The news came out of nowhere on Friday night, George Foreman, had passed away at the age of 76. It wasn't all that long ago that there was footage of 'Big George' banging away on the heavy bag, the power and strength still evident in his meaty hands. Despite his age, he still had a youthful spirit to him.
Suddenly, he is gone.
You can choose to speculate as to what ultimately felled him, but I've made the decision to pay tribute to an American dream that was fulfilled and a live well lived. When it was all said and done, he was more than just an all-time great heavyweight, but a vital piece of pop culture.
When Marvin Hagler passed away a few years ago, it felt as though a piece of my childhood was taken from me. With Foreman, it's more like a piece of my young adulthood. As legendary figures - in all sports, not just boxing -- fade away and then eventually leave us, you start to think about your own age and mortality. The athletes we once idolized as kids, will inevitably pass away as you become an adult. It leaves you wondering where the time goes.
But this column isn't meant to be a downer, to the contrary, this is a tribute to the life and career of Foreman.
For me, Foreman was a guy that I knew off but never watched as a kid. After all, I was a toddler when he battled the likes of Joe Frazier, Ken Norton and Muhammad Ali. I read about his exploits and watched his first career on VHS tapes (remember those things?) that I would buy from 'Sun Coast Videos' at the Montebello Town Center. These kids today don't know how lucky they have it with YouTube.
@lunatoonboxing
I distinctly recall reading a blurb in Sports Illustrated about what seemed to be an illogical comeback in 1987. It was widely lampooned and mocked, as he initially took on the likes of Steve Zouski, Tim Anderson, Everett 'Big Foot' Martin and Bobby Crabtree. Even as they upped his competition as he appeared regularly on ESPN and USA's Tuesday Night Fights, it was difficult to really take this all that seriously.
What was notable was that grizzly bear that was Foreman in his first younger days, had become a teddy bear in his reincarnation, that appealed to the American public. Yeah, this return might have been a farce, but at least Foreman was making it fun.
But as he blew out Gerry Cooney in 1990, you had to at least take this a bit more seriously. From that point on he was considered a legitimate contender in what was a pretty decent era for big men. Foreman seemed to legitimize this whole thing by giving Evander Holyfield a real tussle in 1991 for the heavyweight title. If would've ended there, by all accounts this would've been a successful run.
Instead, George kept fighting -- losing another title shot to Tommy Morrison in 1993 for the WBO belt -- and in 1994 he was paired with Michael Moorer, who was the lineal and recognized heavyweight champion at the time. There's no need to rehash that memorable night. Chances are that if you're reading this, you've probably already seen that bout a few times.
Now, for those who do need a primer, here's a link to HBO's 'Legendary Nights' episode on that bout:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HJfTQmy7lIU
It's often been said that Buster Douglas' upset of Mike Tyson is the 'JFK assassination'' of boxing matches because you know exactly where you were as you watched that fight, or how you felt as you learned of the momentous upset. You could say that the same applies for Moorer-Foreman. If you were on Twitter/X over the weekend you saw countless stories of fans who have vivid memories of that stunning upset and how they were with friends and loved ones on the night of November 5, 1994.
Foreman's career wrapped up in 1997 as he took a highly disputed loss to Shannon Briggs. By this time he had become America's favored pitchman, most notably for a certain grill. During this second act Foreman became far more than just a prizefighter, Foreman became a personality. He didn't just do commercials, he even starred in his own sitcom(the short-lived, 'George').
He went onto a long run as the color commentator for HBO alongside Jim Lampley and Larry Merchant. I can't lie, he would baffle me sometimes with his analysis, but his folksy humor resonated with the general audience. Maybe I was being a bit of a boxing snob when it came to him as an announcer, I mean, it's just boxing, and besides, he made it fun.
George Foreman Grill
The man fought Ali, Frazier, Norton and Ron Lyle and then eventually Holyfield, Morrison and Moorer, while winning the heavyweight titles two decades apart. There will never be a career quite like this, ever again.
He truly was one-of-a-kind.
FOREMAN-LYLE
Speaking of that fight, here's a link to that fight, which many pundits consider the greatest slugfest in heavyweight history. (By the way, 'Vintage Boxing' has a YouTube channel that should be subscribed by every boxing fan):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Fo3ohx6yTs&t=4s
