Lennox Lewis vs Ray Mercer - Lewis' hardest fight?

Lennox Lewis vs. Ray Mercer was a professional boxing match contested on May 10, 1996. Following victories over heavyweight contenders Lionel Butler and Tommy Morrison, Lennox Lewis was now regarded as the number one contender for the WBC Heavyweight Title, which was then held by Frank Bruno. However, the WBC chose to bypass Lewis and instead sanctioned a championship bout between Bruno and Mike Tyson, who had returned to boxing the previous year after serving over three years in prison. Lewis brought the matter to court, claiming that he, not Tyson, deserved to face Bruno for the WBC title, but he was unable to secure the match as the court ruled in favor of the Bruno–Tyson fight.[1][2] As such, Lewis agreed to meet fellow 1988 Olympic Gold Medalist Ray Mercer in what was to be a tuneup fight for what was originally supposed to lead to a fight between Lewis and Riddick Bowe later in the year.