Golota would beat both Klitschkos

Well, I'm pretty sure all but one were intentional; ironically the last one in the first fight iirc was on the thigh, and he was DQ'd for that one.

I'll be honest ... I was half enjoying Bowe getting back some of the rough stuff he'd dished out to others over the years. On the other hand, Golota was so clearly dominating "fairly" that I couldn't believe that he was going to throw away the match like that. Yet he did. Twice

 

Many people are puzzled by Golota's career. You're one of many. What I always point out is that Andy suffered a car accident in December 1999 in which he permanently injured his left shoulder and his superior left jab was always his main weapon. That same let jab which helped the Pole win bronze at the Seoul, Korea, Olympics was now gone (starting from 2000 and going forward). I also like to remind people that Golota hit his prime in the 90s, the second greatest era in heavyweight history. At that time he was not yet on the level that Lewis, Holyfield, Tyson, and Moorer were (also, Golota didn't turn pro until four years following the Olympics, which IMO is a relatively late start to the pro game). When he beat Byrd and Ruiz in many observers' eyes, it was a past-prime, permanently injured version of Golota because of that car accident. Some people believe the Polish national hero could have clearly beaten Byrd and Ruiz if only he fought them closer to his prime. He probably could have knocked Ruiz out in the 90s.

 

The last three losses of his career were fights that should have never happened (at least the final two in Poland for sure). I wish Golota would have bowed out for good after beating Mollo or had one final fight with Valuev at the end of 2008 for the WBA title and then call it a career, win or lose. Other than that, Golota lost mostly to champions or contenders throughout his long and illustrious career (including two Hall of Famers).

 

I can understand this reasoning. Both Vitali and Wlad are the benefit of a weak era in heavyweight boxing and IMO are a bit overrated in the context of the division's history.

 

Its not overrating them to pick them to be Andrew Golata.

 

Ticar must still be hung over from New Years?

 

The Lewis bout ended the way it did due to Golota experiencing side effects from a shot of lidocaine in his achy knee. Truth be told the Lewis-Golota fight should have never happened when it did. It was money for the promoters who couldn't care less that Golota was not yet ready for a test as great as Lennox Lewis following two dramatic and hard-fought matches with Bowe that ultimately ended in losses. The Pole did not have time to rebuild his psyche before taking on Lennox.

 

Regardless, he wasn't going to beat Lennox Lewis and he never did anything of note again.

 

Thanks. I appreciate the insight. And I did follow Golota early when he was on Tuesday Night Fights. He had skills. I just don't think he had elite athletic abilities (not that these are always necessary in boxing). And here we are comparing him to one, if not two, ATG's. I also think he had the classic Bully Complex. He liked to intimidate and act the thug but when the favor was returned he panicked... In fact, he panicked sometimes before the fact.

 

jdoro gets a thumbs up for the good argument that he presented.

I may just search for some earlier Golota fights to see if he was much better than post-Bowe.

 

Yeah I like to combine Cuevas and Palomino into one man as well.

 

All the way into the 2000s, Andrew was clearly past his best yet was still able to make a dent in the division. Golota brought a lot of entertainment to boxing fans through the years (way after his loss to Lewis). All in all, Golota's career and life story is a candidate for a Hollywood film. This is noteworthy. At least in my eyes. I know you don't feel this way. It's all a matter of perspective.

 

You said "As a rule I don't take anyone seriously who refers to them as 1 entity." By "them", I thought you meant the Klitschko brothers because "them" is plural. By "entity" I thought you were referring to both Vitali and Wladimir as a dynasty in the heavyweight division. If you meant Golota, you should have wrote "As a rule I don't take anyone seriously who refers to him as 1 entity." If I misunderstood what you said, it would have been polite of you to clarify instead of using a sarcastic tone.

 

Golota was a very talented fighter and one of the things that always surprised some was that he seemed to have very good vision and anticipation of what was thrown at him.

Neither Klit has an easy time against a Golota at his best.

 

I wouldn't pick either one of them to lose to him.