Does anyone know the full story as to why Riddick Bowe gave up the World Title rather than fight Lewis who I believe was the No.1 ranked contender at the time? I think it was 1993 and Bowe dropped the WBC title into a bin?
Bowe would have been beaten again, he knew it, some of you dont, but he did. Aint LL fault, everyone knows it was Bowe that bottled it.
Yeah you could say that with conviction. I means its not like Lewis was getting a Boxing lesson from Frank Bruno, and struggling with a past prime Tony Tucker, and getting himself KTFO by Oliver McCall around the time the fight was being discussed ............is it?:lol1:
When the fight was being spoke about Bowe would beaten Lewis with ease imo. Lewis post McCall(Steward) you could make a better case for.
bowe was never knocked out,,he never left his feet
These cats don't realize that in the am's if you get hit with a good shot, and you buckle the fight gets stopped. In a professional fight Lewis would have to knock Bowe down, and Bowe had serious power. Lets not forget Lewis was ****ling sloppy in the early 90s.
Riddick Bowe's disgust was complete. Here on the TV screen before him was Lennox Lewis getting out-jabbed by Frank Bruno. Frank Bruno! Lewis had slipped so far that only a desperate seventh-round punch would save him, and it was dawning on Bowe that he might soon find himself without a proper pay-per-view nemesis. "Rock," he finally cried to his manager, Rock Newman, sitting next to him, "we got to get him quick!"
Of course, this is heavyweight boxing, and nothing happens quick. Bowe, who was in Sacramento to fight an exhibition that evening at the Arco Arena, is in training for a Nov. 6 rematch with Evander Holyfield. And although Bowe complains that Lewis, who holds the WBC title that he forfeited, is further avoiding him by planning a fight with Tommy Morrison, Bowe has Michael Moorer penciled in after Holyfield. The soonest Bowe and Lewis could meet would be late 1994.
Still, Bowe was surprisingly agitated. While Newman was almost gleeful—"Ted Mack's Amateur Hour," he kept hollering—Bowe, watching Lewis struggle, could barely contain his impatience. "I wanted to be the first guy to expose him," said Bowe. "I wish I could get him before Tommy Morrison does. Morrison will take him out with that big hook."
Lewis is lucky the fight did not happen then, because Bowe would most likely have Ko'ed him. Lewis looked less than impressive against Tony Tucker, and then he looked terrible against Frank Bruno. Lewis was being KTFO not long after that.
Bowe dropped the WBC belt for a number of reasons. Newman had gripe with Jose Sulliman who was a known King allie. The WBC dropped Bowe down their rankings to put one of Don Kings fighters above him, when Bowe was virtually guaranteed a title shot. Also a Holyfield rematch offered more money.
When Ruddok fought Lewis. Don King was out of the picture. Don King assumed that Ruddock would beat Lewis and he would find his was back into the HW picture. However Lewis beat Ruddock, and King was out in the cold so WBC made Lewis first defence against Tony Tucker another Don King fighter. That is how in with Joe Sulliman Don King was.
Bowe didn't want any plain and simple. Lewis took him out in the Am's and clearly was the best out there. Why would Bowe risk it all fighting Lewis when he can take easier fights for more money.
The amatures and the professional ranks are nothing alike. Thing is LL was a lot more experienced as an amature when they met in the finals of the 1988 Olympic games.
you aint nothing to me..lol
Ha, ha. That's amusing to watch at the end of the HBO broadcast of Bowe-Holyfield I. I think that Bowe might have won, consider his fight with Jorge Gonzalez. They hated each other since the amatuer days, and Bowe trained intensely for the fight and KO'd Gonzalez in round 6. Lewis, or course, at the time of the first Holyfield fight, was just, just, horrible. He was decent, I guess, but he would have been beat at that point by Holyfield and a prime Tyson. Bowe would have showed up, looking to knock out Lewis, and he would have most likely gotten it, if he showed up with the same intensity he had against Evander Holyfield that first time.
Bowe didn't want any plain and simple. Lewis took him out in the Am's and clearly was the best out there. Why would Bowe risk it all fighting Lewis when he can take easier fights for more money.
Didn't he throw his belt into a trash can? When you think of what fighters through the years have gone through to get a belt Bowe was totally disrespectful.
Tainted his career badly, did that.
Great post by HeartAttack!
What would we give to have a heavyweight division like that again - Lewis, Bowe, Tyson, Hollyfield, Foreman, and many more..
Does anyone know the full story as to why Riddick Bowe gave up the World Title rather than fight Lewis who I believe was the No.1 ranked contender at the time? I think it was 1993 and Bowe dropped the WBC title into a bin?
bowe didn't want to know. there was more money for what were perceived as easier fights. LL would of made easy work of him.
This fight not happening was the greatest disappointment in the history of the heavyweight division. The 90's could've looked a lot different if this fight went down. Both men would be judged differently and there would've been even more substance to what was a very great decade for the division. I know Stevenson and Ali never fighting was a disappointment as was Holmes and Foreman. But Teofilo never turned pro and George found God before he found Larry in the ring and the two were way too old to fight during their comebacks. But Bowe and Lewis were two very young and talented fighters who had that history from the amatuers and they genuinely disliked one another. But I believe it was two-fold why the fight didn't go down. One was of course money. We all know Bowe loved money and the lifestyle he lived wasn't cheap. At the time, there was more money to be made fighting Holyfield than Lewis (by a lot) Plus the trilogy he fought with Evander is one of the greatest the division and the sport ever saw. Not only did Bowe chase the money that another fight with Holyfield offered, but he got it. And Riddick liked living that easy life, why fight Lennox for less money and possibly lose too? Didn't make too much sense at the time. And if you watch Bowe during the interviews around this time, his words were concise (for him) and his sentences were plausible. You move on past the three fights with Evander and go to the Golota fights per say. The man slurs like he just drank a 1/5 of whiskey, and what coherent words that did fall from his mouth, don't really pertain to anything in particular. Bowe quickly became punchdrunk in his career. Mostly it was money and greed on Bowe's behalf on why he didn't fight Lennox, but I believe a bit that Evander ruined Riddick as well. I tell you what though, when Bowe was on his game, he was special, as was Lewis. Damn, this fight should've happened.