By David Field, PA Sport Boxing Correspondent, New York
Emanuel Steward believes in the fear factor, and imparts that thinking into the minds of his world champions.
Lennox Lewis has been no different from any other of Steward's galaxy of celebrity fighters over the years, and it has been the same in the build up to Saturday's heavyweight title defence against Michael Grant at Madison Square Garden.
"I've told Lennox, coming into this fight, that he has worked hard to become undisputed champion of the world, and after all this effort, if he goes and loses in his first defence it's going to be so damn painful," said the master trainer from Detroit, in an engaging 'Great Debate' with rival coach Don Turner at Home Box Office headquarters in Manhattan.
"You are going to have to start another three-year campaign to become champion again, go through all the politics again.
"The fear of failure that I've always had, I try to impart that to my guys, some say you should only talk positive, positive talk, but I don't buy that. I talk negative to my fighters.
"When I talk to boxers I am always very honest with them, and one of the things I tell them is it is like if you are making a video, a movie that you are not going to be able to edit afterwards, and for the rest of the their lives they are actually going to have to live with that.
"I remember my world light heavyweight champion Dennis Andries fighting Bobby Czyz, an important bout for him.
"I told him I knew he was tired but that he had to push himself, do the best he could because it would have been a permanent nightmare."
Neither, too, should Lewis concern himself about officials for the Grant fight, insists Steward.
Last night the referee and judges were still the subject of debate by the champion's camp with the New York commission.
Steward contends that Lewis is well-enough known in America for it to be of little difference, and spends much of his time training in the United States.
Indeed, 11 of his last 12 fights have been on Stateside, the other being in Dublin between his two terms as champion.
Steward revealed yesterday that in the seventh of those 11 outings, against Shannon Briggs, he performed a kind of 'acupuncture' treatment with his fingers to clear Lewis's head after getting badly hurt in the opening round of that Atlantic City fight, a skill he learned in China.
He foresees Lewis being able to fight on victorious for another three years, if he wants to - a major reason for the longevity being the lack of big contenders coming through the ranks, though entertaining a healthy regard for Ukraine's European champion and 1996 Olympic gold medallist, Vladimir Klitschko, who will be fighting on the New York bill tagged "Two Big".
Obviously, the one big one eluding him is a showdown with Mike Tyson.
At present Iron Mike is hoping to go into films, and if the Evander Holyfield-John Ruiz fight on June 10 is eventually recognised for the WBA title taken away from Lewis in a New York courtroom, Tyson could look for a third clash with Holyfield and not take the Lennox route.
"Tyson? I don't think he really wants to fight me. Holyfield? I've boxed him twice and he's still lurking around somewhere, trying to get in there again" said Lewis.
"Tyson just wants to be a movie star. The others are waiting for the big fight with me, but are just not doing enough to build up their names.
"I'll be remembered as showing the world that this is an outsider who's worked his way in, stayed away from bad promoters and bad managers. Tyson is doing the game, but he's not serious about it.
"There's only one fight of my era left out there for me now - Tyson. Grant is picking the right opposition now, he's not been sitting around like some of the other contenders, just waiting for the big pay day.
"I want my legacy to show that after becoming undisputed champion of the world, I wanted to meet the best there is, and that is Michael Grant."
Grant, and his 6ft 7in, 18st frame, will be standing in front of Lewis on Saturday.
If successful Lewis is set to trade muscle with South Africa's Frans Botha at the London Arena on July 15.
And Tyson? Lewis will just have to wait and hope.
