featured unbeaten light heavyweight contender Montell Griffin in a title tuneup and future welterweight/junior middleweight titleholder Vernon Forrest. The co-main event was a 10-round bout to determine the top contender for the WBC heavyweight title: former titleholder Lennox Lewis against former WBO beltholder “Merciless” Ray Mercer. Although it was not a title fight, it felt like one! Lewis had been the unbeaten WBC heavyweight titleholder until he was separated from his crown – and his senses – by Oliver McCall in a stunning second-round knockout 20 months earlier. Knockouts of Lionel Butler, Justin Fortune and Tommy Morrison in 1995 put Lewis back in title contention. Mercer, too, was in a bit of a slump. After losing a decision to trial horse Jesse Ferguson in a lackluster effort in February 1993, Mercer finished the year with three victories in a row, including a rematch decision win over Ferguson. However, in the eight months that followed, Mercer put on 23 pounds. When he stepped into the ring against the 7-9-2 Marion Wilson in July 1994, he was at a career-heavy 246 pounds. He was lucky to escape with a 10-round split draw. Main Events liked what they saw and matched their Holyfield against Mercer. Although Mercer chopped off the extra weight, it wasn’t enough, as Holyfield edged him in a competitive fight. While Lewis stayed busy in 1995, Mercer simply stayed in the gym. Ten days shy of one year after losing to Holyfield, Mercer found himself in with Lewis at MSG. Everyone knew how much the fight meant to both men. You could feel it. The noise level in MSG that night was deafening. It was the 1988 Olympic super heavyweight champion, Lewis, against the 1988 Olympic heavyweight champion, Mercer. Both looked like champions. Lewis weighed in at a well-conditioned 247 pounds. Mercer weighed in at 238.
From my ringside seat, I glanced at referee Arthur Mercante. I had figured this assignment would go to either Mercante Jr. or to one of New York’s other two top refs – Wayne Kelly or Ron Lipton. Mercante was given the co-feature, while Lipton was handed the main event between Holyfield and Czyz. The judges were Melvina Lathan (who I had given a judge’s license to early in my tenure and watched as she quickly became one of the best in the sport), George Colon and former referee turned judge Luis Rivera. I remember thinking I would have chosen either Don Ackerman or Billy Costello. The fight was fast-paced from the start, with Mercer putting on immediate pressure and slamming both hands to the body. It was like that round after round. Sometimes Lewis did a bit more, sometimes the nod went to Mercer. I kept a scorecard. It was close all the way. At the final bell, I looked at HBO’s “Unofficial Scorer,” the late Harold Lederman, who was one of my closest friends. He signaled to me with his hands that he had scored the fight a 95- 95 draw. I looked at my card. I had it 96-94 for Mercer. My writer colleagues at ringside were mixed, but a majority of them had Mercer winning. Then came the scores, read by ring announcer Michael Buffer: “Melvina Lathan scores the bout 95- 95 even. Luis Rivera scored the bout 96 to 95 … George Colon scored the bout 96 to 94 … to the winner on a split decision … Lennox Lewwwwwis.” While the bout was announced as a split decision, it was, in fact, a majority decision. The fact is, two of the three people who mattered most (Colon and Rivera) had Lewis the winner. In a recent interview with this columnist, Mercer said, “I have always believed I won that fight. I believe I did enough to win. If you go with the numbers, I landed the greater percentage of punches, and I even landed more jabs than he did, both in numbers and in percentage.” Indeed, both are true statements. In overall punches, Mercer
landed 59% while Lewis landed 41%. Naturally, Lennox Lewis sees it differently. “It was a close fight, no doubt,” Lewis said. “But I believe I did enough to win.” Mercante, who is still a top referee, smiled when the Lewis-Mercer fight was mentioned to him. “What a fight that was!” he said. “They are two incredible athletes, two tremendous champions and two outstanding gentlemen. It was an honor to work their bout.” Asked if he could give his opinion now, 30 years after the fact, Mercante didn’t hesitate. “As I stood between the fighters, waiting to raise the winner’s hand,” Mercante recalled, “I was certain Michael Buffer would say, ‘... to the winner, Ray Mercer.’” Today, Mercer shrugs and laughs it off. He is more popular than ever, possibly on the road at speaking engagements more than he is home in North Carolina. “Lennox and I really brought it that night in Madison Square Garden. He brought his best and I brought my best. He hit me harder than anybody ever hit me.” Asked if he has any grudge or anger at not winning the decision, he shook his head. “I wasn’t angry that night in MSG and I’m not angry now. Lennox Lewis was a great, great heavyweight champ. He was one of the best. He brought out the best in me! We see each other a lot. When we do, we only have love for each other.” That’s quite commendable. But it’s understandable, coming from a former U.S. Army sergeant, Olympic gold medalist and professional heavyweight world titleholder. Ray Mercer doesn’t just have the heart of a champion. He is – and always will be – a champion. That night in Madison Square Garden may have been 30 years ago, but it seems as if it was just yesterday. When I close my eyes and think about that night, it WAS yesterday!
Ray Mercer gave Lennox Lewis one of the toughest fights of his Hall of Fame career.
COMMISSIONER’S CORNER CLOSE FIGHT, GREAT NIGHT By Randy Gordon
I t was Friday night, May 10, 1996. I was ringside, among the crowd of 17,041 in Madison Square Garden that night. For both me and promoter Main Events, it was a strange, melancholy evening. For me it was because for the first time in my adult life, I was ringside, not as the chairman of the New York State Athletic Commission or as a sportswriter or sportscaster. I was
there as the boxing promoter for the Foxwoods Resort Casino. Nine months earlier, a gubernatorial change in New York had ended my tenure at the helm of New York’s regulatory agency for combat sports. As for Main Events, they were promoting a boxing card for the first time without their leader, Dan Duva. Just four months earlier, Dan had passed away from brain cancer. This was a card Dan Duva would
have been proud of. Main Events appropriately billed the evening “One Big Night.” The eight-fight card had six major heavyweight bouts featured. Among the top names on the card were Evander Holyfield, Bobby Czyz, Tim Witherspoon, the unbeaten heavyweight Courage Tshabalala, fast-rising prospect Gary Bell and undefeated 6-foot-7, 251-pound slugger Michael Grant. The two non-heavyweight bouts
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