"Holyfield can't say he's the best boxer on the planet. He's boxed Riddick Bowe three times and Mike Tyson twice. I'm the man to beat him."
"I've been ducked by everyone in the heavyweight division for years.On October 4, I'm going to give Golota a beating that the boxing world will not soon forget."
"...If the fight can be worked out between Lennox and myself, then we'd have the fight between the two best champions."
"This will be a replay of Foreman-Frazier," Steward said. "Lennox is just too strong for Evander. Evander's developed a lot of scar tissue from all the wars he's been in and Lennox is going to bust up that scar tissue. The fight won't last four rounds."
Lewis on Tyson-Botha:"What he says won't worry me any more than it will bother Botha," says Lewis. "Anyone can make foolish statements.Let's see what he does in the ring."
Foreman on Lewis: "I've always been a Lennox Lewis fan. He's tall and he's got a good left jab.
"When I step into that 20 by 20 ring I ain't looking out of it until the end. I'm gonna go in there and definitely HIT Evander Holyfield"
- Emanuel Steward
July 1999 issue, Ring magazine featured their annual "State of the Game" report.
HEAVYWEIGHTS:
a) Lennox Lewis: Best Puncher/Best Boxer
b) Matchmaker�s Dream: Lennox Lewis vs. Michael Grant
c) Best 1998 fight: Lennox Lewis TKO 5 Shannon Briggs
LEWIS-HOLY RANKED 1 OF THE MOST ANTICIPATED BOUTS OF THE DECADE!(CBS Sportsline) and is the #1 reason 1999 will be a great year for boxing!(Ring magazine)
"HE(LEWIS) CONTROLLED THE FIGHT. IT WASN'T EVEN CLOSE," -Emanuel Steward after Lewis-Holy I.
"What do I want my legacy to be? Good," said Lewis, sitting on the ring apron in Madison Square Garden to talk to reporters Monday after a brief workout during which the gentle lilt of several Bob Marley songs played in the background.
"I want it to be that this is a man, basically an outsider, who did it his way. A man who stayed away from bad promoters, bad managers."