Lennox Lewis vs Shannon Briggs | 28th March 1998 | Boardwalk Convention Center, Atlantic City, USA

Lewis was a 12-1 favorite. Lewis earned $4 million and Briggs million. There was a crowd of 9,173. The fight aired live on HBO. In his previous fight, on November 22, 1997, Briggs defeated George Foreman by a controversial 12-round majority decision to win the Lineal World Heavyweight Championship. Jay Searcy of the Philadelphia Inquirer reported: Lewis charged across the ring to meet Briggs, hit mostly arms and elbows, then was backed away by an overhand right by Briggs, the first solid punch of the fight. A more cautious Lewis then began stalking, stepping into Briggs behind his long jab. Then, out of nowhere, Briggs caught Lewis with the left hook that sent him reeling into the ropes, and before he could get his balance, Briggs was back on him, flailing away. Lewis covered and tried to tie up Briggs, but Briggs stepped back and hit him on the head with a right that turned Lewis around. Lewis caught himself with his gloves to keep from falling, then covered on the ropes and was saved by the bell. Briggs went back to his corner with a smile on his face, and when he returned for Round 2, he was like a schoolboy with a new bike. He unloaded the left again and caught Lewis flush again, but this time Lewis held Briggs with an armlock, which drew a warning from the referee. By Round 3, Lewis seemed to have regained his composure and peppered Briggs with a piston jab, catching him twice with right hand leads to Briggs’ jaw. Briggs began bleeding from the mouth. Briggs ran into a flurry of head shots at the start of Round 4, grabbed the top rope to keep from falling, then ran into another flurry that sent him reeling backward, his knees bending. The ropes kept him from going down. But Lewis, smelling the end, was on top of him again, and this time a solid right to the head put Briggs on his back. He looked to his corner for help, got up, and fought back before the bell. When Briggs returned for Round 5, his mouth was open, oozing blood, and Lewis was punishing him now with the jab, with uppercuts and combinations that Briggs couldn’t avoid. Then a left hook from left field caught Briggs and sent him down once more. But Briggs managed to get up at the count of eight and tried to fight back, but couldn’t. He went down again, and this time Cappuccino waved the bout over. Briggs, on his knees, looked up and argued. Quotes Lennox Lewis: “He was a game fighter. That’s because I made it personal. He was braver than I expected. He did a lot of talking during the week, so he had to back it up. That’s why he got up off the canvas three times. I knew my defense was too good for him.“ Shannon Briggs: “I hurt him a couple of times. I wasn’t at my best. I wanted to use the whole ring and counter. His range was better than I expected. . . . Lennox didn’t hit as hard as George [Foreman], but he was not far behind in power. I should have stuck to my plan. I should have been more steady, but I went into a frenzy after I hurt him.“ #lennoxlewis #ShannonBriggs #heavyweightboxing