¿Who was physically stronger between George Foreman and Jack Johnson?

I grappled a little rather than boxed, but yes, even guys who are smaller than you can overpower you just from the muscle memory.

 

I’m asking for the perspective of a grappler amigo… Johnson knowing how to wrestle will amplify his strength way, way higher then Foreman potentially being stronger if they were in a old timey boxing ring / street fight / grappling match it’d look boy (GF) against man (JJ) simply because JJ is not much smaller and has a way, way higher know how on grappling and genuinely did wrestle - I’m probably way stronger (lifting) then at least one Judoka black belt at my weight or near it but he’d toss me around like a grizzly bear.

 

Totally wrong. George said when he first started boxing it was so hard for him to NOT grab someone because that was his instinct. He's beat Johnson like a drum. Ali laid on the ropes and George punched himself out, he wasn't stronger than George, though he was definitely stronger than Johnson. Foreman would destroy Johnson in 2 or less. Johnson never remotely fought anyone as strong or as hard punching as George period.

 

OKAY what? so because Foreman has the inclination to grab people you think that makes up for years of grappling experience? LOL GF can probably, maybe lift heavier objects then Johnson (who did strongman feats… more then we can say of GF besides one publicity photo) but when it comes to a no holds barred fight Johnson would MAN HANDLE GF you have no idea how much grappling trumps static strength it’d be boy and man they’re not that far apart in size (and likely strength) it’s just JJ knows how to wrestle GF doesn’t… END OF he’d dominate him.

 

That's my though as well. Jack cross trained regularly with wrestlers in his day, as there was much more clinch and grappling allowed in boxing then.

Grappling strength is a real thing.

OP needs to specify what kind strength he's comparing them on. Lifting weights, punch force, clinch?

 

Yep, not so much “grappling strength” as just grappling exp - it’s a conditioning for that environment your body gets better at what it does.

 

George would dominate him. It took Johnson 14 rounds to beat the midget Tommy Burns who weighed 168 lbs. Foreman bounced Joe Frazier like a basketball. You're acting like Johnson was more than what he was. George would destroy Johnson no matter in the ring or street. George was far tougher than the chinny Johnson.

 

Yeah, it's from years of grappling that conditions the body and its strengths. If you've seen the backs of Khabib or Islam Machaechev they look like they have turtle shells, from all the muscle development there.

Again, OPs post is vague, some people here seem to take "stronger" as who'd win in a boxing fight? we know George would, but it doesn't get to the strength question.

 

Foreman

 

So basically you’re trying to backpedal? On the street Johnson can wrestle, knew how to clinch and avoid punches in an era with gloves half the size… yet you think GF would just go out there and swing on him bare handed… and overcome grappling training with “I saw red bro”? Nah Johnson if he wanted to win it easy would get inside and take George down (probably slam him into the concrete) then proceed to choke him out in about 40 seconds flat JJ doesn’t need to be stronger then GF at lifting heavy objects but he 100% would rag doll him in the real world - saying otherwise is COPE or a lack of understanding on how dangerous a combination of grappling and old timey boxing is lol back then the technique had its roots in bare knuckle bouts… JJ would be in his element, they practically wore gardening gloves back then… AND be allowed to wrestle against a guy who has no idea at what he’s doing lol EASY MONEY.

 

excellent point … as the Jeffries fight showed , Johnson knew how to apply his strength , very much like a wrestler or martial artist … putting aside that Johnson was extremely it’s hard to imagine anyone naturally stronger than George in raw strength … an extremely roided up Holyfield , himself known to be extremely strong said he couldn’t budge Foreman and Chuvalo said George was the only man to throw him back.

 

Yep in a straight up lifting contest… it’s debatable depending on what “lift” we choose as Johnson performed strongman feats BUT in a “tussle” (wrestle) or “on da cobbles” oh man Jack Johnson would **** him up bad.

 

Lots of guys are stronger then Foreman… in “raw strength” Evander was one of them if we are talking about lifting in the gym ya know static “raw strength”… Foreman himself said not being able to budge someone in the ring or push them around is usually a case of weight no strength (from his own mouth) he said it as a commentator for Bowe vs Holyfield - Johnson was strong, Johnson did feats of strength and strongman performances and wasn’t much smaller… he’d also know how to wrestle and GF didn’t… he’d absolutely rag doll him around in a tussle, in a boxing match it depends on the era in GF’s GF would win - shoving somebody isn’t a test of raw strength nor is “throwing somebody back” lol.

 

Exactly, especially if we assume they face each other with the grappling knowledge they had in reality. In another hypothetical, where a prime twenty-something George consistently trained grappling for a year, then it’d be interesting.

 

I don’t see how we’d truly have any way of knowing. I mean it would be obvious if one of them were a middle weight and the other a powerful heavyweight .