Lennox Lewis and Mike Tyson battled out one of the most high profile bouts of all time in 2002 at The Pyramid in Memphis during which the British fighter sensationally stopped his opponent in the eighth round.

The fight was the climactic peak of both men's careers, with tensions boiling over during the pre-fight press conference as Tyson attempted to brawl with Lewis before resorting to biting his leg.

It was, at the time, the highest grossing pay-per-view event of all time and record numbers of viewers tuned in to see Tyson's raw power meet its match as he was outfoxed by Lewis before being knocked down in the eighth.  

The defeat would prove to be the beginning of the end for 'Iron' Mike, but Lewis has now revealed that he had a view into the mind of Tyson 19 years before they would meet in the ring.

During a sparring session between the pair the Brit has revealed that aspects of the headline bout were pre-empted almost two decades before the event itself.

Lewis said back in 2015, via The Mirror: “When he comes out, he’s trying to knock my head off.

“I was just trying to protect myself, but he was coming out like a whirlwind. The first day was rough.

“We sparred for a couple of days and it got easier after a while.

“Then there was one time Mike Tyson didn’t want me to run around so he put his hands down and I gave him a one, two.

“All I could hear is ‘Mike don’t do that, you’re going to fight that guy one day’. I turn around – Cus d’Amato (Tyson’s trainer) said that.

“I learnt that this sport isn’t for jokers and separates the men from the boys.

“It’s not about friendship, it’s about knocking someone out and imposing your will on them.”

Two absolute legends of the game, colliding before they both truly took off.