Larry Holmes vs George Foreman

And this is it, in a nutshell. Foreman is myriads better than those guys and is a much better finisher. Shavers exhausted wild swinging efforts to finish Holmes were not pretty to say the least.

 

Foreman's stamina isnt a big factor honestly it was fine he gassed against Ali in Zaire under extreme humidity, aswell as being purposefully dehydrated before the fight.
(I have no idea why)

After This fight you could question his stamina he was walking around quite soft and undertrained for a few fights see the Lyle, Young fights for example but before this he was no work horse but it was enough to be a live threat for atleast ten.

Personally I can't really say who would win definitively but if I were to be forced into making a decision I'd give the edge to "The Mummy" by TKO if Shavers had Prime Larry on the deck in his final hurrah if someone as unpolished as Shavers found him then I have no doubt that George would have a high chance to find and finish Larry at some point.

 

Indeed - Foreman was just on a whole different level, offensively.

That said, this match-up remains a difficult pick for me and, whilst I don’t believe, in all probability, that Holmes would be able force a stoppage, I still think he’d have a fair chance of surviving Foreman over the distance and nicking a decision.

However, it would have to be the performance of his career; much like Foreman would need to put in his best ever.

 

Prime George would be Pre-Ali/Foreman George.
Prime Larry would be post Ali/Foreman Larry.
This equips Larry with some knowledge on how to beat Foreman. Foreman would make the same mistake he made against Ali, because he wouldn't have suffered that loss yet.

Now if we go with generic 70's Foreman vs generic 80's Larry. I still favor Larry. Foreman's confidence took a huge hit when Ali knocked him out.

Now if this fight takes place in the 90's. That's where I pick Big George. 90's George was smart used a heavy jab but still had the KO power. 90's Larry was smart too, but I think he slowed down just enough that Foreman would be able to corner him and wail away.

 

Yes neither can be written off that's for sure. It's a fantastic matchup, one i'd pay a lot to see.

 

I don't know if Shavers hit harder than Foreman. Even if he did, I think it's fair to say he wasn't even close to the offensive force George was. George Foreman in his prime was a force of nature. Foreman was incredibly accurate with his power shots. Look at his finish of Norton. He literally drove Kenny into the canvas.
I don't question Holmes heart or courage but he would have to dig deep to have a chance to get through those first 5 rounds. It would be a mistake to assume hes gonna survive.

 

I think some are selling shavers short. He was quicker, faster on his feet than George, not saying he was better, or not better. He was a different beast. He was really something, I think he kicked ali'sbutt.

 

Shavers didn't cut off the ring anything like Foreman. Foreman had by far the "better" footwork.

 

This.

 

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What does this prove? A prime Holmes would have jabbed and uppercutted him silly, TKO in the 8th.

Even Tyson admits to Holmes' ability to beat him in his prime, and he hasn't changed that opinion since that fight happened.

 

My head says Holmes, my heart says Foreman.

 

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who was Larry Holmes best opponent that he beat? Was it Ernie Shavers? or was it Ken Norton? or was it Gerry Cooney? was any of them a George Foreman? Who was Foreman's best opponent that he beat? A prime Norton? a past prime Cooney? Frazier? Holmes had the jab and hit and run style to beat Foreman but also had his flaws, vulnerability to right hands could lose dramatically before round 5 to Foreman - bottom line is neither one faced an opponent like the other in their primes - Jimmy Young beat Foreman and Holmes could repeat that scenario but I think he falls short before the 5th or Holmes takes charge from behind to dominate late rounds and possibly get the stoppage - quick pick is Foreman KO HOLMES in 4

 

Devastation...

It’s worth noting just how quickly Foreman began to time Norton’s movement; as well as how his respect for Norton’s Jab appears to fall away inside a minute.