It has been ten years since Emanuel Steward died, aged 68, after a short battle.
Many times referred to as the “Godfather of Detroit boxing.” StewardHe was the founder of the Kronk gym, and Tommy Hearns. Lennox LewisWladimir Klitschko was instrumental in the success not only of three of the greatest fighters from three different eras but also of three of the most important fighters of all time.
Hearns was one of the Four Kings. He managed the transformation of Hearns from a mediocre puncher to one of the most destructive in history. In the similar great Lewis and Klitschko, he saved and rebuilt the careers two heavyweight champions whose futures were in jeopardy. Lewis is the “The” Lewis Oliver McCall, his former opponent, was his trainer, Steward had even proved the inspiration behind the significant upset victory that ultimately proved Lewis’ making.
So heavily favoured was Lewis, then the WBC heavyweight champion, the night of 24 September 1994 that not only had McCall been installed as a 5/1 underdog – even amid an awareness of his success as a sparring partner for Mike Tyson and Frank Bruno – but that an agreement existed for Lewis to fight his great rival Riddick Bowe the following March, after which it was hoped that the winner would meet the imprisoned Tyson. In McCall’s corner that night, however, working his 94th world title fight was Steward, as effective a motivator as he was technically and tactically aware.
Recognising Lewis remained reliant on his natural talent – since impressing in stopping Donovan ‘Razor’ Ruddock in two rounds he had laboured to victories over Tony Tucker, Bruno and Phil Jackson – Steward had prepared McCall to counter what he perceived to be Lewis’ lazy left hand. When one such left was thrown in the second round and Lewis’ chin was unprotected, McCall threw and landed a powerful right, knocking the champion to the canvas at Wembley Arena so heavily that after Lewis returned to his feet following a count of six the referee Jose Guadalupe Garcia rightly rescued him.
After being frustrated by the methods of Pepe Correa, Lewis was unable to defeat him. Angelo Dundee, recruited none other than Steward to be Correa’s successor and oversee the rebuild required to make him the world’s leading heavyweight. “I was making a lot of mistakes and I wasn’t being told about it,” Lewis later said. “I had a great cheerleader in my corner, but not much of a trainer. I do accept some responsibility.”
The most difficult night of Lewis’ career was also the greatest of the erratic McCall’s. By the time of their rematch, at the Hilton Hotel in Las Vegas on 7 February 1997, Lewis, under Steward’s guidance, had beaten Lionel Butler, Justin Fortune, Tommy Morrison and Ray Mercer. McCall, who had succeeded Steward with George Benton had beaten Larry Holmes and lost his title against Bruno before securing victories over Oleg Marcaev (and James Stanton).
After Tyson’s win, he had to give it up. “Lewis could lose his career if he loses, and he knows it,” Steward said, before sagely adding: “Oliver’s full of confidence that he can beat Lennox because he has been led to believe Lennox doesn’t have heart. But I don’t think he’ll ever attain the level he was at for the first fight again. He was extremely sharp and focused that night.”
“If Oliver McCall beats me, I deserve to retire,” Lewis had said. His opponent, asked about Steward’s role with Lewis, responded: “I prefer that Manny be in Lewis’ corner more than anyone else because I know what Manny will teach him to try to do to me.”
Even at a time when McCall remained a significant figure in the thriving heavyweight division, his career and psyche had started to unravel. McCall had been through legal difficulties and used drugs since September 1995’s defeat by Bruno. He had spent time in rehabilitation to overcome his addiction to cannabis and cocaine. There were two arrests in 1996 for possessing drug charges. 11 months of inactivity was followed by a third arrest in March 1996 for vandalism, disorderly conduct, and resisting arrest.
From the opening bell, Lewis’ increasingly authoritative jab – one of the finest of any heavyweight – proved instrumental, and in the second, when like during their first fight McCall sought to land his powerful right hand, Lewis was capable of defending himself. Steward’s methods were succeeding again.
McCall began to lose balance and Lewis built his lead. McCall ignored Greg Page and Benton’s instructions and became less interested in engaging with or defending himself against his opponent. This led to McCall being forced to apologize. Mills Lane refereeHe was saved by me 55 seconds into my fifth round. McCall’s painfully public breakdown became the defining narrative of that evening, but in the context of Lewis’ career, the faith he had placed in Steward – and that Steward had placed in him – since the trainer had overseen the end of his undefeated record had been vindicated by both his performance and the win.
“I’ve seen guys quit,” Steward said. “But I’d never seen it to the extent that they let the whole world know they didn’t want to fight.”
“I still remember Emanuel Steward in the corner,” Lewis later said. “‘If he doesn’t wanna fight, you make him fight, go out there and beat him up.’
“[He]He showed me how he beat him in the first fight. He showed me levels in the fight game that I did not know existed. He was playing chess while I was playing checkers.
“My alliance with Manny went on to be a fruitful one, as well as one of the most important relationships of my life.”
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