Rahman is sweating on Lewis showdown

13 April 2012

When the taxi driver is informed of our intended destination, he cocks an eyebrow and returns the kind of stare which asks: "Are you sure?" The reason for his doubts become clear when, having survived a run red light and several near-collisions amid the jostling traffic, we finally pull up outside Nick Durandt's Boxing Gym in downtown Jo'burg.

Here, pawn shops and liquor stores occupy every other building, their windows heavily barred. At the crossroads, street vendors lean against boxes of goods dumped on the dusty pavement. The first sells net baskets of huge avocados for half the price of a single, small fruit in a London supermarket. His neighbour eagerly offers an assortment of mobile telephones and car radios that look as though they have recently been parted from their rightful owners.

This may be post-apartheid South Africa, but racial integration has yet to penetrate this far. Nearly everyone is black, we are white, and our presence arouses the kind of curiosity that is not necessarily accompanied by a smile.

It is impossible not to feel wary. And the level of discomfort rises considerably upon entering the sanctuary of the gym, albeit for a totally different reason.

This is where the American fighter Hasim Rahman is training for his challenge against world heavyweight champion Lennox Lewis in the early hours of Sunday morning. We can see him pounding away at a punch bag, and his T-shirt is wringing wet.

No wonder. For in an area no bigger than a large living room, 30 other boxers are doing exactly the same thing. Within these cramped confines there is little ventilation. As a consequence, the air is so hot and misty-thick with sweat that it is a wonder Rahman can breathe, let alone get himself in proper shape for the biggest test of his boxing career.

The Rahman camp has made much of Lewis's apparent disregard for the effects of the thin air 6000ft above sea level - the Londoner only arrived 11 days ago, whereas Rahman has been acclimatising for three weeks.

But while Lewis has been carefully conditioned and expertly prepared in a gym set aside for his exclusive use at his luxury hotel headquarters, Rahman is having to rub shoulders - quite literally - with those to whom a successful career in boxing offers a means to escape the relative poverty in this part of town.

There are other contradictions over the substance of the challenge provided by a man who has never been tested at Lewis's level. When the fight was first announced, much was made of Rahman's physical attributes which were said to be close to that of Lewis - a commanding 6ft 5ins tall with a penetrating 84ins reach.

But get close to Rahman and the following become obvious:

He is a good deal shorter than Michael Grant, and Lewis dispatched the highly regarded American in two rounds last April.

His neck is a sapling compared with the treetrunk that supports the head of Francois Botha, and Lewis took just two rounds to stop the South African in July.

His bulk is considerably smaller than that of David Tua, and Lewis easily outclassed the Samoan over 12 rounds last November.

Indeed, in that last fight Lewis beat the man who beat the man - Tua stopped Rahman in 10 rounds two and a half years ago, although the finish was the subject of controversy, with claims that the decisive punch was delivered after the bell to signal the end of the ninth.

One year later, Rahman suffered his second career defeat, this time in the eighth round against Oleg Maskaev. Since then, he is said to have looked impressive in beating Corrie Sanders and cagey journeyman Frankie Swindell.

Those two results haven't swayed the bookmakers, who rate Rahman no more than a 20-1 long shot. But he has his backers, among them South African boxing legend Jacob 'Baby Jake' Matlala. The one-time holder of four world titles who fought regularly in British rings, 4ft 9ins tall Matlala believes the giant Lewis can be cut down to size after watching Rahman topple Sanders.

He recalled: "Corrie staggered Rahman several times. But when others would have backed off, Rahman kept coming forward. Lewis definitely punches harder than Sanders, but that doesn't mean he will have his own way on Sunday.

"I know that Lewis also has a good left jab. That is the best weapon in his arsenal and it makes it difficult for his shorter opponents to move in close. But if Rahman can manage that, get in close, and consistently punish the champion's body, he is in with a good chance.

"If Rahman can slip under Lewis's jabs, I wouldn't rule out an upset. Rahman has pluck and Lewis can forget about knocking him out in the opening two rounds."

The views of someone of Matlala's stature, at least in terms of boxing experience, have to be respected. Indeed, if the fight goes beyond half distance, it is possible that Lewis could struggle with the thin air and the anticipated heat inside the fight venue - a 5000-capacity circus tent at the Carnival City entertainment complex on the eastern outskirts of Johannesburg.

But while the bout may be billed as 'Thunder in Africa', I am confident the end will come at lightning speed - Lewis in two.

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