Lennox Lewis vs Hasim Rahman

Hasim Rahman won the World Boxing Council, International Boxing Federation and International Boxing Organisation heavyweight championships by knocking out Lennox Lewis in the fifth round at Carnival City in Brakpan, South Africa, on April 22, 2001. Rahman, a 20–1 outsider, drove the champion backwards with a right hand and then struck him squarely on the jaw with another. Lewis fell heavily near the ropes and remained on the canvas as referee Daniel Van de Wiele completed the count. The official time was 2 minutes 32 seconds.

Lewis entered with a record of 38 victories, one defeat and one draw and was making the tenth defence of his second WBC reign. He weighed approximately 254 pounds, the heaviest of his career to that point. Rahman weighed 238 and brought a record of 34 wins and two defeats. The challenger had lost to David Tua and Oleg Maskaev but had rebuilt his position with five consecutive victories, including a seventh-round stoppage of Corrie Sanders after recovering from two knockdowns. He was regarded as strong and willing, though few expected him to overcome a champion who had defeated Evander Holyfield, Michael Grant, Frans Botha and David Tua in his previous four contests.

The contest was staged at altitude outside Johannesburg. Rahman had arrived in South Africa several weeks before the fight and trained locally, allowing himself time to become accustomed to the conditions. Lewis completed much of his preparation in Las Vegas, where he had been involved in filming scenes for Ocean’s Eleven, and reached South Africa less than two weeks before the contest. His camp maintained that he was properly prepared, although his late arrival and outside commitments received close attention after the defeat.

Rahman began with greater assurance than had been expected. He used a firm jab, moved forward behind a high guard and refused to be discouraged by Lewis’s size or reputation. Lewis worked at a measured pace, pawing with the left hand and looking for the straight right. Rahman won the first round on judge Dave Parris’s card, while Valerie Dorsett and Thabo Spampool favoured Lewis. The challenger nevertheless showed immediately that he intended to contest the centre of the ring rather than remain at long range and wait for the champion to attack.

Lewis increased his work in the second. His jab found the target more regularly, and he landed a right hand as Rahman attempted to move inside. The champion appeared relaxed and began to establish the distance from which he had controlled so many previous challengers. Rahman continued advancing, however, and made Lewis work whenever the champion moved towards the ropes. He was not quick enough to match Lewis punch for punch at long range, but he was physically strong and remained prepared to exchange.

The third followed a similar course. Lewis scored with the jab and brought the right hand behind it, while Rahman continued pressing and occasionally reached the body. Lewis appeared to be taking command, but he was not dominating without resistance. Rahman kept the champion moving backwards and forced him to defend more often than had been anticipated. Dorsett and Spampool gave Lewis each of the first three rounds, while Parris had the challenger winning the first before conceding the next two.

Rahman produced his best work of the contest to that point in the fourth. He stepped forward more urgently, drove Lewis towards the ropes and landed a right hand to the head. Lewis answered with his own straight punches but remained too close to the boundary of the ring and did not consistently turn the challenger after scoring. Rahman’s pressure earned him the round from Dorsett and Spampool, though Parris favoured Lewis. All three officials, therefore, had the champion ahead by 39–37 entering the fifth, but Rahman had established that he could force him backwards and reach him with the right hand.

Lewis began the fifth behind the jab and landed several clean punches. Rahman absorbed them and continued to move forward. The champion appeared comfortable enough to exchange remarks and smiles with the challenger, but his back repeatedly approached the ropes. Rahman followed steadily, using the jab to occupy Lewis’s guard and waiting for the right hand. Lewis landed a sharp uppercut during one exchange, yet Rahman was neither hurt nor discouraged.

The decisive sequence began when Rahman forced Lewis towards the ropes once more. He threw a right hand that moved the champion backwards and then followed before Lewis could circle clear. Lewis leaned away with his hands low and attempted to escape along the ropes. Rahman stepped with him and released a straight right over the champion’s left. The punch landed flush on the jaw. Lewis fell backwards beneath the lower rope, his head striking the canvas as his legs folded beneath him.

Van de Wiele immediately began the count. Lewis rolled to one side and attempted to rise, but had not recovered his balance. He was still on the canvas when the referee reached ten. There was no dispute over the count or the force of the blow. Rahman had ended the contest with a single accurate right hand delivered after several rounds of persistent pressure.

The knockout brought Lewis’s unbeaten run of more than six years to an end. His only previous defeat had come against Oliver McCall at Wembley Arena in September 1994, also by an early knockout. As on that occasion, Lewis had appeared in control shortly before being caught by a decisive right hand. Against Rahman, however, the champion had been given repeated warnings by the challenger’s forward movement and success in forcing him towards the ropes.

Lewis expressed disbelief afterwards and maintained that he had felt comfortable before the final punch. Rahman said that he had never doubted his ability to win and had prepared to prevent the champion from dictating the contest. His confidence had been evident from the first round. He did not box as a man hoping to survive until an opportunity appeared; he contested the jab, accepted Lewis’s punches and repeatedly placed the champion in the part of the ring where he was most vulnerable.

The result was named both Upset of the Year and Knockout of the Year by The Ring. Rahman had overturned the expectations surrounding the contest and become heavyweight champion at the age of 28. Lewis had underestimated neither the danger of a heavyweight right hand nor Rahman’s determination in theory, but his performance lacked the sharpness and discipline seen in his victories over Grant, Botha and Tua. His weight, late arrival, and divided preparation did not throw the punch that defeated him, yet they provided reasonable grounds to question whether he had entered at his best.

A contractual clause guaranteed Lewis an immediate return contest, although Rahman initially sought other arrangements after his victory. The rematch was eventually held in Las Vegas seven months later. On this night in Brakpan, however, the titles belonged to Rahman. He had arrived early, prepared thoroughly and taken advantage when Lewis allowed himself to be driven into a dangerous position. The right hand was sudden, but the opportunity for it had been built through four rounds of steady, confident work.