From one champ to another… but boxers can’t go on for 50 years! Lennox Lewis leads the tributes from the sporting greats who support honour for Jeff Powell

Legendary Mail Sport sports journalist Jeff Powell has been appointed Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (MBE) for services to journalism in the New Year's Honors List.

Powell's honor is a reward for 57 years as the most enduringly brilliant sports journalist of his generation.

His career spanned a series of major exclusives, with his work from football stadiums and ringsides providing essential reading for decades.

Powell has always maintained close relationships with some of the sport's biggest icons, including a close friend of Bobby Moore and the only British journalist invited to Muhammad Ali's 70th birthday party.

Here, sports greats pay their own tribute to Jeff Powell and his contribution to journalism.

Sir Alex Ferguson

I have known Jeff Powell for over 40 years, and we crossed paths regularly during my time as a football manager in Scotland and England and during Jeff's role at the Ny Breaking.

We had a great, professional relationship and he was someone we could trust and who was fair and thorough in his reporting. I was amazed to discover that he spent 56 years at the Ny Breaking, which is an extraordinary contribution to journalism.

To put it into context, he has navigated a series of major changes within the newspaper industry and maintained his position as a leading figure within that sector, which in itself is a remarkable achievement and proves his values ​​as a journalist.

Lennox Lewis

From one champion to another, Jeff Powell is the No. 1 sportswriter of his time and the preeminent boxing correspondent on both sides of the Atlantic.

He reported on all my triumphs and – occasionally! – defeats through the decades without fear or passion. With candor and understanding. Always honest, but never unkind. A critic when needed and a friend in need.

His longevity is the mark of the highest quality in a profession that can sometimes be as brutal as boxing. I suppose the crucial difference is that no discounter can survive for fifty years or more.

Long may he endure, writing with that verve and wisdom.

Bryan Robson

Jeff is the best football correspondent of his generation, knowledgeable, insightful and truthful in his reporting. Understanding and compassionate in difficult times, but also extremely supportive in difficult moments.

I consider him a special friend and also the best sports journalist in this country.

He has always been loyal, honest, fair and honorable throughout his career and is deeply respected in the football world.

I can't think of another journalist more deserving of an honor than Jeff.

Barry McGuigan

In addition to being one of the best writers on sports and especially boxing in this country for many years, Jeff is a thoroughly decent, honorable and genuine person who has represented everything that is good about boxing. If there is anyone who deserves recognition for his service to the sport – and to boxing in particular – it is Jeff Powell.

George Graham

I can't think of another journalist more deserving of recognition than Jeff Powell.

Having worked for the Ny Breaking for more than half a century, he is, in my opinion, the best sports journalist of his or any other generation.

Amazingly, he's still going strong. The first journalist many of us in sports go to in the morning.

And here I am, a Scot, writing this about an Englishman!

Amir Khan

Jeff is the most honorable and dignified of all sports journalists and the most knowledgeable. I write from the experience of his reporting on my career, from my amateur Olympic success to winning world championships.

During that journey he made friends with me and my family, while always writing the truth. Such honesty and loyalty are rare in the sportswriting profession, which he has dominated for more than half a century.

Jeff is completely without prejudice or prejudice, it was a pleasure to have him and his lovely wife with us at my wedding in New York.

Carl Froch

Jeff is the absolute maestro of writing about world sports. It has been around for fifty years or more and hopefully will continue to do so for a long time to come.

As far as my sport is concerned, his feeling and insight into everything related to boxing is unique for a journalist. That can only be achieved through a lifetime of hard work. It was an added pleasure for me to read Jeff's accounts of my championship achievements in the ring and then stay up late with him discussing everything as friends.

He is fearless and honest.

David Haye

Jeff has a deep understanding of the sport and a bond with athletes that few can match. He is not just a company man, but a voice for the fighters, always speaking from his heart.

In a world where nonsense and fiction too often prevail, Jeff's integrity shines like a beacon.

He's the kind of journalist who stays true to his principles no matter the cost and aligns himself with boxing promoters because he doesn't toe the company line. And what a legacy he has built! He has been a front row fixture at boxing's biggest fights and press conferences for decades, always asking tough questions. He is a true master of his craft.

Frank Warren

In my experience, Jeff has always covered the sport of boxing with the utmost integrity, while ensuring that events and boxers were always portrayed accurately.

Jeff is highly regarded by most of the world's sports superstars for his in-depth knowledge of sports.

Now a senior statesman in sports journalism, Jeff enjoys sharing his knowledge and experience to help young, emerging writers develop their careers.

Sir Clive Woodward

I have known Jeff for over 30 years, first as a highly respected sports journalist, later as a friend and now as a highly respected and valued colleague.

He is a man trusted by many coaches, athletes and players within the sports industry for his journalistic integrity.

Jeff is definitely the elder statesman of British sports journalism and a benchmark for all those young journalists hoping to make a career in journalism.

Given the reputation Jeff has earned within the sporting community for his high standard of professionalism and the unprecedented length of time Jeff has worked at Fleet Street, I believe he deserves to be recognized for his services to journalism.

Lord Moynihan

I was fortunate to work with Jeff Powell during the difficult and dark days of the 1980s, when hooliganism cast a shadow over English football and became a major political issue for Margaret Thatcher as Prime Minister.

Few could match the impartial reporting expertise of Jeff Powell, who combined an encyclopedic knowledge of our national sport with the recognition that tough and sometimes unpopular policies needed to be implemented to increase safety on our football fields and thus to face challenges that the game brings. He did this without ever taking party political positions.

Jeff Powell was an esteemed and highly respected journalist at the time and was a regular visitor to Downing Street to offer his insights to the government.

He was the only journalist whose excellent work and writing on this subject earned the highest respect. He was highly appreciated by the Prime Minister.

Consequently, he was instrumental in bringing much-needed changes, including all-seater stadiums and a wide range of security measures, including the introduction of CCTV on all 92 football pitches in the professional league. These ideas heralded a new era for our national game after the Hillsborough tragedy.

There was no other British journalist covering boxing who had a better reputation for writing with the fluency and understanding of a Damon Runyon and the ability to record events with an intimate knowledge of the mentality of sportsmen and – women; an intuitive relationship with his readers and excellent writing skills, combining creativity with a full understanding of the inner mysteries of the sporting world.