NEW YORK -- The heavyweight title fight between Lennox Lewis and Vitali Klitschko earned the highest boxing rating for HBO Sports in four years, and the highest rating for a heavyweight bout on the network since 1997.

Lewis' six-round victory over Klitschko was watched in 4.6 million homes, translating to a 13.4 HBO rating.

That was the best rating since Oscar De La Hoya stopped Oba Carr in the 11th round of a WBC welterweight title bout on May 22, 1999. That fight earned a 14.6 rating.

It was also the highest rating for a heavyweight fight since Shannon Briggs' defeat of George Foreman on Nov. 22, 1997, earned a 14.9.

Of course, most major fights are on pay-per-view, rather than cable or network television.

The rating is the percentage of households that subscribe to HBO.