LEWIS WOULD DESTROY TYSON - BUGNER

By Ian Gordon, PA Sport, Gold Coast

Joe Bugner predicted last Tuesday that world heavyweight champion Lennox Lewis will destroy Mike Tyson with a single punch if they ever climb into the ring together.

Bugner reckons the fight could take place next year with a Lewis victory confirming his status as a fighter to be ranked with Muhammad Ali, Joe Frazier, George Foreman and the rest of the greats.

"It will be the biggest fight of all time," said the 50-year-old who is now an Australian citizen.

"But Lewis will play with Tyson, he will make him look so amateurish. Tyson has always shown lots of growling, lots of venom and lots of viciousness.

"Fighters were too scared of him, until he met Evander Holyfield who out Tysoned Tyson.

"Tyson might harry Lewis for four rounds or so, but then Lewis will produce one shot that will take him right out. That's how good he is.

"I think Lennox really is so talented a fighter. I would put him up there alongside Ali."

Bugner, who to Ali, admits there will be no more returns to the ring, saying: "I have had more comebacks than a yo-yo, but not any more. The wife really would kill me."

Despite having to sell off his vineyard in Australia, admitting "I drank the profits", Bugner believes he is making more money now than he did during his fighting hey-day.

Apart from endorsing a meat-pie aptly named 'Aussie Joe's Heavyweight Pie', and several advertising jobs, Bugner will also be commentating on the boxing for Channel 7 in Australia during the Olympics.

Bugner said that he had also been offered the chance to become the latest boxer to switch to the stage, playing a part in Cinderella during the pantomime season in Brighton this Christmas.

"I would have to be one of the ugly sisters," said Bugner, who now lives in Surfer's Paradise on Queensland's Gold Coast. "Perhaps Frank Bruno could play the other!"

Binkowski hopes to follow in Lennox's footsteps

BY ALAN BALDWIN, Reuters

SYDNEY, Australia (September 11, 2000 2:06 p.m. EDT http://www.sportserver.com) - Canada's Artur Binkowski can safely say he is the only Olympic boxer in Sydney to have traded blows with Lennox Lewis and had the professional heavyweight champion drop by with a message of support.

The Polish-born super-heavyweight has sparred with Lewis at his U.S. training camp in the Poconos mountains on several occasions before title fights.

He helped Lewis out before one of his clashes with Evander Holyfield and most recently before the "homecoming" in London against the outclassed South African Frans Botha in July.

"The first time I ever got in the ring with Lennox, sparring-wise, I was kind of nervous," he recalled before a training session on Monday.

"It so happened that it was media day and you had all the reporters and all the cameras and stuff right in your face...second time it was different.

"I held my own, you know. I expected Lennox to come at me and rip my head off...He did manage to give me a black eye but it was quite an experience.

"Being down here and looking at some of my possible opponents and comparing these guys to Lennox, they don't match in any way.

"I was hit by the best and occasionally hit the best, I did land some punches on Lennox."

Binkowski emerged on sufficiently good terms to get ringside seats to watch Lewis and be assured by the champion that he would be backing him in Sydney.

"The last day (at the training camp) he stepped by my room and he mentioned that he was going to do his best to come to Sydney and cheer me on," said the 25-year-old.

SAME TOWN, SAME COACH

Having stepped into the ring with the champ, Binkowski is now ready to step into Lewis's Olympic boots.

Lewis, although born in London, fought in two Olympics for Canada and won the 1988 super-heavyweight gold.

He said at the Botha fight in July that he would be attending the Games to scout for future professional talent that he hoped to help develop.

"Lennox gave me a few tips as to what to expect and the gameplan I should be going into the ring with," said Binkowski.

Despite the fact that the cropped Canadian is obviously white, while the dreadlocked Lewis is far larger and definitely black, the two have much in common.

Although Binkowski says he is much better looking -- "and don't be afraid to say that because I am not afraid to say that to Lennox's face" -- they share a similar fighting background.

They came to Canada from abroad and settled in Kitchener, Ontario, where they shared the same amateur coach, Arnie Boehm, who will also be in Sydney.

Binkowski will fight in the same weight division that Lewis did and sees some other omens too.

"It just so happens, coincidence or whatever, that when Lennox won the gold medal in Seoul in 1988... it was in the same time zone roughly and the final here is going to be on same day, October 1, that he won the gold," he said.

However Binkowski admits he was not always a Lewis supporter: the first time he saw him fight was against Poland's Andrew Golota in Atlantic City.

"At that time I believed in Golota. I had nothing against Lennox...but I was going to see Golota," he said.

"Lennox sent the message that he would be more than happy to provide the ticket so that I could see how my countryman will get destroyed.

"So I get down there and bang, bang. Game over in 95 seconds. Since that day I put all my support and belief in Lennox because he is the true heavyweight champion."