All week long we’ve been hearing people say, “this is heavyweight boxing – anything can happen.” And, “with the heavyweights, it only takes one punch.” Tyson Fury is a heavy favorite over Dillian Whyte, with the bookies and with the pundits (most of the pundits, anyway), yet Whyte has for sure got the proverbial ‘puncher’s chance.’
It would of course be a big upset if Whyte were to defeat Fury, all the more so if Whyte managed to knock Fury out. But as we know, a big heavyweight upset/shocker/stunner does roll around every now and then.
It was 21 years ago today when we perhaps witnessed the biggest heavyweight upset this side of Buster Douglas KO10 Mike Tyson.
Lennox Lewis, a massive favorite in every department, was, instead of picking up a relatively straightforward title retention, knocked silly by a fully prepared Hasim Rahman; “Rock” being a challenger who had prepared like a champion.
Lewis, who felt a better use of his time would be served by filming a short appearance in the movie, ‘Ocean’s 11’ – not in acclimatizing fully to the altitude in Johannesburg, South Africa – was to be made to pay for his arrogance.
Gasping for air by the fourth round, an out of gas Lewis was chopped down by a Rahman right-hand bomb in the fifth round. It was bizarre the way Lewis went down whilst wearing a sloppy smile on his face.
But Rahman was the one who was laughing. He was now the heavyweight king, set, we felt, for a decent reign and set to earn many big paydays.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nwBQoMcGYCk
Instead, Rahman’s reign was brief, with him being iced by a well-conditioned, this time fully focused Lewis in the November rematch. Still, all these years later, for Lewis’s critics, the loss forever tarnished Lennox’s legacy, at least to a degree.
How badly would a KO loss to Dillian Whyte affect Tyson Fury’s legacy? Would it be an even bigger upset if Whyte chopped down Fury?
Fury, unlike Lewis, has worked as hard as can be in getting ready for Saturday’s fight (so we have been led to believe, and there is no real reason to question Fury’s diligence in training camp), and he has had no distractions the way Lewis had distractions.
So, to this end, it would perhaps be a bigger shock if Fury was laid out on Saturday.
No one is saying it will happen, but we all know it could happen. Whyte can crack, just like Rahman could crack, and if he catches Fury with an all-mighty bomb………who knows?
How shocked would YOU be if Whyte did to Fury what Rahman did to Lewis all those years ago?
