November 13, 1999 – April 22, 2001
Succeeded by
Hasim Rahman
Preceded by
Evander Holyfield
IBF Heavyweight Champion
November 13, 1999 – April 22, 2001
Succeeded by
Hasim Rahman
Preceded by
Hasim Rahman
IBF Heavyweight Champion
November 17, 2001 – September 5, 2002
Vacated
Succeeded by
Chris Byrd
Preceded by
Hasim Rahman
WBC Heavyweight Champion
November 17, 2001 – February 6, 2004
Retired
Succeeded by
Vitali Klitschko
Preceded by
Hasim Rahman
IBO Heavyweight Champion
November 17, 2001 – February 2004
Retired
Succeeded by
Wladimir Klitschko
Preceded by
Hasim Rahman
Lineal Heavyweight Champion
November 17, 2001 – February 6, 2004
Retired
Succeeded by
Vacant
Vacant
Title last held by
Evander Holyfield
The Ring Heavyweight Champion
2002 – February 6, 2004
Retired
Succeeded by
Vitali Klitschko
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