Is It Possible Bob Foster Is Overrated?

He never lost to a LHW and was a very dominant champion. As far as I know he's never been accused of ducking anyone either, but fought what was available.

That's better than both Hagler and Mozon did at MW (since they both lost at the weight, and Hagler also lost his title) and they are frequently ranked at the top of that division.

As for Foster, it's unclear to me what more he could do at LHW and therefore I can't really see how he could be overrated at the weight.

 

:goodCheers. I stand corrected. However, are you claiming that because Hopkins beat natural middleweights Pavlik and Eastmen as well as lightheavy Tarver, he would beat an atg lightheavy Foster because all those guys are taller than him?

 

Charles, Jones Jr, Moore, Tunney, Langford, Spinks, Greb, Kovalev. Loughran, Johnson, Bivins, Rosenbloom?

 

Actually, he was criticized for not defending against Jimmy Dupree or Rondon when they were his top two contenders - in fact, that's what led to him being stripped of part of his title.

IIRC, he bypassed a big money offer to defend against Gregorio Peralta (one of his top contenders at the time) for a fight with unranked Frankie DePaula. And of course, he elected to retire following a gift draw rather than give Jorge Ahumada a rematch.

 

He was stripped by the WBA for not signing to fight Dupree ten days after being KO'd by Frazier. When he finally got round to it, he flattened Rondon in two rounds.

 

Half the fighters you list were never lt heavyweight champion you do realize that. Foster hit hard enough to ko any of those fighters as a lt heavy.

 

It wasn't a 'gift' draw vs. Jorge but I understand your point.
As to stripping him of his title which led to the Galindez-Hutchings, Conte-Ahumada WBA-WBC fights, I think, for whatever reason, (help here would help) it was Victor that was supposed to go to Albuquerque and not Jorge to fight.
IMO I think Bob had just had enough and was ready to retire.
Sidebar: Galindez and Conte should have settled things in the spring of 1975! My late bud and I went back and forth on the outcome for over a year.
To the youngsters, forget what you saw in the late 70's from both of them; Victor's non impressive 15 round decisions and getting wiped out by Rossman (who he clubbed in the rematch) and Marvin Johnson AND...Conteh's oft broken hand from that point on leading to stoppages, Franklin, etc...
They were at the TOP of their game in early 75 and should have fought. We were waiting for the announcement but it never came. :-(

 

I think Bob Foster was one of the best light heavys ever up to that time. His record against fellow 175-pounders was pretty stellar.

But one of the best groups of light heavys in history came along right after Foster retired. And I don't know how well Bob would've done with Michael Spinks, Dwight Qawi, Matthew Saad Muhammad, Eddie Mustafa Muhammad, Marvin Johnson, Victor Galindez, John Conteh, etc.

That's not even considering the guys who came decades later like Tommy Hearns, Michael Moorer, Roy Jones, Bernard Hopkins, Sergey Kovalev.

I don't think Bob goes undefeated against all those guys. I don't even know if he beats most of them.

So he might be a little overrated compared to every light heavy who ever lived. But, in his time, he wasn't overrated.

 

He lost to Mina who was essentially a LHvy and so was Doug Jones at the time. Foster is top 4 at 175lbs for me

 

surprised he never rematched Mina. Definitely top five light heavy.

 

Me too!:good

 

I'm a bit unsure.

He's a lock for top 10 imo.

But I'm starting to believe Spinks, Conn and Bivins might beat him.

 

Bivins didn't beat too many top lighthvy's whilst weighing near the 175lbs limit.
Soose
Cristoforidis
Maxim who was 14-3-0
Sheppard who was 13-7-0
Marshall whom he outweighed by 10lbs.

 

Foster was overrated in the same way that tnt, potassium cyanide and napalm is overrated.

 

And how near to the LHW limit do you think Foster fought at.