Lennox Lewis traveled to South Africa on April 21, 2001 to take on Hasim Rahman. Rahman had been a regular on USA’s Tuesday night fights, and was a decent enough fighter, but I really didn’t think Lennox would have any trouble with him. I sat down on my recliner to tune into the action on HBO to catch the action.
Lewis’s weight of 253 and 1/2 lbs. kind of bothered me, but I figured it would be insignificant. The first three rounds were pretty routine, with Lennox landing jabs and controlling the bout. However, out of nowhere, a howitzer of a right hand late in the fourth knocked Lewis down and out. I was shocked to say the least, and there was a new heavyweight champion of the world.
A rematch was signed for November, after a summer of Rahman bragging, and running off at the mouth. When both men appeared to promote their second fight on ESPN, they got into a wrestling match, after Hasim continued to antagonize Lennox. I really looked forward to Lewis shutting this guy up when they met again in the fall of 2001.
I gladly ordered the pay-per-view for the November 17 battle at the Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas. Lennox was in top shape and motivated and dominated the bout until the fourth round, when a sizzling right hand knocked Rahman out cold. It remains today as one of my favorite all time knockouts, and it put the heavyweight belt back where it belonged, in the hands of Lennox Lewis. It would remain there until he retired two years later.
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