He was born in Marshall, Texas, U.S. on January 10, 1949. He successfully defended his title nine months later. Foreman defeated Moorer via 10th round KO to win the WBA and IBF heavyweight titles. Perhaps his most notable win during this period was a seventh-round knockout of former Light Heavyweight and Cruiserweight Champion Dwight Muhammad Qawi. [43] Like Foreman's fight with Schulz, the decision was highly controversial, but this time the decision went in favor of Foreman's opponent, with Briggs awarded a majority decision. In ABC's rebroadcast, Howard Cosell made the memorable call, "Down goes Frazier! I have interviewed Chuck Wepner who fought both George Foreman and Sonny Liston and he always claimed that Liston hit harder. He was a ringside analyst for HBO's boxing coverage for 12 years until 2004. Foreman is a Hall of Famer. [27] Ali had been known as a fighter of speed and movement, but the rope-a-dope technique worked exactly to plan, since Foreman had not had a fight that lasted past the fourth round since 1971.[28]. In the third, Foreman pressed forward, with Lyle waiting to counter off the ropes. Late in the eighth round Ali came off the ropes with a series of successively harder and more accurate right hooks to the side and back of Foreman's head, leaving him dazed and careening backwards. 1966-1997 debut 1969-07-01 ID# 000090 birth name George Edward Foreman sex male alias Big George nationality USA stance orthodox height 6 3 / 191cm reach 78 / 199cm residence Houston, Texas, USA birth place Marshall, Texas, USA 107 bouts date w-l-d last 6 result sport In 1994, Foreman again sought to challenge for the world championship after Michael Moorer had beaten Holyfield for the IBF and WBA titles. The Ring ranked him as the ninth-greatest puncher of all time. [This quote needs a citation] This fight became known as the "Caracas Caper". He knocked out the Soviet Union's Jonas epulis to win the Olympic Games Heavyweight Gold Medal. Top 10 George Foreman Best Knockouts HD - YouTube He won four more bouts that year, gradually slimming down and improving his fitness. Foreman had cruised past two of the top names in the rankings. A travelogue series of the Walt Disney Parks and Resorts called The Walt Disney Magic Hour hosted by Foreman was supposed to debut as part of PAX's debut lineup in 1998,[44][45] but never made it to air. Again, Foreman beat the count. March 26, 1974: Foreman successfully defends the WBA, WBC, and The Ring heavyweight titles against Ken Norton, winning the fight via 2nd round TKO. George Foreman: 76 4 0: Taj Majal Hotel & Casino, Atlantic City W-MD. We've had guys on Boxrec saying Sonny would stop Evander, Frazier, Foreman, Lewis,Tyson the Klitschko's etc even beat Ali if he was a little younger. Frazier was knocked down six times by Foreman within two rounds (the three-knockdown rule was not in effect for this bout). This energy transferred over to the night of the event as Foreman was met with boos from the crowd as well as antagonistic chants of "Ali! He then pointed to a photo of himself on the wall with gloves on and fists up. How can George Foreman possibly be ranked so low (21st) according to ref: Eddie Cotton Calvin Claxton 116-112 Larry Layton 117-113 Steve Weisfeld 114-114 . In 1970, Foreman continued his march toward the undisputed heavyweight title, winning all 12 of his bouts (11 by knockout). He has held five world titles at the heavyweight weight division, all five of which were lineal championship wins. His opponent was the skilled boxer Jimmy Young, who had beaten Ron Lyle and lost a very controversial decision to Muhammad Ali the previous year. Though Foreman was able to stay competitive throughout the fight, Holyfield ultimately won the fight via unanimous decision, winning all three judges scorecards by scores of 116111, 115112, and 117110 (erroneously announced as '117-100" by Michael Buffer) . Brown to win the, He sparred five rounds on two different occasions in July 1968 with former World Heavyweight Champion. George Foreman Boxer Stats - BoxStat.co Foreman weighed 267lb (121kg) for the fight and looked badly out of shape. Very few boxing experts gave the 42-year-old Foreman a chance of winning. "He went on to become a nondenominational Christian minister and founded the George Foreman Youth and Community Center in Houston.". Evander Holyfield is adamant George Foreman and Riddick Bowe hit harder than heavyweight rival Mike Tyson did during his illustrious boxing career. [9] He won his third pro fight on September 26, 2009, at the Coushatta Casino in Kinder, Louisiana, against Marvin Ray Jones by TKO in the first round. Unknown -5.5 lbsring rust view stats TKO George Foreman(42-1-0) Tue, 15 Jun - 1976 After a troubled childhood, Foreman took up amateur boxing and won a gold medal in the heavyweight division at the 1968 Summer Olympics. Both the boxers were of the same height and same reach. Foreman had five losses. He floored Weaver twice: first with a left to the chin, then with a left to the body, before the referee called a halt to the match. Background [ edit] Cooney was on a one-fight losing streak, and was the taller of the two by 7 cms and also had a 7 cm reach advantage over Foreman. April 19, 1991: George Foreman loses to Evander Holyfield via 12 round unanimous decision. In 1990, Foreman met former title challenger Gerry Cooney in Atlantic City. He handed Moorer the first loss of his career, and put an end to Moorer's 35-fight win streak, making a successful comeback from his last loss. On his website, Foreman explains, "I named all my sons George Edward Foreman so they would always have something in common. He grew up in the Fifth Ward community of Houston, Texas, with six siblings. His last bout was on December 6, 2012, in Cancn, Mexico. These nine fights are the highlight of his career. On November 22, 1997, a 48-year old George Foreman (76-4, 68 KO) fought fellow American boxer Shannon Briggs, who was 25 years old with a record of 29-1. He fights out of the orthodox stance and presents an ape-index of 8 cm (3.15"). [citation needed] Foreman later also claimed he was drugged by his trainer prior to the bout. Having turned professional the next year, he won the world heavyweight title with a stunning second-round knockout of then-undefeated Joe Frazier in 1973. He was subsequently tired, and Stewart rebounded. George Foreman - BoxRec Lyle remained down, giving Foreman a KO victory. George Foreman III - Wikipedia vacant World Boxing Union (1995-2004) Heavyweight Title, International Boxing Federation World Heavyweight Title This time, however, Foreman was a substantial underdog. Foreman later reflected, "it just wasn't my night". World Boxing Association World Heavyweight Title In 1996, Foreman returned to Tokyo, scoring an easy win over the unrated Crawford Grimsley by a 12-round decision. BoxRec has gone from a small operation to the most-used boxing website by fans, promoters and managers alike. He always loved boxing, but never got involved with the sport until his early teens. Unable to secure another title opportunity, Foreman retired after a loss to Jimmy Young in 1977.Following what he referred to as a religious epiphany, Foreman became an ordained Christian minister. George Foreman is an American boxer, who competes in the heavyweight division. Maple Leaf Gardens, Toronto, Ontario, Canada, oldest world heavyweight champion in history, Tropworld Casino and Entertainment Resort, "Professional boxing record: George Foreman", "Ring Magazine's 80 Best Fighters of the Last 80 Years", "George Foreman Leaves HBO Sports After Twelve Great Years", "Millionaire High School Dropouts Page 2 of 2", "Houston Sport Hall of Fame 2019: George Foreman. Ali and he had become friends, and he followed in Ali's footsteps by making himself a celebrity outside boxing. No reason was given. Make sure to follow us on Twitter for updates and announcements. "Ken was awesome when he got going. George Foreman - Wikipedia In 1976, he announced a professional comeback and stated his intention of securing a rematch with Ali. Ali! This article was most recently revised and updated by, https://www.britannica.com/biography/George-Foreman, BlackPast.org - Biography of George Foreman, International Boxing Hall of Fame - Biography of George Foreman, George Foreman - Student Encyclopedia (Ages 11 and up). George Foreman was a heavyweight world champion. Foreman lost to Ali via 8th round KO and lost the WBA, WBC, and Ring Magazine heavyweight titles. Foreman defended his title against challenger Ken Norton in March, but he lost the crown to Ali, who had been allowed to return to boxing after a three-year ban due to his refusal to enter the draft for military service. On April 11, 1992, a 43-year old George Foreman (70-3, 66 KO) fought fellow American boxer Alex Stewart, who was 27 years old with a record of 28-3. June 15, 1976: George Foreman beats Joe Frazier via 5th round TKO. [32] Because of the one-sided Foreman victory in their first fight, and the fact that Frazier had taken a tremendous amount of punishment from Ali in Manila a year earlier, few expected him to win. Foreman had a 164 amateur boxing record going into the Olympics. He was so gifted technically and his jab was the best I ever faced in the ring. In the fourth, a brutal slugfest erupted. ", "40 Years Ago Today: Jimmy Young-George Foreman - "He Beat the Devil Out of Me!" Holyfield proved too tough and agile to knock down and was well ahead on points throughout the fight, but Foreman surprised many by lasting the full 12 rounds, losing his challenge on points. [15], Foreman won a gold medal in the boxing/heavyweight division at the 1968 Mexico City Olympic Games. Although many thought his decision to return to the ring was a mistake, Foreman countered that he had returned to prove that age was not a barrier to people achieving their goals (as he said later, he wanted to show that age 40 is not a "death sentence"). And Foreman clearly lost his edge after the dazing upset in Zaire. His five-fight win streak is halted with this loss. Evander Holyfield once said George Foreman and Riddick Bowe are the Foreman defeated Schulz via 12 round majority decision to retain the IBF heavyweight title. In 1972, still undefeated and with an impressive knockout record, Foreman was set to challenge undefeated and undisputed World Heavyweight Champion Joe Frazier. George Foreman vs. Shannon Briggs was a professional boxing match contested on November 22, 1997, for the Lineal heavyweight championship. Foreman was the taller of the two by 9 cms and also had a 14 cm reach advantage. Evander Holyfield vs. George Foreman - Wikipedia [16] epulis' face was already bleeding in the first round from Foreman's punches, and had to take a standing eight count early in the second round. [53][54][55] Isabella Foreman lives in Sweden, where she has blogged since 2010 under the name of BellaNeutella. George Foreman and Fran Manushkin (2005). Following his first loss to Muhammad Ali and a subsequent year-long hiatus, the event was meant to re-spark interest in Foreman and resolidify his strength and ability to knockout opponents. Foremen was met with jeers all throughout the night as the crowd grew increasingly displeased at Foreman's defeats of his first three opponents, of which defeated all by knockout. World Boxing Union (1995-2004) Heavyweight Title, International Boxing Federation World Heavyweight Title Norton had performed well against Ali in their two matches, winning the first on points and nearly winning the second. Nevertheless, Foreman did very well when his chance at a title bout came. Foreman was interested in football and idolized Jim Brown, but gave it up for boxing. George Edward Foreman (born January 10, 1949) is an American former professional boxer, entrepreneur, minister and author. Several great fighters would comment later that in his prime, Foreman was thehardest-hittingfighterin boxing history, according to The Sweet Science. He is 74 years old, and will be turning 75 in 8 months and 12 days. By his own admission in his autobiography, George was a troubled youth. He defeated Frazier via 2nd round TKO to become the heavyweight champion of the world. He dropped the WBA belt rather than face his mandatory title defense soon after, and following a single successful title defense against Axel Schulz, Foreman relinquished his IBF title as well on June 28, 1995. In February 1967, he knocked out Thomas Cook to win the Las Vegas Golden Gloves in the Senior Division. George Foreman vs. Shannon Briggs - Wikipedia Each man staggered the other, and each seemed almost out on his feet. He has 15 first-round KO wins.
Share this post