By Scoop Malinowski

The opinion of the so-called experts is often proven to be quite wrong. History has taught us that the Titanic was indeed not unsinkable. The earth is not flat. And in boxing, Tyson could not beat Holyfield. Liston was no match for Ali. And Trinidad did not have enough to subdue Hopkins. I believe the pundits have it all wrong again, in asserting that Lennox Lewis is “just a good champion in a weak era.” To the contrary, Lewis may actually be the greatest heavyweight champion of all time, or at the very least, among the elite pantheon of masters such as Ali, Louis, Holmes, Marciano, Dempsey and Johnson. George Foreman agreed with this idea. “Lennox is beyond doubt the greatest heavyweight of all time,” Foreman said. “He is not second any more. He is there at the top of the tree. He reminded me of a young George Foreman and an elusive Muhammad Ali. He has everything you want in a fighter.

Even ‘The Greatest’, Muhammad Ali recently paid tribute to Lewis’ excellence. Ali was with Lewis at a Canadian Football League ceremony to celebrate Lewis’ KO of Tyson. “I’m here because I was the greatest,” he told an ecstatic crowd in Toronto. “I’m now no longer the greatest. He’s the greatest, he’s the champ,” he said, pointing to Lennox Lewis.

It is time to closely examine the misunderstood and under-appreciated career of Lennox Claudius Lewis. Lewis first burst on the world boxing scene with his two-round demolition of Riddick Bowe in Seoul, Korea in 1988, to become the first Canadian to win boxing Olympic gold since bantamweight Horace ‘Lefty’ Gwynne in 1932. Lewis decided to turn pro in the country where he was born, England, in June of 1989. He went unbeaten in 21 fights mostly held in England. This earned an invitation to participate in American television network HBO’s heavyweight elimination tournament in 1992, where he was matched with the most feared heavyweight of the time, Donovan ‘Razor’ Ruddock. With the winner set to face the survivor of the Evander Holyfield-Riddick Bowe encounter.

In his first high-stakes test as a pro, Lewis showed why he was the best British heavyweight prospect in almost a century, with a spectacular bludgeoning of Ruddock inside of two rounds. Lou Duva was asked what Holyfield would have to bring to the ring to deal with Lennox. Duva, the champ’s trainer back then, answered, “How about a shotgun? And maybe a machine gun for luck. I always thought Lennox would win. But never did I think he would wipe out Ruddock like that. It may have taken you Brits nearly 100 years to come up with this guy, but I’ve got to say he fought a super fight. Lennox Lewis has got everything it takes.”

HBO’s commentator Larry Merchant was uncharacteristically high-pitched as he announced his praise. “We have a great new heavyweight on the scene,” Merchant declared on the air, moments after the knockout. Lennox Lewis may turn out to be – not only the greatest heavyweight in British history – but the greatest fighter in European history.” His broadcast partner, George Foreman, concurred emphatically. “I agree, I agree. There’s nothing in the world that can stop this young man but himself if he keeps his feet on the ground. He can become a great champion. He had a good left, more than we expected tonight. A good overhand right, but also a left hook that really dropped him the last time.”

But the vast majority of the American boxing media would prove to be far more reserved in their praise of Lewis. They thought he was too tentative, too timid, too awkward. Two weeks later, Bowe would decision Holyfield in their epic Las Vegas match, to win the undisputed championship. But Bowe and his manager Rock Newman reneged on their letter of intent to battle Lewis. In fact, Bowe seemed quite unnerved by the presence of Lewis at the post-fight press conference. After his shining moment of conquest, Bowe defiled himself and his grand moment as he called Lewis a faggot, adding “I’ve got sisters who could whup you” and “I’m not afraid of you.” But to the contrary, Bowe and Newman evidently were indeed fearful of the risks involved in a title defense against Lewis. Instead, Bowe opted to defend against aged longshots Michael Dokes and Jesse Ferguson. And, in possibly the most disrespectful act ever against the richest prize in sport, Bowe and Newman staged a press conference in London of dumping the WBC belt into a rubbish bin. Meanwhile, a van-load of men dressed as chickens paraded the pavement outside the hotel. They were hired by Lewis’ former manager Frank Maloney. As a result, Lewis became heavyweight champion of the world while on holiday in Jamaica.

Lewis’ first defense as champion was against a Don King-promoted WBC mandatory challenger Tony Tucker, who once went the distance with Mike Tyson. Though Lewis knocked down Tucker twice – the first two times Tucker had ever been floored – the American media was again overly critical of Lewis’ victory. They wrote that he looked “amateurish” and “tentative” and “lacked killer instinct.” Some even went so far as to write the former Olympic champion and junior world champion lacked fighting heart. This was the beginning of a long campaign of negativity by such media heavyweights as Wallace Matthews of the New York Post, Dave Anderson of the New York Times, Ron Borges of the Boston Globe, Jon Saraceno of USA Today and many others. Their continuous disrespect surely had an influence in creating a negative stigma against Lewis. But Lewis just kept on winning. Over legit contenders like Frank Bruno and Phil Jackson. In the meantime, Team Lewis was still trying to get Bowe in the ring. One of Newman’s dubious ideas was a winner-take-all of the estimated $32 million-dollar gross. The loser would get nothing but training expenses. Maloney consulted with Lewis. “Lennox was eager to go ahead with it,” said Maloney. “The next day, I faxed an acceptance to Newman’s office. I never heard a word back from him.”

“Without an adversary prowess shrivels.” -Seneca

Lewis was again forced to fight another Don King-promoted WBC mandatory named Oliver McCall. But Lewis wasn’t properly motivated to face and defeat another challenger that would prove nothing to the boxing world or his critics. Lewis pined for the most threatening contenders to test his skills and threaten his status – like Holyfield, Tyson or Bowe. Perhaps he was complacent, bored or under-motivated, as McCall connected with a devastating right to Lewis’ jaw. Lewis got up before the ‘ten count’ but the Mexican referee – Lupe Garcia – controversially waved it over. Later a photo of the winning punch showed the blow landing on Lewis’ chin – even though McCall’s eyes were closed! With the setback, Lewis’ career went, as he said, “into the wilderness.” But changes were made and he hired Emanuel Steward as his new trainer. Lewis would come back stronger than ever.

“Look at man in the midst of doubt and danger and you will learn in his hour of adversity what he really is. It is then that true utterances are wrung from the recesses of his heart.”
-Lucretius

Steward was one of the astute few who detected the extraordinary reserves that existed in Lewis. “My idea is to make him into a large version of Sugar Ray Robinson, not Muhammad Ali,” he said. “Because I truly believe Lennox can be better than him. He can do things Ali couldn’t do. Lennox can box. But he still has that raw-boned punch power.” Inspired by Steward’s colossal respect, Lewis rebounded from the adversity of losing his title. He exhibited brilliance in beating Lionel Butler, Tommy Morrison and Justin Fortune. Then came the rematch with McCall for the vacant title which was stripped from Tyson, who seemed hesitant to mix it up with Lewis.

Lewis defeated McCall, but the victory was overshadowed by McCall’s troubled behavior. He was crying in the ring, refused to go to his corner between rounds and was eventually disqualified for “refusing to fight.” So, again Lewis won the title under dodgy circumstances. The next win came against another Don King-promoted WBC mandatory, Henry Akinwande. It sure seemed Don King wanted that WBC belt! But Akinwande would fail and, like McCall, was disqualified for failing to fight. He quickly realize he was out of his league and bearhugged Lewis for five rounds. It was another disappointing Don King heavyweight title fight, though by no fault from Lewis. Lewis, now almost 32, was in his prime years and so far his career was more defined by bizarre opponents, media bias, deceptive Don King “politricks”, lawsuits, court injunctions to force the sanctioning bodies like the WBC to uphold their own rules, Bowe and Tyson’s shameful ducking and Tyson’s record $4 million dollar step-aside payment to Lewis.

“Things are not always as they seem. Outward form deceives many. Rare is the mind that discerns what is carefully concealed within.” -Phaedrus

Now with his world title back in hand, Lewis began to show his remarkable powers. He was monstrously impressive in destroying Andrew Golota in one round. Golota was fresh off the two Bowe fights where he punished Bowe so savagely that Bowe has never stepped into a boxing ring since (Bowe did attempt an ineffective comeback in 2004 which is still ongoing). Now Lewis set his sights on Holyfield, who had dethroned Tyson of the WBA title. But even the mighty warrior revealed an uncharacteristic lack of eagerness to fight Lewis. Though Holyfield often publicly stated a desire to unify the belts against Lennox, he instead went ahead and chose to set up fights with Vaughn Bean, Michael Moorer and even Henry Akinwande. Lewis put the pressure on Holyfield and issued challenges to the great warrior, even calling him “Evader.” To fight Lewis, Holyfield demanded $15 million and months later when that amount was offered, Holyfield suddenly changed his tune and raised his demands to $20 million! He claimed the fight was “bigger now.” Finally, after all the bluffs and curveballs of negotiations with Holyfield and King, Lewis got Holyfield in the ring. Lewis dominated and tamed Holyfield so thoroughly that Lennox threw and landed three times as many punches. But the judges absurdly called it a draw! Was the Don King fix in? Then, in the rematch, though Lewis was cautious – and justifiably so – with King involved in the promotion – he did outpoint Holyfield again. And Lewis finally had achieved his dream – proving he was the best heavyweight on the planet.

The new undisputed champion intended to prove his greatness, at age 34. So he refused to fight another Don King-promoted WBA mandatory, the unworthy John Ruiz. Ruiz was once knocked out in 19 seconds by David Tua. Lewis wanted to defend against the more deserving contender, unbeaten giant Michael Grant. Lewis stopped Grant convincingly, inside two rounds. Next up was a return to his birthplace, London, against Frans Botha. In this fight, Lewis displayed a ferocity of greatness perhaps as spectacular as Ali was against Cleveland Williams. Lewis thrashed Botha with a devastatingly accurate four-punch combination in round two. Botha was vaulted into the ropes by the blows. One rope strand prevented him from nosediving into the ringside concrete. Botha had never been so utterly destroyed by such a show of force before, not even against Tyson or Moorer.

“How often does it happen that the greatest talents are shrouded in obscurity?” -Plautus

David Tua, the heavy-hitting Samoan, was the next defense for Lewis. But Lewis completely outclassed Tua, exhibiting pugilistic abilities of the highest order. George Foreman marveled at Lewis’ performance. “Lennox Lewis is the best boxer,” Foreman said on the pay-per-view telecast, “that I have ever seen.” But the reviews by the American media were nowhere near as glowing. They thought Lewis should have been more aggressive and tried for the knockout. So the snide negativity of the media would still curiously perpetuate against Lewis. Why the American media would hold Lewis to such an impossibly high standard is misleading and frustratingly unfair. And the shock upset loss to Hasim Rahman in South Africa certainly fueled their skepticism. Again, Lewis would reveal his Achilles’ heel of complacence – even filming a movie called ‘Ocean’s 11′ during his training camp. However, Lewis avenged that setback with defining and astounding vehemence, as he knocked Rahman out with a single right hand – one of the most aesthetically memorable knockouts in heavyweight history.

Then came perhaps the grand finale – the spectacular one-sided destruction of Mike Tyson. Again, the critics wonder if Lewis would have fared as well against the Tyson of the 1980’s. But considering how Tyson struggled to impress with his big challengers like ‘Bonecrusher’ Smith, Mitch Green, Tucker and James ‘Quick’ Tillis, you would have to think that even the prime version of Tyson would have had his hands full with Lewis, who is far superior to anyone Tyson has ever beat. Tyson even admitted himself, “I could never beat this guy, he’s just too big and too strong. Lennox is a masterful boxer.”

In the final analysis, Lewis’ career is a study of near perfection. At his highly-motivated best, Lewis seems unbeatable. He was the dominant champion of a colorful era of challengers. A champion so formidable that he frightened away his leading contenders Bowe and, for a while, Tyson. Has any champion so discouraged his top contenders as has Lewis? Remember when Tyson beat Lou Savarese and then boasted of how he’d “eat (Lewis’) children.” Then, three weeks later, after stopping Botha, Lewis answered Tyson’s challenge and ordered Mike to “sign the contract tomorrow. Put up or shut up!” What did Tyson do? He disappeared for months and his advisors said he was even contemplating retirement.

Lewis’ success is the result of his original and multi-dimensional boxing style. He is the ultimate hybrid fighter – master scientific boxer blessed with knockout power in both fists. This smart style has prevented against ever having to suffer a prolonged beating. Even the great Muhammad Ali endured many regrettable punishments. Lewis was so superior that he was able to avoid that. And despite the brutal nature of the sport and the underhanded obstacles put in his way, Lewis has been nothing but a class act through it all. He has never been arrested. Never lowered himself to having to call his opponents any derogatory slurs. Lewis brought a dignified respect to the noble art and sweet science. In many ways, he is the personification of the quintessential boxing champion. And now Lewis is on the verge of achieving something else that the other greats (except Rocky Marciano) could not…retiring from the sport he ruled and the supreme height of his greatness. With his health, wealth and legacy intact.

Surely this notion of Lennox Lewis as one of the greatest heavyweight champions, if not indeed the greatest of all time, will arouse some passionate dispute. But that is to be expected. It is only human nature that the visionary, non-conventional idea should at first be met with cynicism and not embrace.

DOB: July 11, 1953 In: St. Louis, Missouri

Childhood Hero: Muhammad Ali.

Nicknames: Vampire, Neon Leon, Junior.

Hobbies/Interests: I like training my sons, time with my grandson and wife and dancing.

Pre-Fight Feeling: I tried to keep my mind on my fight. Call on The Lord, Hey Lord, help me go through what I’m going through.

Favorite Movies: I love horror movies – Halloween, Frankenstein, The Wolfman, Zombies, Child’s Play [laughs].

Musical Tastes: Jazz.

Favorite TV Shows: All horror movies.

First Job: Selling newspapers for the St. Louis Post Dispatch when I was 11.

First Car: 1978 gray and black Cadillac.

Favorite Meal: Meatloaf.

Favorite Ice Cream Flavor: Walnut.

Favorite Breakfast: Bacon and eggs.

Greatest Sports Moment: When I beat Muhammad Ali (1978). No…when I won the Olympics. With on overhand right in the third round (to KO Sixto Soria of Cuba in 1976 in Montreal). Because I did it for my country. That was good for me. I loved representing the United States.

Most Painful Moment: When I lost to Larry Holmes (by TKO 3 in Detroit in 1981). My last chance at the title.

Favorite Boxers To Watch: Tim Witherspoon, Lennox Lewis, Evander Holyfield, my son Cory.

Worst Injury From Boxing: When I got knocked on my ass [smiles].

Hardest Puncher: I haven’t found him yet [smiles].

Toughest Opponent: Ali. I was scared, that’s why.

Most Treasured Possession: My brother Michael. My most treasured possession. He’s still within my heart. I be lookin’ out for him.

(Ali vs. Liston sculpture by Barrymore Alan Moton)

It happens to most all of our boxing champions – the time comes when they are sacrificed, thrown to the lions. It’s the natural evolution of the ruthless world of boxing which is a jungle.

It happened to Sugar Ray Leonard against Terry Norris. It happened to Joe Louis against Rocky Marciano, Roberto Duran against William Joppy and Jack Johnson against Jess Willard.
You see, no matter how great a fighter may have been, the sport doesn’t care, and will eventually throw him to the lions.

The powers that be threw Alexis Arguello in with Aaron Pryor. Jim Jeffries vs. Jack Johnson. They put Mike Tyson against Lennox Lewis. Heck, they even threw “The Greatest” of them all Muhammad Ali to the lions – that was the night he had to fight Larry Holmes.

The sport threw Roy Jones in there with Antonio Tarver twice after he barely survived the first fight. Roy had to do it and he did.

Sometimes the sport tries to throw a great champion to the lions but he is just too clever to be tricked and defies his fate. Lennox Lewis escaped desperate danger and clawed his way to victory over Vitali Klitschko in his final bout. Then Lewis opted, after much contemplation, to retire without a rematch. And the lions had to change their course.

The sport tried to eliminate Bernard Hopkins, who battled Jermain Taylor twice over 24 rounds. But Hopkins refused to be conquered. The judges took his titles away, but because of his gallant and honorable performance to survive, he remained an inspiration and “The People’s Champion.” Again they tried to feed Hopkins to the lions again against Kelly Pavlik, but he was too smart and crafty and outsmarted the lions once again.

For the third and fourth time the jungle masters tried again to match Hopkins – with Chad Dawson and Tomasz Adamek – but the old lion from Philadelphia wouldn’t step into the trap.

Now the natural progression of the jungle sport has caught up with the elusive Floyd Mayweather. Mayweather is all too well aware that the masters eagerly want to feed him to Manny Pacquiao and let the lions and vultures devour his carcass. Mayweather is no fool – he knows what time it is, that the end is so very near.

Like a desperate, frightened, vulnerable animal, Floyd is running as fast as he can to hide from the merciless lions. But he is coming to the realization now that here is no escape, nothing or nobody can help him this time. There is no way to survive Manny Pacquiao who is everything he wishes he could be.

When the time comes to be fed to the lions, you either face it with honor – or cowardice.

The moment of truth is here – Mayweather will soon decide what he really is.

Status:  Top 10 heavyweight contender. Has a pro record of 12-0 with 7 KO’s.

Ht: 6-6 1/2  Wt: 243

DOB: Janury 2, 1984  In: Stockholm, Sweden

Nickname: The Nordic Nightmare.

Boxing Inspiration: My father.

Childhood Heroes: My brothers, because they helped me a lot.

Hobbies/Leisure Activities: Reading books, playing with my kids.

Favorite Movie: Into The Wild, Fear & Loathing In Las Vegas.

Last Book Read: Marilyn Manson.

Musical Tastes: Everything, Cypress Hill.

Favorite TV Show:  Madventures.

First Job: Selling potatoes at a marketplace.

Current Car: Saab.

Favorite Meal: Now it´s sushi.

Favorite Ice Cream Flavor: Vanilla.

Pre-Fight Feeling: Confident and focused.

Pre-Fight Meal: Sushi or noodles.

Childhood Dream: To fly.

Early Boxing Memory: When I won the bronze medal at the Youth European Championship in Greece 2000.

Greatest Sports Moment (so far): To beat Lamon Brewster.

Most Painful Moment of Your Career: I broke my left thumb in 2006 and could not travel to the World Championships.

Funny Boxing Memory: Every day has to be funny.

Embarrassing Boxing Memory: When I was 18 I lost by TKO against Andreas Berghall.

Favorite Fighters To Watch: Lennox Lewis.

Favorite Fights: Lewis against Tyson and Klitschko. There were a lot!

Last Vacation: I don´t remember [smiles].

Favorite Sport Outside Boxing: Ice hockey.

Which Fight Did You Feel At Your Very Best/Your Finest Performance: Against Brewster in January, 2010 (won by TKO 8).

Toughest Opponent:  Gbenga Oloukun. Because I broke my right hand in the fourth round of the fight and had, of course, to go on.

People Qualities Most Admired: To have the right discipline in this hard business and sport.

(This article was originally published at Tennisweek.com on June 20, 2006.)

“No two men can be half an hour together, but one shall acquire an evident superiority over the other.”  — Samuel Johnson

“To be the best in the world you have to get blood on your hands.” — Philip H. Anselmo

What is Roger Federer feeling now? Has he been wounded psychologically? Could all these defeats at the hands of the mighty Rafael Nadal be inflicting some kind of permanent damage? The Spaniard has won six out of seven from Federer and actually it could have very easily been a perfect seven had he not blown a two sets and a break lead in the Key Biscayne final last year.

Odd things happen sometimes when the great champion loses his confidence. Bjorn Borg lost the Wimbledon and U.S. Open finals to John McEnroe in 1981 and his psyche suffered so much by those those failures that he suddenly left the game at age 26. Lennox Lewis was losing a viciously violent fight to Vitali Klitschko in 2003, but luckily won when the referee controversially stopped it after round six because of Klitschko’s cuts. Lewis, who had earlier stated a goal of three more fights, never fought again, turning down offers of $20 million for a rematch. It was evident Lewis was unsure if he was the best anymore.

In individual sports, when the great champion questions himself in his own mind — Am I still the best? — it is the beginning of the end. All of the contenders sense the vulnerability and begin to plot their moves. We have witnessed the demises of many champion boxers and tennis players, such as Marvin Hagler, Evander Holyfield, Roy Jones, Martina Hingis, Serena Williams and Mike Tyson, to name a few.

Nadal seems supremely confident he will dethrone Federer, and the process apparently is underway before our eyes.

“He is the best player in the world. The most complete player I have seen in my life,” Nadal says. “But he can’t keep playing like this forever.”"

It’s debatable right now if Federer is actually even the best player in the world — he’s not even the best player on the court when he stares across the net at the clay-court conquistador who has had his number so often it’s the tennis equivalent of speed dial.

When he enters into a tournament now, the people are buzzing about Nadal. Roger may have the ranking points, but Nadal clearly is his superior. Just as it took one man, Buster Douglas, to overthrow Tyson as the king, maybe Nadal is the man who will befall Federer. As unbelievable as it sounds, Nadal may ruin the spectacular reign of Federer.

I believe Nadal may have destroyed the career of Guillermo Coria. We know Coria was devastated by that weird loss to Gaston Gaudio in the 2004 French Open final. It is suspected Coria’s possible use of injury gamesmanship during that match backfired and may have cost him the Grand Slam victory. But last year, Coria was still a major force on clay, until he lost that five-hour, fifth set tiebreak marathon to Nadal in Rome, ultimately enduring a heart-breaking 6-4, 3-6, 6-3, 4-6, 7-6(6) defeat.

Coria has never been the same since that moment and his career has tumbled into crisis. Perhaps Coria has come to believe in his own mind he will never be able to overcome Nadal, and that he foolishly squandered his one and only chance to win Roland Garros. And thus, without the fuel of hope to inspire him, he is a lost man on the court. A man without hope is a man…

You have to wonder at this point if Federer possesses the confidence, passion and the strength to defy this rampaging Spanish bull. We know Nadal has hopes. We know Nadal believes and is now aiming to show he can win on the grass at Wimbledon and that he can attain number one. And if the young phenomenon truly believes he can achieve those accomplishments, Mr. Federer may soon have plenty more problems to deal with. It’s all been so marvelously clever the way Nadal has treated the subject of Federer. With nothing but gracious respect the 20-year-old only speaks kind words of his adversary.

“Everyone knows I like Roger,” he says. From Nadal, there is never any criticism, truculence or even a hint of any malice towards Roger. Federer, on the other hand, has shown glimpses of irritation at Nadal. This year he accused Nadal’s coach, uncle Toni Nadal, of illegally coaching from his box. He called Nadal’s game “one-dimensional” before this year’s defeat at Monte Carlo.

Last year at the French Open, Federer seemed slightly annoyed when reporters told him that Nadal said there was “no favorite” to win Roland Garros. “That’s an interesting way to put pressure on people,” said Federer. “It’s clever. He’s not stupid. I think there are a number of favorites here, and he knows well who they are.”

In the aftermath of Nadal’s victory over Federer in the French Open final, the Swiss stylist issued a subtle slight at Nadal by calling him “a grinder” immediately after the match.

Let’s be blunt now, Nadal has pushed Federer around for 14 months and so far the Swiss gentleman has had no answers, no effective counterattacks. The ruthless bullying on the court just continues on. It’s an intriguing clash of wills between the two strongest tennis players on earth today, a compelling drama with many chapters to read in the future. What ideas will Federer devise on how to halt this domination at the hands of Nadal? What can Roger do to circumvent his failings in the psychological warfare department? Is Nadal much smarter than his young age would suggest? Is he actually more intelligent than Federer is on court, using that higher tennis IQ to be able to outplay him five consecutive matches? Has Federer been intimidated by the intensity and fury of his powerful rival?

The greatness of Roger Federer has been tested, it has been questioned. The answers must come soon. Another possibility in this fascinating battle is that there is ample hope for Federer. Assuming, of course, that Nadal has not broken his spirit, Roger may actually become stronger from these defeats. Former heavyweight champion Lennox Lewis was unexpectedly knocked out twice in his career. Imagine being knocked out with one punch in front of the world. Imagine the difficulty of trying to regain confidence to absorb a punch. Then you have to recover your status while discouraging all the eager attackers. In an awesome display of courage and perseverance, Lewis actually came back a better, smarter and more complete fighter and is now regarded as one of the best in history.

The same agony was suffered by Federer’s personal friend, the 1996 Olympic gold medallist Wladimir Klitschko of Ukraine (the two met last year at an award show in Europe and became friends, Klitschko told me). Klitschko was the heir apparent to Lewis, until he was devastatingly knocked out twice by Corrie Sanders in 2003 and Lamon Brewster in 2004. But Klitschko maintained that, despite the horror of those humiliating losses, he never lost confidence in himself. He figured out why he lost, fixed the errors and resumed his lifelong ambition. And Klitschko has succeeded to this point, by impressively defeating the hardest knockout puncher in the world last September, Samuel Peter of Nigeria, and Chris Byrd this past April to win the IBF Heavyweight title. Klitschko, age 30, considers his failures in the ring to be valuable learning experiences and actually believes he needed them to make him a complete fighter.

“I needed to experience losing to become a champion,” said Klitschko. “I never lost my confidence. I am complete fighter right now. Experience — you cannot buy in the shop. You have to gain it with your own skin and your own body with your own mind and through the time. Experience which people are making and they have to learn from those experiences. And they have to get better.”

Klitschko, written off by most of the experts as lacking resilience and a strong jaw just a few years ago, proved his heart and mind were much stronger than anyone imagined. And he now appears poised to dominate the heavyweight division for several years.

No one knows how Federer will come back from his setbacks, maybe not even Roger Federer himself.

The decision is his to make. Or is it Rafael Nadal’s? 

(Postscript: Since this article was written in 2006, Federer and Nadal have met 13 times, with Nadal winning seven, Federer six. Nadal became the ATP #1 ranked player in August 2008, then Federer regained the top spot last summer. Overall, Nadal leads the career head-to-head, 13-7. Federer won their last match in Madrid on clay in 2009, 64 64. Federer is still #1, Nadal is #3 now (Djokovic is #2) but Nadal is surging – he has won two straight Masters Series events on clay in Monte Carlo and Rome.)

Ht: 6-7 Wt: 250

DOB: July 19, 1971 IN: Belovodsk, Soviet Union

Nicknames: Dr. Iron Fist, Iron Chin.

Hobbies/Leisure Activities:  “Chess, wakeboarding, kitesurfing, jet skiing, scuba diving, table tennis.”

Childhood Dream: “Spaceman or astronaut or do karate like Bruce Lee [smiles].”

Age Started Boxing: “13.”

 
First Boxing Memory: “Losing my first fight.”

Boxing Inspiration:  “To make history in boxing. To be at the same time with my brother world champion in the heavyweight division. Always great to make something special.”

Favorite Boxer Of All-Time:  “Max Schmeling – my first most special fighter, my idol, my hero. I respect him as a fighter and much more as a human. I knew him very well. He helped me a lot.” 

Favorite Meal: “Italian.”

Favorite Ice Cream Flavor:  “Cranberry.”

Pre-fight Meal: “Oatmeal.”

Pre-fight Superstition:  “I’m not ready to give you the answer [smiles].”

Toughest Part Of Being A Boxer:  “Injuries.”

Favorite Music:  “Eagles. Old music, classical, jazz, pop. Big fan of Cher, The Beatles ”

Last Book Read:  “Oh, a book from Goethe.”

Favorite TV Show:  “Discovery Channel is very interesting to me.”

Favorite Film:  “I don’t know which one. Many movies. Favorite film in boxing – Rocky, first one.”

Current Car:  “A big one. Mercedes (silver).”

Training Routine:  “My special program I develop with my coach (Fritz Sdunek). And I’m very thankful to Emanuel Steward. He works with me as advisor. And we develop some program and I don’t want to show you this program because it’s special for me and it’s my small secret. I change my preparation for every opponent and that’s why it will be special preparation with special exercises.”

Toughest Opponent:  “Lennox Lewis. My personal opinion – he’s the strongest fighter in the whole history of boxing. He’s the strongest heavyweight. And I’m very appreciative for him. He give me a chance to prove my skills against strongest fighter in history.”

Greatest Sports Moment: “Is still in front of me. Will be in the future.”

Most Painful Moment: “To take the critics after the Byrd fight.”

Funny Boxing Memory: “In England. It was an amateur fight. After a heavy knockout, the opponent came back to me and told me, ‘I will come back. Then I will show you how good I really am.’ It was a very strong, heavy knockout. He was laying down for a long time. A strong hit. I wondered, next time I have to hit him harder? Is my arm too light [laughs]?”

Quote: “Chess is similar to boxing. You need to develop a strategy, and you need to think two or three steps ahead about what your opponent is doing. You have to be smart. But what’s the difference between chess and boxing? In chess, nobody is an expert, but everybody plays. In boxing everybody is an expert, but nobody fights.”

Family: Wife, Natalia; sons, Max, Egor; daughter, Elizabeth.

Question: What inspired you to do this book?

Scoop Malinowski: It was a major event in boxing, one of the top three biggest revenue generating events in the history of the sport. Though the fight itself wasn’t the most competitively exciting, I thought there was enough story lines and angles to do a book. They first sparred as teenagers. After the sparring, Tyson’s mentor Cus D’Amato actually said they would box one day for the heavyweight title. Those words came true 20 years later. Norman Mailer’s book about the Ali-Foreman fight (”The Fight”), and Leon Gast’s film “When We Were Kings” were inspirations, as was John McPhee’s tennis book “Levels of the Game” (renowned classic book about one match between Arthur Ashe and Clark Graebner which delves deeply into the contrasting personalities and backgrounds of the two tennis champions).

Question: Has it been well received?

Scoop Malinowski: Lennox Lewis’s trainer Emanuel Steward called me one night and said it was one of the two best boxing books he’s ever read, called it a smashing success. LeRoy Neiman, who wrote the foreword said he read it straight through in one shot. I gave John McEnroe a copy at an interview we did and two months later I saw him at a World Team Tennis match and he saw me and told me he liked it. Also, a boxing fan on a messageboard thread about boxing books said it was one of the best boxing books to come out in a long time. Those compliments all meant a lot. There was nothing but positive reviews. But it’s selling better in the UK.

Question: Was it a difficult book to write?

Scoop Malinowski: No, not at all. I write for several boxing publications and had all the materials, interviews and relevant quotes collected over the years in my office. It was just a matter of putting all the ingredients together, like baking a cake. Then the plan was to add surprises, insider stories about Tyson and Lewis that most people never heard of. Every boxing fan saw the fight, I knew I had to offer much more. I tried very hard to make the book a special and entertaining read filled with surprises. The one on one interviews with Lewis and Steward at the end were fascinating. These interviews were done just before publication.

Question: You interviewed Lewis and Tyson?

Scoop Malinowski: Everybody involved except for Tyson. But I have enough Tyson quotes from before and after the fight, as well as information about his actions on the day before and day of the fight from his team members, trainer Ronnie Shields and cheerleader Crocodile Fitch. Lewis has always been helpful and gave many insightful interviews as did his team members.

Question: Do you really think it was a fight between good and evil?

Scoop Malinowski: We all admire and respect Tyson and what he has achieved and the class he has shown since losing to Lewis. But the few years before the Lewis fight Tyson was a symbol of darkness, bad morals, wicked behavior. He said he wanted to kill Lewis and eat his children. Bob Arum said he should be put in an insane asylum. Oscar De La Hoya called him the worst role model in the world, said Tyson was seriously sick. At that time in his life Tyson was very bad, he was broke, and fighting to pay debts. He blew hundreds of millions and was fighting to only lower his debts. He was in a bad place and his behavior and words reflected it. But since the fight he has been nothing but class. As if he was touched by the greatness of Lewis and it made him better. Or maybe the burden was gone to have to live up to the image of the baddest man on the planet. Since Memphis Tyson has been a class act, a true champ. But the years before that fight he was the complete opposite.

Question: Were you happy with the finished product?

Scoop Malinowski: Aside from a few typo errors here and there yes. With the access I have in boxing, and the way the book was all put together, I could not have made it any better. The historical quotations in each chapter are a nice added bonus.

Question: Why should sports fans read this?

Scoop Malinowski: It’s a very good read about a historical heavyweight boxing event. Big fights are the most exciting events in all of sports. The whole world is captivated by the biggest fights. But the whole stories about those fights are even better. Like they say, the book was better than the movie, I really tried to make this book better than the fight itself. Like the film “Rocky” was great not because of the fight sequence but because of the 90 minute story leading up to the Balboa-Creed match. Mike Tyson and Lennox Lewis are two of the greatest champions ever, two colorful characters each in their own way. For a boxing writer, they are both very easy and appealing subjects to write about and chronicle.

“Heavyweight Armageddon” is available at www.Amazon.com, www.borders.com and www.barnesandnoble.com.

Since he was involved in the fight and knew much of the inside story I wasn’t sure if he would really enjoy the book, even though I tried to add as many rare and little known anecdotes to try to please all readers, whether fans, media or boxing insiders. Well it turns out Emanuel Steward loves the book.

The great boxing man Emanuel Steward, even contacted a mutual friend, Philip Anselmo, the musician and vocalist for Pantera and Down, to get my phone number and called around 10 o’clock on Monday night, with this to say:

“It’s a smashing success. It’s a very good book, easy to read, flows nicely, you did a ton of research. I really enjoyed reliving that experience. All the craziness with Crocodile and all that stuff. On the flight to Vegas for the Hatton-Pacquiao fight, I signed more copies of your book than any book I’ve ever signed, all the Brits were on the flight to Vegas, they kept coming up to me with the books. Then when I got to Vegas I kept seeing these books with the two red gloves. They had me sign covers, the inside pages. This is your legacy here. Yours and George Kimball’s book (The Four Kings) are two of the best boxing books I’ve ever read.”

It was a true honor to hear such a compliment, such words that I have not heard in years, the last big moments being when Richard Williams, father of Venus and Serena, said after being Biofiled in 2004 at the US Open – “That’s the best interview I’ve ever done.”

Thanks again to Emanuel Steward.