HASIM RAHMAN

STATUS: Former WBC & IBF World Heavyweight Champion.

HT: 6-2 1/2  WT: 230

BORN ON: Nov. 7, 1972  IN: Baltimore, MD

CHILDHOOD HEROES: Muhammad Ali, Larry Holmes. I got word from Don Turner saying Larry said, Thank you...for beating up Trevor Berbick. You remember that fight they had when Larry jumped over a car to get at him?

NICKNAME: Rock.

HOBBIES/INTERESTS: Reading, play checkers, go to movies, surfing the 'Net.

PRE-FIGHT FEELING: Always feel a little nervous. Till my walk to the ring. I'm confident that all the hard work is done. I did enough gym work. I'm excited. I'm about to put on a show. I feel I'm gonna show them a helluva shootout. (Upon entering the ring) yeah, I look at him. Do they want to look at me? If I feel them shift their eyes off of me, I feel they'd rather be somewhere else than in there with me. Then I go right after them.

EARLY BOXING MEMORY: I haven't been boxing that long. When I boxed sparred with my first pro fighter, Mike Whitfield, who was called Little George Foreman, I threw all non-stop punches for the first 30 seconds. After that I had nothing left [smiles]. So he beat me up for the next two rounds. But, eventually, I turned the tables on him.

FAVORITE MOVIES: 48 Hours, Scarface.

MUSICAL TASTES: Jazz, R&B, rap, Kenny G, Biggie Smalls, Anita Baker.

GREATEST SPORTS MOMENT: Winning the world heavyweight championship. I did all my training, came up with one punch (KO 5 Lennox Lewis in Carnival City, 2001). The best I've ever felt. Lewis was coming on and he was boxing good. But he wasn't dominating me. I backed him up on several occasions. It wasn't a lucky punch. People looking for a lazy explanation instead of a logical one resort to saying it was a lucky punch. But it was not one, desperation shot. I backed him up into the ropes with a series of left hands. I sized him up perfectly and took him out.

MOST PAINFUL MOMENT(S): Hoo hoo [laughs]! I guess sparring. I don't know. I guess losing the opportunity to fight George Foreman (when Foreman changed plans and opted to box Shannon Briggs on HBO in '97). George picked his opponents very carefully. I guess he saw something or heard something about me.

FAVORITE MEAL: Lasagna and a glass of orange juice mixed with cranberry juice.

FAVORITE BREAKFAST CEREAL: Frosted Flakes.

FAVORITE ICE CREAM FLAVOR: Vanilla.

LITTLE KNOWN FACT: I'm extremely sensitive. I just play it off real good. I'm one of those guys who, when they say something bad about me on the Internet, I'm gonna crack their code names and figure out who they are. Then they're gonna get a phone call [smiles]!

FIRST JOB: Working construction in Baltimore with my stepfather (age 12).

FIRST CAR: 1987 red Ford Taurus.

FAVORITE ATHLETES TO WATCH: Ken Griffey, Michael Jordan, Tiger Woods, Wayne Gretzky, John McEnroe - I used to love to watch him. He was unpredictable. Monica Seles - she showed a lot of character and grace coming back from what she went through. And I always root for her. Also, Venus and Serena Williams.

CLOSEST BOXING FRIENDS: Larry Donald, Courtney Bridget.

FUNNIEST BOXER: Zab Judah. Just keeps me laughing with his stories. He's everywhere and he knows everybody [smiles].

FUNNY BOXING MOMENT: My brother (Winky) took over training chores for a fighter 1-3. And three days later he got a fight. Zab Judah and Winky worked his corner and he got knocked out in the first round. I said their training record is 0-1 and it's gonna be on their resume for life [smiles].

FAVORITE VACATION SPOT: Disney World.

PEOPLE MOST ADMIRED: I like to see people who remain the same. Talk and live what they say. My favorite example is my mom (Joyce). She taught me the best. She never drank or anything like that.

INTERESTING FACT: Most boxers are not perceived as terribly bright. But nobody playing one game of basketball or one game of golf can make $20 or 30 million. I can fight for one second and make $30 million. Why isn't everybody boxing?