Rid**** Bowe, How Far Could Have He Really Gone?

[OctoberRed]

Bowe was one of my favorite fighters in that era.

People were calling him one of the most talented big men (of that size) of all-time.

He had size, punch, stamina, boxing ability, a chin.

Then it's like everything went to hell in the Golota fight and he never recovered.

Walked away with a 43-1, 33 KO record.

Some say the Holyfield wars ruined him, but after the second fight that he lost, he went through 4 undefeated fighters and knocked out Holyfield n the trilogy.

If he would have kept his weight in check, there was so much potential.

[TBear]

If he had his head on right and stayed in shape, I believe he could have gone much farther with Futch at the helm. I was not happy with Rock Neuman as a manager but aside from that, Bowe never fulfilled the potential he had. But while he was good, he was real good!

[Willy Wanker]

Bowe was deceptively quick for a big man. He had a good jab and fought well on the outside, but he also had a great inside game, loved his uppercuts at close range.

I would have loved to see Bowe vs. Lewis and Tyson, as well as the other top heavies like Moorer, Mercer, Morrison, even old Holmes would have been an interesting fight for Bowe.

His lack of motivation to train hard and keep his weight below 240 lbs. was his downfall. He performed a lot better in the Golota rematch and even exchanged knockdowns, but the momentum was shifting in Golota's favor before the DQ.

I'm sure the Holyfield trilogy and the Golota fights took a lot of him, but I think he could have gone another 4-5 years. He would have got some good wins and taken a few losses along the way, I doubt he would have been the number one HW again though.

Bowe vs. Lewis should have happened. But we got cherry picks like Dokes and Ferguson instead. And the WBC in the trash, which probably would have gone over well in 2017 with fans, but not in 1992 to avoid Lewis.

[New England]

i don't think he ever beats lennox lewis. bigger, more disciplined guy with a better jab and who was tougher to hit cleanly. bowe wouldn't even fight him. styles make fights and it's tough for big guys who benefit from big-ness to fight somebody who is just as big or bigger.

[rudy]

Bowe was one of my favorite fighters in that era.

People were calling him one of the most talented big men (of that size) of all-time.

He had size, punch, stamina, boxing ability, a chin.

Then it's like everything went to hell in the Golota fight and he never recovered.

Walked away with a 43-1, 33 KO record.

Some say the Holyfield wars ruined him, but after the second fight that he lost, he went through 4 undefeated fighters and knocked out Holyfield n the trilogy.

If he would have kept his weight in check, there was so much potential.

It is no different than Tyson Fury, Talent is wasted on the youth, when it goes it goes.

[billeau2]

i don't think he ever beats lennox lewis. bigger, more disciplined guy with a better jab and who was tougher to hit cleanly. bowe wouldn't even fight him. styles make fights and it's tough for big guys who benefit from big-ness to fight somebody who is just as big or bigger.

New England

You always bring an interesting and thoughtful opinion to the mix. Your ideas about Bowe intersect well with my own humble opinions. Would it be fair to say that Bowe had a bit of the "bully" in him?

Certainly when Bowe got angry and thought a guy was "not hard" he could be a nightmare to deal with. The Cuban heavyweight, jose Luis Gonzalez who was a decent fighter with good skills was destroyed by Bowe... Bowe refused to believe Gonzalez could affect him in the ring and in effect the fight was over before it ever happened.

Yet Bowe saw in Lennox a resistance to the bully tactic and I think that scared him, not to mention the first meeting of the two might have affected him (we will never know). lewis was also, as you indicate another big man...not a lanky big man, not a fat big man... another heavyweight with the size and strength to match Bowe.

Bowe had a lot of skills and was a real rawboned big man. Its not just the weight, Bowe reminded me a bit of Liston, when he was in shape there was no wasted weight, with big hands, a thick neck and good sized legs to generate power. Liston was more compact but Bowe could indeed fight inside, had a decent jab and could finish well when he tasted blood.

I usually find that a fighter who fails has at least some technical flaws that help the failure... Mike Tyson fought in a style with a short shelf life, Golota could not stand getting hit, A guy like Samuel Peter was too slow and ponderous with no footwork to speak of, etc etc. I would have to say with Bowe more than any other fighter I can think of, it was his bullyness, a personality flaw that caused his rapid descent.

Futch was tied in with the great ones, he had been around along with Duva to see some of the best and knew how they operated to be successful. When Bowe took Rock neuman in, that was the beginning of the end. Thats the bottom line.

[billeau2]

Bowe was one of my favorite fighters in that era.

People were calling him one of the most talented big men (of that size) of all-time.

He had size, punch, stamina, boxing ability, a chin.

Then it's like everything went to hell in the Golota fight and he never recovered.

Walked away with a 43-1, 33 KO record.

Some say the Holyfield wars ruined him, but after the second fight that he lost, he went through 4 undefeated fighters and knocked out Holyfield n the trilogy.

If he would have kept his weight in check, there was so much potential.

The Holyfield fights are an interesting part of the Bowe story. A lot of people at the time thought Bowe should have been able to use his size and strength to take out the cruiser weight in front of him lol. Either Holyfield was just so much more talented or Bowe was off his game. People at that time were however questioning whether Holly was a legit Heavy weight. Then by the time Holly fights Moore he is a force to be reckoned with in the division! lol.

[GhostofDempsey]

He went as far as his willingness could take him if that makes sense. Futch trained him well and when he listened to Eddie he did very well. He had a tendency to get lured into brawls. I also witnessed him take a few cheap shots at fighters, hitting them after the bell or when they took a knee. The presence of Rock Neuman was part of his downfall. That guy was a slithering piece of shyt. With his encouragement, Bowe tossed his title belt into the trash rather than take on Lennox Lewis, which spoke volumes about his heart and commitment. Lewis and the Klitschkos would have butchered him. Tyson would have stopped him inside the distance as well.

Despite any of his shortcomings, he would rule the HW division today. He was a much better boxer than Wilder and Joshua. Though he may have trouble with Joshua's size and power on the inside. That was Bowe's weakness, inside fighting.

[Sugar Adam Ali]

If he had the professionalism of Lennox or klitchkos, then I think bowe becomes an ATG and probably "the" heavyweight of the 90s

I could see bowe adding to his trilogy with evander by having fights and beating foreman, mercer, Morrison, Tyson.

I think Lennox would be the only one to beat bowe besides Holyfield, and Lennox/bowe could develop into a Frazier/Ali type rivalry

[Team Reek]

i don't know if bowe ever beats lewis because of bowe's poor D, and maybe a psychological edge for Lewis.

But Lewis was unpolished in 1993 compared to later, so I don't know. Even if Bowe trained hard, he would have had to work on that outside D.