Rahman agrees to Lewis rematch
Tuesday, 7 August 2001 22:18Hasim Rahman has agreed to defend his world heavyweight titles in a rematch with Lennox Lewis this November. Rahman's co-manager Steve Nelson confirmed that the South African, who shocked the British boxer with a fifth-round knockout victory in their previous fight in South Africa last April, is looking forward to proving that his win was no fluke. The fight will go ahead on either November 10 or 17 with Las Vegas the likely location this time around.
Lewis reached agreement for a rematch with Don King, Rahman's promoter, a couple of weeks ago and Rahman himself signed off on the deal over the weekend. However, Nelson would not reveal how much Raham would earn from the rematch. "The only thing that I'll say is that our contract guarantees us more money than Lennox Lewis, and because we have a deal that includes various percentages on all forms of revenue from the fight, we stand to make quite a bit more," Nelson said.
However, there is still some uncertainty over whether or not the proposed fight will go ahead. Lewis' US promoters, Main Events, confirmed that they still have to make an agreement with Don King, Rahman's promoter, and cable channel HBO, who will screen the event but that a deal is in the pipeline.
Filed by Amanda Fennelly
