Does Anyone Think Lewis Could Have Beaten Bowe,In 1992 ?

I do without question. I think around 92' would have been Bowe's best chance to beat Lewis but I still would bet on Lewis based on Lewis's stoppage win over Bowe in the 88' Olympics. Both were great heavyweights but Bowe had a way shorter windows and was basically done by the mid 90's were Lewis was still a beast a decade later

 

Yes Lewis certainly could have beaten Bowe in 1992. That window of time 1993-94 would have been Bowe's best opportunity though.

Riddick was fighting at a very high level as a contender up through winning the title. The oldtimers used to say winning the title made a fighter 20% better. Not in this case.

My own view is Rock Newman didn't believe in Bowe enough to put him in against Lewis. I think with the right support and management Riddick Bowe's career may have gone a different route..

When Bowe won the crown in spectacular fashion he proved alot of people wrong. They told Eddie Futch don't waste your time with him after the Olympics. Ofcourse after Winning the title Bowe proved those same doubters correct.

In a nutshell Riddick Bowe was a supremely talented fighter with all the tools you could ask for. He had doubts that he could beat Lewis. That doesn't mean that he couldn't of beaten him. It was a great matchup.

This could have been the greatest fight in the history of boxing that we were deprived of. Two guys both 6-5 with power, coordination with boxing skills. Rematch from the Olympics etc. It would have been one helluva promotion.

 

Bowe was the complete package and with his superior technical proficiency under Futch he would've blown apart Lewis who had two left feet at the time.

All the evidence to make an educated pick is in the straggle with Tony Tuckers drug addled ghost and when he got knocked out for crossing his legs against McCall.

 

I was 100% that Lewis would beat Bowe at that time. Then in the Tony Tucker fight Lennox showed he wasn't quite a finished product. He was winning on his talent but not fighting like a professional heavyweight the way he would later on.

With Eddie Futch dissecting Lennox flaws Bowe may have destroyed him. He had to have his head on straight though. Once they threw the belt in the trash Bowe gave in to his fear.

 

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I thought Lewis got the edge here. Bowe was hyped with adrenaline after just winning the title. Lewis was relax in a suit just working the broadcast yet he had Bowe backing up. This was also 1 week after Lennox Lewis drove Razor Ruddock through the canvas.

 

Even though I favour Bowe, there's always a possibility that Lewis could have beaten Bowe.
He showed good skills against Gary Mason at the start and had one of his best performances ever against Ruddock.

But to claim that the Olympic final would have any incidence on an eventual pro fight is frankly ridiculous, as the Jorge Gonzalez fight proved.

It's funny because for me Bowe (who stood in front of Lewis after a grueling fight) bossed that exchange, he was clearly showing that he wanted that " rematch " badly. Lewis was mostly repeating the same words.
Bowe was " backing up " because Rock Newman and Joe Cortez separated them, not because he was afraid of Lewis.

 

Nah. I think Bowe wins from 92 to 95 and it's Lewis after that.

 

Assuming you are referring to the versions of Lewis and Bowe who had beaten Ruddock and Holyfield respectively, nearing the end of '92, then I would have put money on Lewis beating Bowe - although, they'd have more likely fought in early '93.

Bowe's victory over Holyfield, while a massive win, played into Bowe's strengths entirely.
It was also clear that Holyfield (I) never posed an offensive threat to Bowe.
We never really saw Bowe exceed his performance against Holyfield in subsequent fights.

A Lewis/Bowe bout would not have looked anything like the Holyfield/Bowe fight.
Lewis would have been an offensive threat to Bowe (and vice versa)
Lewis had the upper hand psychologically (Lewis had beaten Bowe in an Olympic Final and Bowe clearly didn't want the fight).

Bowe, while an offensive juggernaut coming forward into medium and short-range positions was less effective from the outside. He was also defensively irresponsible - lacked head movement and could be out-hustled on the inside.

Lewis would not suffer from the type of complacency he was prone to against lesser regarded opposition. He'd likely have viewed Bowe much like he had viewed Ruddock - a known quantity to be treated with caution.

I think Lewis would have been able to make this a chess match and keep it a fight from the outside, outdoing Bowe over the distance.

 

I know Evander Holyfield has said on many occasions he felt Bowe would win ... I feel for some reason that Lewis was simply too strong and hit too hard ... when ever a fighters managamanr avoids a huge money fight I question their belief in their fighter and Newman didn't want Lewis , period.

 

I think Lewis would have splattered Bowe and Bowe knew it. That's why Bowe trashed his belt rather than fight Lewis.

 

As I keep saying Bowe avoided punchers he didn't fight any of the notable big bangers of his era. Some people like to discredit Lewis in regards to his chin but he wasn't afraid to take on big punchers Bruno, Ruddock, Tua, etc.

Bowe may of been a bit more seasoned than Lewis at that time but Lewis was still very dangerous there's a reason Bowe didn't fancy taking on a big punching 6'5 Heavyweight.

Bowe also wouldn't be able to fight effectively on the inside vs Lewis nor could he take as many chances simply because Lewis hits far too hard and fights at range.