Lewis leisurely preparing for Rahman
by Dan Rafael, USA TODAY
Perhaps someone should tell Lennox Lewis that he's defending the heavyweight title this weekend, because it seems he is paying attention to everything but his foe, Hasim Rahman.
Lewis and Rahman meet in Johannesburg, South Africa — in the wee hours Sunday morning to accommodate HBO's live coverage Saturday night at 10 ET in the USA — and the landscape appears ripe for an upset.
"This is the biggest opportunity of my life, and I will be very prepared," says Rahman (34-2, 28 KOs), a 20-1 underdog who trained at altitude in the Catskill Mountains in New York. He also left his wife and three children to go to South Africa nearly a month ago so he'd have time to get used to the 6-hour time difference and 6,000-foot elevation.
"For me it's a big deal, an adjustment," Rahman says. "I'm adjusting well."
Lewis (No. 1 USA TODAY, 38-1-1, 29 KOs), meanwhile, had other things to do. He trained in Las Vegas, made a movie, talked about a future fight and didn't arrive in South Africa until 11 days ago despite being advised to go at least 3 weeks before the fight.
"I'm in great shape, so I took a few days off to make a movie," Lewis says. "I've boxed at altitude many times and traveled all over the place. I'm used to it."
Rahman counters, "I'll see if I can free up some more time so he can act on a full-time basis."
Lewis shot scenes for Ocean's Eleven, a remake of a Rat Pack film starring Julia Roberts, Brad Pitt and George Clooney. The movie is set to the backdrop of a title fight between Lewis and European star Wladimir Klitschko. On the set the two talked privately about a real fight this fall, believing that publicity generated by the movie will help sell a fight on pay-per-view.
"I came 2 weeks before (the fight) to acclimatize," says Lewis, who predicts a knockout inside five rounds. "I've been at this game a long time and I know what I need. I'm way ahead of schedule. I didn't get out of shape while taking a break from my last fight (vs. David Tua in November)."
Whether that is true remains to be seen. At Tuesday's unofficial weigh-in, a fully clothed Lewis was a mountainous 269 pounds (Rahman was 247). Lewis' highest fighting weight was 251 in a 1997 rematch vs. Oliver McCall.
Lewis has done other things that have led to speculation he's taking the fight lightly. He canceled a public workout, spent time visiting an orphanage, attended a memorial service honoring soccer fans killed last week and arranged to meet Nelson Mandela.
"If he thinks he's in for an easy fight, then he's in for a shock," Rahman says. "I'm ready for war. I'm willing to give up everything. It'll be a fight. They're giving me no chance, and that's ridiculous." |
