Why was George Foreman such a successful slugger?

Foreman threw a good # of punches for a slugger. He didn't plod along throw 1 or 2 shots the rest like a Ruddock or Tua. George would rain down power until he knocked his man out or he keeled over trying to.

 

I think that the biggest factor in his success was the people around him. They matched him very carefully against opponents that would play to his strengths. Very well managed fighter for the most part.

 

After saying he couldn’t box, you listed his ability to cut off the ring, great punch selection with accuracy and how he would manipulate his opponents. Isn’t that boxing?

 

Who did he really miss in his first career he fought the toughest competition avalaibale at the time Gray.

 

I do think Foreman had freakish natural strength it was a powerlifter kind of innate strength .I think smith,weaver and bruno had a more bodybuilding aesthetic...none of them had foremans chin or power or more crucially his boxing ability,jab or variety of punches.Foreman also had very very clever footwork and pivots ,look at the 1st minute of the first frazier fight its almost balletic he looks like a matador... and he was superior cutting off of the ring....his killer instinct and efficiency of punches at the kill...set him apart ....he pushed the immocable object Frazier back and it was preplanned

 

Saying that he was carefully matched to make him look good is a compliment to everyone involved. That is what is supposed to happen.

 

Wouldn't say Foreman relied on his reflexes much.

 

George foreman, I believe is the most natural born fighter there was, an absolute juggernaught with the kind of strength, power and chin only God could gift you.

I think that his skillset is very underrated, after all he was a sparring partner to sonny liston whose style fit foreman like a glove and was a student of archie Moore whose experience speaks for itself, foreman's jab particularly was extremely educated and he could put some unworldly power into it (much like liston's)

Foreman was just a phenomenon, plain and simple.

 

1st God given physical strength and size. 2nd, having a management and trainers wise enough to let him fight to his strength ( Unlike so many trainers today trying to turn everyone into Mayweather Jr.) 3rd, a mind set perfectly suited to the way he fought, which was the most physical style in heavy weight history.
BAR NONE!
Look at what he did to Frazier. Each time Frazier set his feet he pushed him off balance, and it wasn't a violent exaggerated push, it seemed as Foreman just extended his arms , and Frazier was completely off balance. Frazier was a 215 lbs man whom other fighters he faced were impressed by his strength and physicality. Foreman manhandled him.
If their was no Ali , who beats a full strength, confident Foreman until MAYBE Holmes, or Tyson? And Foreman had the perfect style to handle Tyson , whom was even more mentally fragile than Foreman.
Foreman easily could've gone unbeaten for a long, long time. Some use the Young fight as some example of Foreman's deficiencies as a fighter. But they fail to mention what went on before and directly after that fight. Foreman was clearly having mental issues, it became apparent after the Young fight with his mental breakdown. He definitely wasn't the same fighter who damn near killed Frazier and Norton.
Foreman head to head destroys most heavyweights in history, especially what's running around today. ( Fury could frustate him though) The only heavy I see beating him is the one who did prime vs prime.

 

that may have been one of George's best qualities actually. There was never a more brutal finisher.

 

The young Foreman also had very fast hands and as people on this Forum have said he could jab. A fast, hard, accurate jab will take you a long way, especially when you have all the other stuff big George had. I never expected that he would lose to Ali. It just goes to show you that intangibles matter. Brains, guile, and guts.

 

good joke