Why Didn't Lennox Lewis and old George Foreman Square Off?

[Knighte]

And what would've happened if they did?


I see Lewis, who was lighter on his feet - and old enough to be George's son -outboxing the older, slower Foreman.. that is, when he wasn't hugging him or dancing around him. But I wonder if Lewis' thunderous rights would've so much as dented Foreman's chin? This has lopsided decision written all over it, if you ask me. In favor of Lennox, of course.

I think this fight could theoretically have happened if Shannon Briggs wasn't awarded a gift decision over Foreman.. He went on to fight Lewis for the title and lost, although he gave a good accounting of himself

[JAB5239]

And what would've happened if they did?


I see Lewis, who was lighter on his feet - and old enough to be George's son -outboxing the older, slower Foreman.. that is, when he wasn't hugging him or dancing around him. But I wonder if Lewis' thunderous rights would've so much as dented Foreman's chin? This has lopsided decision written all over it, if you ask me. In favor of Lennox, of course.

I think this fight could theoretically have happened if Shannon Briggs wasn't awarded a gift decision over Foreman.. He went on to fight Lewis for the title and lost, although he gave a good accounting of himself

I think Foreman would of gotten tko'd. He just didn't have the speed to stop Lewis from landing. If Morrison and Alex Stewart could lump him up, and Moorer could easily outbox him till getting caught, I would expect Lennox to really be able to lay it on him. If it had happened, it may have been almost as sad to see as Ali-Holmes. Well, maybe not that bad, but ba just the same.

[jollystomper]

lennox wouldve killed old george!

[res]

I don't think Foreman would have done as bad as people think, he outboxed Briggs pretty convincingly. It was a prime example of what I always say, people overemphasize speed and underemphasize cleverness far too often.

Watch lewis in the first two rounds of his fight with Briggs lol.

I say Lewis by UD

[them_apples]

Lewis wasn't really that quick, and if he got hit hard he would often fight on the backfoot for the rest of the fight using his jab. It would have been a good fight, with George having his moment's and losing a UD. George often looked frustrated because he was unable to land on quicker fighters, but when he did....

[Kid McCoy]

In his 40s Foreman fought Holyfield and Moorer, and chased Tyson for a few years, but tbh I don't think Lewis was ever on his radar. As for who would win, George would always have his ace, but I'd fancy Lewis to stay cautious and out-box him as Morrison did.

[MANGLER]

Lewis woulda won a UD. Foreman woulda had a chance for a KO, but likely woulda lost wide on points.

[KnockoutTheFat]

It didn't happen because Briggs "won" over him which enabled him to become the WBC's #1 contender. But if the fight did happen Lewis would win a wide unanimous decision

[joe strong]

I saw a great interview with foreman.he said had he won the Briggs fight he would NOT have fought lewis.he said he fought in 4 decades & against the best.he said lewis was the greatest heavyweight of all time!he said when he beat michael moorer he said he ducked lewis & had no intentions of fighting him.he said he ducked him in his comeback & would have ducked him in his prime.he said a motivated lewis in his prime was unstoppable,& he only needed his power jab to beat most of the heavyweights ever.he said lewis' only weekness was his arrogance(think mccall & Rahman)...that says alot about lewis when you get those kind of accolades from an alltime great like foreman.he actually thought lewis could beat most guys 1 handed.I think that's a little far fetched but a great statement from a great champion

[Thread Stealer]

I saw a great interview with foreman.he said had he won the Briggs fight he would NOT have fought lewis.he said he fought in 4 decades & against the best.he said lewis was the greatest heavyweight of all time!he said when he beat michael moorer he said he ducked lewis & had no intentions of fighting him.he said he ducked him in his comeback & would have ducked him in his prime.he said a motivated lewis in his prime was unstoppable,& he only needed his power jab to beat most of the heavyweights ever.he said lewis' only weekness was his arrogance(think mccall & Rahman)...that says alot about lewis when you get those kind of accolades from an alltime great like foreman.he actually thought lewis could beat most guys 1 handed.I think that's a little far fetched but a great statement from a great champion

Foreman says a lot of strange things. I remember a Sports Illustrated article right before Lewis-Tyson where Foreman is asked how long Lewis would last with Foreman in Foreman's prime, and Foreman says "2 rounds".

Then Lewis beats Tyson and Foreman says "Lewis is the greatest heavyweight ever". I think he said it in the UK, so maybe he wanted to endear himself to the public in the UK and hope they buy his new book.

Foreman also claimed that he lost to Ali because he was distracted by seeing a friend in the audience betray him by rooting for Ali.

Lewis most likely would have beaten 90s Foreman in ugly fashion. Foreman was careful about whom he fought. Unless it was for the title (and Moorer was a vulnerable champ), he wasn't going to take any big risks like a Lewis fight.