Lewis is Set to Call It a Day

In his first extensive interview since knocking out Mike Tyson, the world heavyweight champion Lennox Lewis has given the strongest hint yet that he will not fight again - and he angrily denies lingering rumours that he is gay.

'I said Lennox Lewis is on a mission,' he tells Michael Eboda. 'Well, right now it's mission complete, in the sense that I've got rid of all the misfits, and I'm the best fighter on the planet. What else is there for me to prove?'

On rumours about his sexuality, Lewis says: 'It's a star thing, and people wonder about me being close to my mother or whatever. They're gonna say things like that, but it's totally off base.' He also talks expansively about his relationship with Tyson, about his split with long-time manager Frank Maloney and, briefly, about the mystery woman in his life.

If Lewis does fight again, the president of the World Boxing Council, Jose Sulaiman, will be looking for his own slice of the purse. It was announced yesterday that the 71-year-old Mexican is suing Lewis and Tyson for $56 million for injuries he sustained when the fighters brawled at a press conference in New York in January.

Sulaiman, who was knocked unconscious as the impromptu fight scattered minders and onlookers in all directions on the stage of a former burlesque hall in Manhattan, says he suffered permanent physical and psychological damage. He also needed dental surgery.

But the chances of Lewis defending his title grow slimmer by the day. Apart from his own suggestion that there is nobody viable left to fight, Lewis is building a new home in Trelawney Beach, Jamaica. He is also moving his office in the West End back to his north London home in Cockfosters as he scales down his operation. The sports agent Jerome Anderson will handle most of his business - which is unlikely to include boxing.

Lewis has a mandatory challenger for the International Boxing Federation belt he holds, America's Chris Byrd, an awkward and not very saleable opponent. He could give the imposing Ukrainian Wladimir Klitschko an opportunity, although that might be a risky engagement. He could box Evander Holyfield a third time, a fight that would prove little. Or he could beat Tyson up again.

Yet he is finding it hard to let go. 'If they want me to fight those guys, they're gonna have to pay me money just to get me back into training. From now on it's strictly a business decision.'