I Wish there was a Foreman around today

Bowe dumped the belt in the trashcan instead of fighting Lewis. Lewis fought Holyfield when Evander was past his best. Bowe didn't face another top name except for Holyfield. All eras have their ducking and fights that were made too late. And 90's were heavily critisized for that while they were happening.

 

Its the champs fault. I don't blame any of the challengers for how they've chosen to interact with the system at hand.

Just take the "next George Foreman" Martin Bakole. He took a title fight on short notice against Parker lost and the fanbase left him for dead. The difference between a "Foreman" and a "journeyman" is only 5 letters.

 

Everyone brings that up about Bowe but you rarely see mention of how Mike Tyson did the exact same thing to avoid Lennox.

 

You can say the same about the last 10 years.

Same here. I really like the characters of Fury, AJ, Wilder and Usyk. Even some side characters like Parker, Whyte, Joyce. They got good histories.

Said every old head ever. 90's were being seen as shyte as well by the old heads at that time too.

 

Not me. I always point out how he paid him to fight Seldon first and then dropped the belt. But OP didn't mention Tyson, so didn't use this example.

 

I think the division is very good today.
Lot of characters and interesting styles.
The problem is that some fights are delayed too much and that Fury and now Usyk took/are taking the belts in hostage.

I do admit that I miss the better variety of technique/fluidity of before.

 

The 70s and 90s just incredible times.

 

Post prison Mike was a faint ghost of late 80's Mike. And post-Prison Mike had built a legacy with his tear through the division from 85-89, a run better than Marciano, Dempsey, Liston or Frazier. Ridiculous Bowe had built nothing.

 

Mike Didn't avoid Lewis. And Lewis vs Bowe was supposed to happen.......but Lewis got knocked out by mccall.

in one of the Mccall vs Lewis Videos, I think it is Jim that says "out the window goes Lewis vs Bowe in March"

 

Two years after Bowe threw out his belt to avoid Lewis.

Tyson didn’t have to a vacate a belt, but his career fell apart so a defense against Lewis became a moot point.

 

this is because Lewis has a tendency to price himself out of fights.

anyway, I don't think Mike was nescarrily ducking Lewis then, it's just that Evander had been waiting since 1991 to fight Mike so in that respect ,it made more sense to fight him instead of Lewis and that being the reason he would strip himself.

Lewis didn't have much of a name at that time