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IBF denies Lewis belt
LAS VEGAS -- Lennox Lewis became the undisputed heavyweight boxing champion of the world last night.
Or so he thought.
But amidst the post-fight celebration, he found out that the politics of boxing had once again intruded upon him.
The International Boxing Federation decided last night it would not be awarding its championship to Lewis and, in fact, declared its heavyweight title vacant.
IN TROUBLE
"What do I make of this?'' Lou DiBella, vice-president of HBO Sports said. "I make of this we should pay no more attention to the IBF. There is a reason why they are in trouble and they keep showing us why.''
Lewis won the WBA and WBC championships last night, but not the IBF belt.
Apparently, the Lewis camp had agreed to put its $300,000 sanctioning fees in escrow considering that the IBF is being investigated by U.S. federal authorities for bribery and rankings fixing.
Just before the fight, the IBF apparently determined to not accept Lewis' terms and declare its title vacant.
The IBF might as well do one other thing -- declare its title meaningless as well.
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