Boxing enthusiasts rub shoulders with heavyweight great Lennox Lewis
Lewis was the guest of honour during the WBC Interim Bridgerweight world title fight between Kevin Lerena and German national Senad Gashi.
Local boxing aficionados had the opportunity to meet and greet former undisputed world heavyweight champion Lennox ‘The Lion’ Lewis at Emperors Palace on November 24.
Lewis, who won 41 bouts (32 KOs), lost twice and drew once in his 44-match career spanning over a decade, was the guest of honour during the WBC Interim Bridgerweight world title fight between Kevin ‘Two Guns’ Lerena and German national Senad Gashi at the Palace of Dreams on November 25.
The three-time world heavyweight champion, who beat Evander Holyfield in the unification bout in November 1999, took photos with Benonians James Gradidge, Bronwyn Engelbrecht and Joe de Carvalho, as well as Keane Yearham and Teresa Beata during a cocktail event held in his honour on November 24.
Lewis also met Boksburg resident Nick Lourens during the weigh-in, where Lerena registered 100kg on the scales while his opponent weighed 99.50kg.
The British pugilist, the last heavyweight boxer to hold the undisputed heavyweight championship, also witnessed Lerena go hammer and tongs with Gashi over 12 rounds inside the squared circle.
Lerena dominated the German, who was penalised several times for low blows and won the fight with a unanimous decision to become the third South African to hold the WBC world belt.
Two Guns peppered Gashi with important blows for much of the bout and knocked him down in the 12th round, winning unanimously by points to improve his record to 30 wins (14 KOs) and two losses while the German suffered his fourth loss.
The fight was scored 118-109 and 117-110 by judges Robert Verwijs and Thabo Spampool, respectively, while Namhla Tyuluba had Lerena win by a point as she scored the bout 114-113, despite the southpaw’s dominance of the match.
Lerena now waits for the winner of the bout between the actual bridgerweight heavyweight champion Lukasz Rozanski and Canadian Badou Jack, pencilled for February.
If he wins that match, he will become the fully-fledged bridgerweight heavyweight champion of the world.
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