Lewis refuses to take Tyson lightly

LENNOX Lewis is taking no chances against his old sparring partner Mike Tyson when he defends his world heavyweight titles here tomorrow night. Painful memories of his setback against Hasim Rahman a year ago have made sure of that.

Lewis took Rahman lightly, and lost his world heavyweight title to a man who did not look fit to lace his boots. Now he knows another lapse could deny him the place he craves in the heavyweight hall of fame.

So, despite all the gloom which has gathered around Tyson’s career since his halcyon days of the mid-1980s, and the extra-curricular activities which have blunted his ferocity, Lewis is on his guard. "I think if I go in there thinking I can blow him out in two rounds, or it’s an easy fight, that’s the wrong approach," said Lewis.

"Mike Tyson isn’t a superhero - he is one troubled puppy. His skill level has gone down. I have found a great blueprint by watching his fights against guys like Holyfield, Tillis and Douglas. But right now I am thinking that Tyson is still the best fighter in the world."

Lewis has completed his preparations at the Sam’s Town Casino in Tunica, 30 miles outside Memphis, and can hardly wait to reach the Pyramid where, at approximately 4:15am on Sunday morning UK time, he will engage in a fight which was first predicted for him almost two decades ago.

Lewis turned up at Cus D’Amato’s gym in upstate New York seeking sparring. He was on his way to the Dominican Republic, where he would win the world junior title, and had heard that D’Amato might have a suitable opponent.

Tyson obliged, and the outcome of four days of intense activity has been disputed ever since. Lewis insisted yesterday that that first and only previous meeting had ended in a scoring draw. "We heard about this young cat up in New York called Mike Tyson. The first day we stepped in the ring to spar, this cat runs across the ring and tries to knock me out. I was dancing around, boxing him. We went at it pretty good.

"He gave me a fat lip, but I gave him a bloody mouth.

"Afterwards, D’Amato told me one thing which has always stuck in my mind. He told me one day that Tyson and I would meet. As time went on, I did not think it was going to come true, but now it has."

Lewis weighed in at 17st 11¼lb last night, just over 3lb heavier than he was for his last fight against Rahman in Las Vegas in November, when he won in the fourth round to reclaim his title.

Lewis stepped on to the scales looking lean and focused, but did not answer any questions before returning to Tunica to make final preparations.

However, this week Lewis has spoken eloquently and confidently to the assembled media at his base camp. Five miles down the road, there is still not a squeak from Tyson. The only utterance out of his camp this week was a profanity-ridden outburst from his co-trainer, Stacey McKinlay.

Lewis believes the ranting is not intended to unsettle his preparations, rather because the Tyson camp are still trying to convince themselves that the hard-living 35-year-old who employs them can somehow rise back to the top of the world again. "All that is gutter talk and that is where it all belongs," said Lewis. "Tyson is making his puppets talk for him. They are keeping him away from the public because he is a troubled man."

But Lewis knows that he must beat Tyson in order to establish undisputedly that he is the best heavyweight of his generation and, if his trainer, Emanuel Steward, is to be believed, the best since Muhammad Ali.

"This is a fight which is important for me and for this era of boxing," said Lewis, who refused to discuss what might happen next, although at 36 retirement cannot be far off.