Paul Davison, scored 16 points on his specialist subject, former heavyweight world champion Lennox Lewis, when he faced quizmaster Des Lynam in a new version of the classic BBC TV show.

And after the general sports knowledge round, the 50-year-old from Newbottle had amassed a winning total of 28 points, six more than his nearest challenger.

Paul, who lives with his wife Elaine, 47, and son Alex, 10, described the agonising wait to be called to the famous Mastermind black chair as "like going to the dentist."

He added: "The guy before me queried five or six of his questions and answers, so I had to sit there for another 10 minutes while they checked everything, but it seemed like an hour."

Paul's fellow contestants' specialist subjects were West Ham United since 1945, darts champion Phil Taylor, and rugby union side London Wasps since 1996.

The Black Cats fan was considering answering questions on his club, but was not allowed to by show bosses as the specialist subject had recently been covered by Steve Cram on Celebrity Mastermind.

Paul is in second place on the Sport Mastermind leaderboard after winning his heat, one of nine, with the six highest-scoring winners landing a spot in the final.

If he makes the last show, Paul said his specialist subject will be the American Football team Tampa Bay Buccaneers, after he became a fan after watching them play during a holiday in Florida.

An IT test analyst, Paul started doing sports quizzes in the mid-1980s at The Chesters pub in Sunderland.

He is a member of the Washington Cricket Club team which won Division B in the North East Sports Quiz League last year and Newbottle Club in the Echo Quiz League.

Sports Mastermind was not Paul's first TV quiz appearance, as he has been on Countdown and Fifteen to One, albeit not as successfully as on Mastermind.

"The only two words I said on Fifteen to One were 'pass' and 'Paris,' and they were both wrong," he joked.

CAN you answer the following questions, as Paul Davison did correctly on Sport Mastermind?
1. In which round did the referee stop Lennox Lewis' fight with Frank Bruno in 1993?
2. Who won eight of the first 10 races in the 1992 Formula One season, securing the drivers' championship with five races to go?
3. Which historic racecourse is located outside Edinburgh and hosts both flat and jump racing?
4. In one-day cricket, which two surnames are associated with the formula used to resolve rain-affected games?
5. Which club paid a British record £55,000 to sign Denis Law from Huddersfield Town in March 1960?
6. Which Finnish athlete fell in the 1972 Olympic 10,000metres final, but got up to win in a world record time?

Answers:
1. Seven.
2. Nigel Mansell.
3. Musselburgh.
4. Duckworth-Lewis.
5. Manchester City.
6. Lasse Viren.