Lennox Lewis is one of the greatest heavyweights of all time, I would rank him in the top five and the fight which for me thrust him into the limelight as a serious fighter was the heavyweight title eliminator against Donovan ‘Razor’ Ruddock.

Now at this time, Ruddock was a highly regarded Heavyweight who had just participated in two wars with Mike Tyson. This was the first time I was seeing Lewis so I wasn’t expecting him to win against Ruddock but not only did Lewis win, he blitzed Ruddock in two rounds.

The key was the body jab – or lack of it on Ruddock’s side. When the opening bell rung Ruddock immediately came out and met Lewis with a couple of body jabs, in both cases the non punching hand was out wide and low. This was not the proper way to execute hand position when throwing the jab to the body. As the round continued Ruddock continued to mix in the body jab and each time his non punching hand was either too far out or too low, this meant he was leaving a gap and was open to a counter punch from Lewis.

Now in the same round Lennox Lewis attempted a body jab but Lewis used the proper mechanics to throw his body jab. The non punching hand of Lewis was tight and just under the middle of the chin. When throwing the body jab the non punching hand should be around this area – some may place it on the left side of the chin or cheek(in the case of an orthodox fighter) because in this position I can block a counter punch from my opponent, especially the right over the top of the jab. By placing his hand on or just under the middle of the chin Lewis could easily move the guard up if Ruddock was to counter the body jab with the right hand over the top.

Towards the end of the round Ruddock attempts another jab to the body and again the non punching hand is low, Lewis has clearly caught onto this and counters with his right hand over the top of the body jab, with Ruddock’s right hand nowhere to be seen, Lewis has a clear connection and knocks Ruddock down. Fortunately for Ruddock the bell sounded and the round ended but Lewis quickly ended the fight in the following round.

Watch the video below to see how Lennox Lewis took advantage in a flaw in Ruddock’s technique throwing the body jab.