Morrison retreated throughout the fight, refusing to trade toe-to-toe, and sometimes he turned his back on Foreman. March 26, 1974: Foreman successfully defends the WBA, WBC, and The Ring heavyweight titles against Ken Norton, winning the fight via 2nd round TKO. Foreman lost to Holyfield via 12 round unanimous decision. But Ali also fought formidable opponents, such as Ron Lyle, and gave rematches to the still-dangerous Frazier and Ken Norton, the only two men to have ever beaten him. [30] Though he sought a rematch with Ali, he was unable to secure one. Charles 'Doc' Broadus pro record? - BoxRec Foreman fought cautiously early on, allowing Young to settle into the fight. The Ring Magazine's Annual Ratings: 1970. In another remarkable run, Foreman did not lose a single professional fight during the three years from 1988 to 1990, winning most of his fights by knockout. He went on to win 39 more consecutive fights after the debut, which included 36 wins via stoppage. In 1993, Foreman received another title shot, although this was for the vacant WBO title. He is a two-time world heavyweight champion and an Olympic gold medalist. 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 Box-pro 81 bouts date w-l-d last 6 result 1997-11-22 Shannon Briggs 29 1 0 With this historic victory, Foreman broke three records: He became, at age 45, the oldest fighter ever to win a world championship; 20 years after losing his title for the first time, he broke the record for the fighter with the longest interval between his first and second world championships; and the age spread of 19 years between the champion and challenger was the largest of any heavyweight boxing championship fight. He won his first amateur fight on January 26, 1967, by a first-round knockout in the Parks Diamond Belt Tournament. [10] He is currently 160 in professional boxing as of December 2012. "[40] Tyson signed with King (and by 1998, was suing him for $100 million);[41] the bout never materialized. He handed Savarese the first loss of his career, and put an end to Savarese's 36-fight win streak. Foreman has been inducted into the World Boxing Hall of Fame and International Boxing Hall of Fame. He fights out of the orthodox stance and presents an ape-index of 8 cm (3.15"). George Foreman was a heavyweight world champion. Foreman is now on a 38-fight winning streak, with 22 back-to-back KO wins. A cluster of power punches from Lyle sent Foreman to the canvas. KOs: 89%. George Foreman, James Toney, Roberto Duran, who fought for decades and decades . Foreman, however, would shock the boxing world over three years later by defeating Michael Moorer to become the oldest Heavyweight champion at age 45. Foreman was interested in football and idolized Jim Brown, but gave it up for boxing. Evidence later surfaced that Foremans promoter, Bob Arum, had paid bribes to the International Boxing Federation (IBF) in order to manipulate the rankings and permit Foreman a chance at a title fight. Then, yet another opportunity came Foreman's way as the WBC decided to match him against Shannon Briggs in a 1997 "eliminator bout" for the right to face WBC champion Lennox Lewis. Foreman resumed professional boxing in 1987 at age 39 and found immediate success. On October 30, 1974, a 25-year old George Foreman (40-0, 37 KO) faced fellow American boxer Muhammad Ali, who was 32 years old with a record of 44-2 in an undisputed heavyweight championship bout. Foreman attended Fay School in Southborough, Massachusetts. '"[48] As with his father, George III has pursued a career in boxing and entrepreneurship. This was the year Foreman won back the heavyweight title with a much-hyped Las Vegasmatch against Michael Moorer, who had a 35-0 record going into the fight. Foreman had his first world title fight at the age of 24 on January 22, 1973 after 37 professional fights, against Joe Frazier for the heavyweight WBA, WBC, and The Ring titles. January 24, 1976: George Foreman beats Ron Lyle via 5th round KO. Foreman was the taller of the two by 21 cms and also had a 11 cm reach advantage. George Foreman was very heavy handed and there was a different feel to his shots. "Why I Don't Believe Those Who Say They Picked Foreman Over Frazier", Underestimating Muhammad Ali was the mistake of a lifetime, George Foreman says, "From the Vault: The poetry of the Rumble in the Jungle", "Flashback: Ali, Foreman 'Rumble in the Jungle', "Foreman claims he was drugged before loss to Ali boxing ESPN", "Tuesday Night Fight Talk: Did Ali duck Foreman rematch? Foreman was gracious and philosophical in his loss to Briggs, but announced his "final" retirement shortly afterwards. Foreman's Jaw Keeps Jabbing Heavyweight Hawks Self as Next Champ, Holyfield Leans In As Foreman Chews the Fat, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Evander_Holyfield_vs._George_Foreman&oldid=1148840629, Boxing matches involving Evander Holyfield, World Boxing Association heavyweight championship matches, World Boxing Council heavyweight championship matches, International Boxing Federation heavyweight championship matches, April 1991 sports events in the United States, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, This page was last edited on 8 April 2023, at 16:56. In the finals, Foreman defeated the Soviet Union's Jonas epulis; the referee stopped the fight in the second round. Foreman made his professional boxing debut at the age of 20, on June 23, 1969. As part of the Job Corps, Foreman earned his GED and trained to become a carpenter and bricklayer. [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. Despite boycotting a title elimination caused by the vacancy resulting from the championship being stripped from Muhammad Ali, Frazier had won the title from Jimmy Ellis and defended his title four times since, including a 15-round unanimous decision over the previously unbeaten Ali in 1971 after Ali had beaten Oscar Bonavena and Jerry Quarry. . Box-pro Box-am All Bouts division: heavy status: inactive bouts: 81: rounds: 349 KOs: 83.95% career: 1969-1997 . George Foreman posted 76 wins during his career, 20 more than the greatMuhammed Ali, who beat Foreman in 1974 inKinshasa, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, to regain the world heavyweight crown. George Foreman posted 76 wins during his career, 20 more than the great Muhammed Ali, who beat Foreman in 1974 in Kinshasa, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, to regain the world heavyweight crown. The International Boxing Research Organization rates Foreman as the eighth-greatest heavyweight of all time. As a child, Foreman watched his father train and sat ringside when his father was doing color commentary. (Still in attendance) (Graduated 1979) Author has 342 answers and 173.3K answer views 2 y [11] In 1999, he sold the commercial rights to the grill for $138 million. Qawi was on a one-fight losing streak. However, he did plan a return bout against Larry Holmes in 1999, scheduled to take place at the Houston Astrodome on pay-per-view. [37] For his first fight, he went to Sacramento, California, where he beat journeyman Steve Zouski by a knockout in four rounds. He also opened a youth center[36] that bears his name. 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. In 1994, Foreman again sought to challenge for the world championship after Michael Moorer had beaten Holyfield for the IBF and WBA titles. "Big George" was on the comeback trail and at the time of his June 1, 1989 fight with "Smokin'" Bert, critics felt the former heavyweight king was at last taking something of a risky fight.. Foreman held off Axel Schulz in a 12-round defense of the International Boxing Federation heavyweight belt. At 46 years and 169 days old, he was the oldest world heavyweight champion in history. Boxer George Foreman. In the second round, Ali retreated to the ropes, shielding his head and hitting Foreman in the face at every opportunity. In his first year as a pro, alone, Foreman scored seven KOs and three technical knockouts, or TKOs. Frazier was 29 years old with a record of 29-0. Also, an additional $8 million was made from the live gate, with an estimated 19,000 fans attending the fight live.[5]. In the second round, Foreman pounded Lyle against the ropes and might have scored a KO, but due to a timekeeping error, the bell rang with a minute still remaining in the round and Lyle survived. [24] Foreman needed only two minutes to end the fight, one of the fastest knockouts in a heavyweight championship bout. I can't be bothered having trouble with Don King. The bout, against an unspecified opponent (rumored to be Trevor Berbick), never materialized (Foreman's wife was widely thought to have been a major factor in the change of plans). By mid-bout an increasingly confident Ali began to taunt the exhausted champion relentlessly, who had been reduced to mere pawing and landing harmless rubber-armed blows. He is now on a four-fight winning streak, with four back-to-back KO wins. Foreman said he had no plans to resume his career as a boxer, but then announced in February 2004 that he was training for one more comeback fight to demonstrate that the age of 55, like 40, is not a "death sentence". Having lost his last fight against Morrison, Foreman was unranked and in no position to demand another title shot. Foreman lost to Morrison via 12 round unanimous decision. For this purpose, his public persona was reinvented, and the formerly aloof, ominous Foreman had been replaced by a smiling, friendly George. Of his total 76 wins, 68 of them were via KO (89.5%). George Foreman vs Dwight Muhammad Qawi (Highlights) - YouTube However, he launched a comeback in the 10th round and hit Moorer with a number of punches. After this win, Foreman defeated Charlie Polite in four rounds and Boone Kirkman in three. Age: 79 Date Of Birth: 12 Jan 1944 Height: 5.97 ft (1.82 m) Reach: 72.83 inches (185 cm) Country: United States Universal ID : 3144 edit details joe frazier opponents MD Floyd Cummings(15-1-1) Thu, 3 Dec - 1981 round 10 of 10 . 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. His four-fight win streak is halted with this loss. In 1999, he sold the commercial rights to the grill for $138 million.George Foreman was born in Marshall, Texas. [citation needed]. Foreman defeated Wepner via 3rd round TKO. After amassing a record of 320 (29 KO), he was ranked as the number-one challenger by the World Boxing Association and World Boxing Council. Foreman defeated Savarese via 12 round split-decision. Lyle was the number-five rated heavyweight in the world at the time per the March 1976 issue of the Ring. Foreman was favored, having crushed undefeated heavyweight champion Joe Frazier and toppled formidable challenger Ken Norton both within two rounds. BoxRec: BoxRec is not under the control of any governing or sanctioning body, data may be incomplete/inaccurate. [8] The Ring ranked him as the ninth-greatest puncher of all time. A year later, Foreman fought journeyman Alex Stewart, who had previously been stopped in the first round by Mike Tyson. On March 17, 1977, a 28-year old George Foreman (45-1, 42 KO) fought fellow American boxer Jimmy Young, who was 28 years old with a record of 20-5-2. The ring ropes were unusually loose, and Foreman later charged that Angelo Dundee (Ali's longtime trainer) had loosened them as part of Ali's tactic to lean back and away from the wild swings before clinching Foreman behind the head; Dundee stated that not only did he tighten the ropes because they were so loose due to the heat, Ali came up with the "rope-a-dope" strategy entirely on his own. Another stated ambition was to fight Mike Tyson. On April 26, 1997, a 48-year old George Foreman (75-4, 68 KO) fought an undefeated fellow American boxer Lou Savarese, who was 31 years old with a record of 36-0. Holyfield was on a 25-fight win streak with 21 KO wins. Unknown -33.0 lbs view stats SD Lou Savarese (36-1-0) By the end of the 10th and final round, Foreman's face was bloodied and swollen, but the judges awarded him a majority decision win. His amateur record was 224 when he turned professional. He defended the belt twice before suffering his first professional loss to Muhammad Ali in the iconic Rumble in the Jungle in 1974. In boxing, he was nicknamed "Big George" and competed between 1967 and 1997. George Foreman vs. Shannon Briggs was a professional boxing match contested on November 22, 1997, for the Lineal heavyweight championship. He defeated Frazier via 2nd round TKO to become the heavyweight champion of the world. Frazier was on a 29-fight win streak with 25 KO wins. Foreman continues to speak about his experience on Christian television broadcasts such as The 700 Club and the Trinity Broadcasting Network. In February 1968, he knocked out L.C. His first defense, in Tokyo, pitted him against Puerto Rican Heavyweight Champion Jos Roman. Foreman then defeated George Chuvalo by technical knockout (TKO) in three rounds. On June 7, 1993, a 44-year old George Foreman (72-3, 67 KO) faced fellow American boxer Tommy Morrison, who was 24 years old with a record of 36-1 for the vacant WBO (vacant) heavyweight title. Background [ edit] As such, the two fighters received high payouts, Holyfield was guaranteed $20 million, while Foreman took home a guaranteed $12.5 million. Division: heavyweight. George Foreman III - Wikipedia Schulz jabbed strongly from long range, and exhibited increasing confidence as the fight progressed. He is a former heavyweight world champion. He is now on a eight-fight winning streak, with eight back-to-back KO wins. By his own admission in his autobiography, George was a troubled youth. George Foreman Vs. Bert Cooper - A Quit-Job, Cocaine And A "Set-Up" Foreman defeated Frazier via 5th round TKO. Still, a potentially massive money-making encore with Foreman never happened, whatever the reason. The fight was to be billed as "The Birthday Bash" due to both fighters' upcoming birthdays. His relatively high profile, however, made a title shot against Moorer, 19 years his junior, a lucrative prospect at seemingly little risk for the champion. Foreman was interested in football and idolized Jim Brown, but gave it up for boxing. He is now on a 40-fight winning streak, with 24 back-to-back KO wins. Frazier was wearing a contact lens for his vision, which was knocked loose during 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. Briggs was on a four-fight win streak with 24 KO wins, and was the taller of the two by 2 cms and also had a 4 cm reach advantage over Foreman. Every contract has some complication. Make sure to follow us on Twitter for updates and announcements. [4], The fight was a huge success financially, becoming for a time the highest-grossing boxing match of all time. During 1987, Foreman won all five of his bouts, each one by KO or TKO. Peralta was the number-10 ranked heavyweight in the world in January 1970 per The Ring,[20] while Chuvalo was number seven in the world per their March 1971 issue.[21]. Re: George Foreman/Exhibitions/sparring partners(1970-1977) Post by Caractacus 20 Nov 2018, 23:41. Norton was on a one-fight losing streak. Foreman lost to Ali via 8th round KO and lost the WBA, WBC, and Ring Magazine heavyweight titles. Foreman's opponent was Tommy Morrison, a young prospect known for his punching power. When Foreman and Ali finally met in the ring, Ali began more aggressively than expected, outscoring Foreman with superior punching speed. Foreman's title challenge against Moorer took place on November 5 in Las Vegas, Nevada, with Foreman wearing the same red trunks he had worn in his title loss to Ali 20 years earlier. Foreman defended his title successfully twice during his initial reign as champion. World Boxing Union (1995-2004) Heavyweight Title, International Boxing Federation World Heavyweight Title Frazier was then the world's number-three heavyweight per The Ring. 'Whoever he is, God bless him': Meet the man behind BoxRec, a crucial Foreman tired during the second half of the fight and suffered a knockdown in round twelve before losing by unanimous decision. [18], After winning the gold-medal fight, Foreman walked around the ring carrying a small U.S. flag and bowing to the crowd. Foreman is the oldest to ever win the world heavyweight boxing championship of major honors, and the second-oldest in any weight class after Bernard Hopkins (at light heavyweight). Holyfield went from undisputed cruiserweight. Moorer was on a 35-fight win streak with 30 KO wins. Some of Foreman's best fights and notable victories include wins over three Hall-of-Famers (Dwight Muhammad Qawi, Joe Frazier, and Ken Norton), Michael Moorer, George Chuvalo, Ron Lyle, and Axel Schulz. March 19, 1988: George Foreman beats Dwight Muhammad Qawi via 7th round TKO. He retired from the ring in 1977 and became an evangelist. Foreman, who weighed in at 257 pounds, began the contest by marching forward, absorbing several of Holyfield's best combinations and occasionally landing a powerful swing of his own. Following what he referred to as a religious epiphany, Foreman became an ordained Christian minister. [46], Foreman has been married to Mary Joan Martelly since 1985. Foreman finally retired for a second time at age 48 after a loss to Shannon Briggs. In February 1967, he knocked out Thomas Cook to win the Las Vegas Golden Gloves in the Senior Division. On August 18, 1969, a 20-year old George Foreman (3-0, 3 KO) fought fellow American boxer Chuck Wepner, who was 30 years old with a record of 19-4-2. George IV appeared on the second season of the reality television series American Grit, where he placed seventh. [citation needed] Foreman later also claimed he was drugged by his trainer prior to the bout. He successfully defended his title nine months later. This time, however, Foreman was a substantial underdog. [7] In 2002, he was named one of the 25 greatest fighters of the past 80 years by The Ring. George III spent his entire youth absorbing the history and art form that is boxing and boxing training. He would catch me with the jab as I was coming forward and it was so difficult to counter that punch. Shortly after the 1994 Moorer fight, Foreman began talking about a potential superfight with Mike Tyson, then the youngest heavyweight champion on record. Again, Foreman beat the count. [57], When Foreman came back from retirement, he argued that his success was due to his healthy eating. He is now on a two-fight winning streak. He knocked out the Soviet Union's Jonas epulis to win the Olympic Games Heavyweight Gold Medal. After 12 rounds, in which Foreman consistently rocked Briggs with power punches, almost everyone at ringside saw Foreman as the clear winner. April 22, 1995: Foreman wins the heavyweight title from Axel Schulz, by beating Schulz via 12 round majority decision. On March 19, 1988, a 39-year old George Foreman (52-2, 49 KO) fought fellow American boxer Dwight Muhammad Qawi, who was 35 years old with a record of 28-5-1. After an even first round, Foreman staggered Norton with an uppercut a minute into round two, buckling him into the ropes. At the 1968 Olympic Games in Mexico City, he won the gold medal in the heavyweight boxing competition. Foreman won the world heavyweight titlethe World Boxing Council and World Boxing Association beltswith a convincing second-round TKO of reigning champ Joe Frazier in January. In the fifth round, both fighters continued to ignore defense and traded their hardest punches, looking crude. Both the boxers were of the same height but Foreman had a 1 cm reach advantage over Ali. www.martialbot.com/boxing/g/george-foreman.html. Unable to mount a significant offense, Frazier was eventually floored twice by Foreman in the fifth round and the fight was stopped. . And Foreman clearly lost his edge after the dazing upset in Zaire. Many thought this would be Foreman's last chance at the Heavyweight championship. George Foreman vs Gerry Cooney | BLACK HISTORY MONTH FREE FIGHT Foreman's power is also evident when looking at his boxing records: he is 160 with 15 of his wins having been a KO or TKO and 1 win ending in a unanimous decision.[11]. In some quarters it was suggested Ali was ducking him,[31] taking on low-risk opponents such as Chuck Wepner, Richard Dunn, Jean Pierre Coopman, and Alfredo Evangelista. (Norton developed a reputation for showing nerves against heavy hitters, largely beginning with this fight.) At age 16, Foreman had a change of heart and convinced his mother to sign him up for the Job Corps after seeing an ad for the Corps on TV. Language links are at the top of the page across from the title. He is a two-time world heavyweight champion and an Olympic gold medalist. Foreman would then become the aggressor and continue his attack on Holyfield, landing several punches within the round's first minute. He is now on a 20-fight winning streak. In 1990, Foreman met former title challenger Gerry Cooney in Atlantic City. [13] Although he was raised by J.D. Foreman, whom his mother had married when George was a small child, his biological father was Leroy Moorehead. George Foreman's professional boxing career spanned more than 28 years from 1969 to 1997. George Foreman vs. Muhammad Ali, billed as The Rumble in the Jungle, was a heavyweight championship boxing match on October 30, 1974, at the 20th of May Stadium (now the Stade Tata Raphal) in Kinshasa, Zaire (now Democratic Republic of the Congo ), between undefeated and undisputed heavyweight champion George Foreman and Muhammad Ali. Outside boxing, he is a successful entrepreneur and known for his promotion of the George Foreman Grill, which has sold more than 100 million units worldwide. [1] Since ending his 10-year retirement in 1987, Foreman was a perfect 240, with 23 of his wins coming via knockout.