Q+A Lennox Lewis

The three-time heavyweight champion (41-2-1 with 32 KOs) is
starring in a new commercial campaign for Red Stripe beer.

SI: Are you fighting anyone in the commercial?

Lewis: Just a crate.

SI: Does it get knocked out?

Lewis: Yeah, he gets totaled.

SI: You, Gene Tunney and Rocky Marciano are the only boxers to
retire while heavyweight champ. Why is it so hard for most
fighters to walk away on top?

Lewis: Oh, the money. And the people saying, "Come on, you got
one more fight in you."

SI: So how did you do it?

Lewis: Money wasn't my motive. Becoming heavyweight champion of
the world was my motive.

SI: Where do you rank among the top heavyweights?

Lewis: Up there in the top five, with Muhammad Ali, Joe Louis,
George Foreman and Rocky Marciano.

SI: You've appeared in Ocean's Eleven and Arli$$. Is it fun
playing yourself?

Lewis: Yeah. It's the greatest role ever.

SI: Does sex before a fight really sap a boxer's strength?

Lewis: Yes, the day before. Give the legs a rest.

SI: Mike Tyson once said he wanted to eat your children. Do you
think he would actually do it?

Lewis: Well, he actually tried. He bit me on the thigh in New
York at a press conference. That was pretty close to my willy, so
when he's talking about eating my kids, that's what he's talking
about.

SI: In your only fight with Tyson you knocked him out. Where does
that victory rank among your fights?

Lewis: It ranks high as far as street cred because I used to go
to a barber store to get a haircut, and it was always about
Tyson. Only until they saw me in the ring with him did they say
it's about Lennox.

SI: Is there still a public demand for Tyson to box?

Lewis: Totally. Every time I see somebody on the street, they
say, "Are you going to fight Mike again?" Mike doesn't want to
fight me again. If we fight again, it would be sad. But people
love a train wreck.

SI: Is there any chance you'll come back for one last megafight?

Lewis: One hundred percent, no chance.

--Richard Deitsch

For more from Lennox Lewis, go to si.com/siexclusive.

TWO COLOR PHOTOS: MARK J. TERRILL/AP (2)