Rid**** Bowe Is Vastly Underrated And Could Beat Any HW

[prinzemanspopa]

He outclassed, dominated and beatdown Holyfield.

Complete bollocks! Nobody ever "outclassed" or "dominated" a prime Evander Holyfield.Nobody!


Bowe earned his victory over Evander Holyfield in their first fight,but it was not domination,and he sure as hell didn't outclass Holyfield,either.Holyfield fought with his heart,not his head.He fell into Bowe's fight and fought a fight that he was never going to win.The fact that Holyfield did as well as he did against Bowe in their first fight,fighting the type of fight that he did is a testament to the Holy one's greatness.


Bowe was still in his prime,and was in decent shape when Evander Holyfield beat him in their rematch.Holyfield fought the most complete,technically and tactically brilliant fight of his career.Rather than engage Bowe in an all-out brawl,he boxed,moved,worked behind his jab,and picked his spots of aggression brilliantly.


It was a complete performance that saw Holyfield never set a predictable pattern.And while the fight was very competitive,it was not close enough to dispute.Bowe would never have beaten that version of Holyfield.

[Kulle]

Yeah, he must be atg. After all, he has one win against a name opponent. Oh and he lost the rematch to that opponent.

[#1Assassin]

if rid**** was underrated, its his fault. he wasnt devoted enough to the sport. he could have been great, but instead he chose to be fat. no different fom james toney

they were both great, they couldve been greater. had they been more disciplined the sky is the limit for both of them, but what they did achieve is still very impressive and ppl tend to overlook that.

bows prime was so short due to his lack of discipline and brutal wars with evander, but in his prime he was a beast.

[nomadman]

Oh great, another "Rid**** Bowe is underrated" thread. Bowe's prime lasted approximately five seconds, during which time he managed to duke out a decision with Holyfield that got America's panties wet. Fair play to him for that, good performance. He also lost the rematch and barely won the rubber match when Holyfield's heart gave out. Oh, and he got beaten the crap out of by Golota twice whilst still in his twenties. Oh yeah, and he ducked Lennox. Real impressive resume that. Tell me, what separates Bowe from a fighter like Buster Douglas, who also had one great night in his career? Potential? Yeah, Rid**** had that, but so did Lennox, Holyfield, Wlad etc and they all actually realised that potential in the ring, thus taking it out of the realm of supposition and hypothesis and making it tangible. Besides, it wasn't like Bowe was flawless. He showed plenty of faults even in his best performance: inconsitency with the jab, a sloppy right hand, a tendency to give up his height and brawl on the inside (no reason a tall guy like Bowe should have been fighting on the inside, period) and a really leaky defence that involved his chin as the prime stopper. Could he have beaten any heavyweight on the right night? Sure he could. So could Lennox, Holyfield, Tyson, Wlad, Vitali and any top heavyweight who happens to have the good fortune to have it all come together come the fight. Besides Holyfield, suppositions are all Bowe really has going for him, because he left far too many questions in the ring.

[Guest]

Oh great, another "Rid**** Bowe is underrated" thread. Bowe's prime lasted approximately five seconds, during which time he managed to duke out a decision with Holyfield that got America's panties wet. Fair play to him for that, good performance. He also lost the rematch and barely won the rubber match when Holyfield's heart gave out. Oh, and he got beaten the crap out of by Golota twice whilst still in his twenties. Oh yeah, and he ducked Lennox. Real impressive resume that. Tell me, what separates Bowe from a fighter like Buster Douglas, who also had one great night in his career? Potential? Yeah, Rid**** had that, but so did Lennox, Holyfield, Wlad etc and they all actually realised that potential in the ring, thus taking it out of the realm of supposition and hypothesis and making it tangible. Besides, it wasn't like Bowe was flawless. He showed plenty of faults even in his best performance: inconsitency with the jab, a sloppy right hand, a tendency to give up his height and brawl on the inside (no reason a tall guy like Bowe should have been fighting on the inside, period) and a really leaky defence that involved his chin as the prime stopper. Could he have beaten any heavyweight on the right night? Sure he could. So could Lennox, Holyfield, Tyson, Wlad, Vitali and any top heavyweight who happens to have the good fortune to have it all come together come the fight. Besides Holyfield, suppositions are all Bowe really has going for him, because he left far too many questions in the ring.

He was a terrific inside fighter when he wanted to be.
Kind of rare among big heavyweights.

His lack of discipline like you alluded to, prevents him from being an ATG.

[nomadman]

He was a terrific inside fighter when he wanted to be.
Kind of rare among big heavyweights.

His lack of discipline like you alluded to, prevents him from being an ATG.

He had a great inside offence. I wouldn't call him a great inside fighter because his height and sloppy defence meant he got hit too much whilst there. And yes it is rare amongst big heavyweights for the same reason that it's rare to see a short heavyweight who's a great outside boxer, it really isn't the best way for them to fight. Bowe's lack of discipline is well known, but he also really didn't play to his physical strengths enough. Had he done so his prime might have lasted at least into his thirties and we might all have had a much better case for ranking him higher than we currently do.

[Guest]

He had a great inside offence. I wouldn't call him a great inside fighter because his height and sloppy defence meant he got hit too much whilst there. And yes it is rare amongst big heavyweights for the same reason that it's rare to see a short heavyweight who's a great outside boxer, it really isn't the best way for them to fight. Bowe's lack of discipline is well known, but he also really didn't play to his physical strengths enough. Had he done so his prime might have lasted at least into his thirties and we might all have had a much better case for ranking him higher than we currently do.

While what you say is technically true, I always felt Bowe had a street guy mentality in him when he mixed it up.

It made for interesting, exciting fights though it's probably the cause of his short reign and slurred speech now.

[nomadman]

While what you say is technically true, I always felt Bowe had a street guy mentality in him when he mixed it up.

It made for interesting, exciting fights though it's probably the cause of his short reign and slurred speech now.

True, Bowe can't be faulted on his lack of heart inside the ring. He was very much a "you hit me, I hit you" kinda guy. But this isn't street fighting and Bowe can't be considered a great boxer simply due to the excitement he brought to his fights. Longevity and consistency have to factor in there as well, and Bowe trips up on both counts.

[NChristo]

Today I decided to watch 15 or so of Bowe's fights. He was a monster. With the best HW trainer of all time (Eddie Futch RIP) and motivated, Bowe was basically unstoppable. He outclassed, dominated and beatdown Holyfield. Prime for prime Bowe destroys both Klitschkos brothers. He has the 2nd greatest jab in HW history (behind Ali only)

He had a great offensive arsenal and was spectacular mid range but his defense really wasn't all that good at all, he had an excellent jab but to say it's better then Listons and Holmes is a long shot.

There's not many Heavies I would choose over a primed Bowe but there's no way he was unstoppable.

[XionComrade]

Oh great, another "Rid**** Bowe is underrated" thread. Bowe's prime lasted approximately five seconds, during which time he managed to duke out a decision with Holyfield that got America's panties wet. Fair play to him for that, good performance. He also lost the rematch and barely won the rubber match when Holyfield's heart gave out. Oh, and he got beaten the crap out of by Golota twice whilst still in his twenties. Oh yeah, and he ducked Lennox. Real impressive resume that. Tell me, what separates Bowe from a fighter like Buster Douglas, who also had one great night in his career? Potential? Yeah, Rid**** had that, but so did Lennox, Holyfield, Wlad etc and they all actually realised that potential in the ring, thus taking it out of the realm of supposition and hypothesis and making it tangible. Besides, it wasn't like Bowe was flawless. He showed plenty of faults even in his best performance: inconsitency with the jab, a sloppy right hand, a tendency to give up his height and brawl on the inside (no reason a tall guy like Bowe should have been fighting on the inside, period) and a really leaky defence that involved his chin as the prime stopper. Could he have beaten any heavyweight on the right night? Sure he could. So could Lennox, Holyfield, Tyson, Wlad, Vitali and any top heavyweight who happens to have the good fortune to have it all come together come the fight. Besides Holyfield, suppositions are all Bowe really has going for him, because he left far too many questions in the ring.

It is a good point, Bowe and Douglas. But I think Bowe was a far superior fighter in every way, obviously. Douglas was the better Cinderella Story! I like that comparison though, spot on!