What Could Riddick Bowe Have Accomplished If He Wasn't Lazy?

I know you didnt, sorry for quoting you on that just that I wanted to point out no fighter was perfect, they all have some sort of deficit. probably shouldnt have quoted your write up. atsch

 

fixed it!

 

No problem :good


Of course all fighters have flaws. That´s why the get beaten. With the excpetion of Marciano, Calzahge and Ottke

 

So was Brian Nielson in 49 fights until he ran into that dangerous Dickie Ryan guy.

 

I think Bowe had all the tools, yes he was no defensive wizard but how many fighters are. Maybe he didn't have a granite chin but neither did Lewis. Only thing he lacked was focus.

 

Probably a lot more.I personally think he could've beaten Lewis had they fought after he won the belt.But for Bowe, it wasn't meant to be.

 

I think he actually accomplished quite a lot, even simply if it's the fact and manner in which he won 2/3 fights with Evander Holyfield. If Holyfield's a measuring stick in the 1990s, (which to some extent he is since he fought almost everyone relevant), Bowe obviously pisses all over Tyson (90s version) on that test, and impressed me at least more than Lennox Lewis did.
Outside of Holyfield, Bowe has little else outstansing on his resume, but does have a few decent second-tier wins, but how many heavyweight fighters in history can boast such a trilogy of wars ?

Truth is, Bowe gets roasted for the Lennox Lewis situation but that shouldn't diminish his actual achievements.

I think he might have lasted longer and not have been washed-up by '95 or '96, but I'd still figure he'd have trouble with Holyfield in the rematch had he been in the same shape as in the 1st match.
Give him the win, yes, but he might not have got away unscathed. Holyfield took a lot of punishment in all three fights, but i suspect he took a lot out of Bowe in all three too !
And there's no getting round that.

In a way, Lewis would have been an "easier" fight on Bowe, even if Lewis had "destroyed" him. It would have been quicker or a sudden ending, not the sustained gruelling attrition Holyfield brings to the table.

I rate Bowe pretty high.
Even the Golota fights, where he looked horribly washed-up, he displayed heart and toughness that defies any ordinary explanation.
Bowe was a heck of a fighter.

 

Well thats just it, if he lasted longer at his peak, say to 97, he could have fought both Lewis and Tyson, thus defining probably the best era in heavyweight boxing.

 

This is almost an impossible question to answer, as much of it will be due to how highly you think of him...

Could Tyson have been a top 5 AT HW, yes...but IMHO he does not crack my top 10
Could Tony Ayala Jr. have been great...IMHO no, but many think he would have
Could Bowe have accomplished alot...IMHO YES

I believe he a focused and better manged Bowe had the tools and talent to take Lewis and make himself a force for a longer time frame than he did. If he did he would likely have cracked the top 10 instead of Lewis...

Many others don't believe at his best he could beat Lewis so it's not likely those with that train of though will see him as anything but the 15-20+ that he currently gets ranked in!

For me he had great ability, if that was combined with a better work ethic and better management he has potential to be better!

But at the end of the day that is speculation, the fact is maybe he could have done more...but he didn't!

 

For me the bottom line in how much more he could have accomplished lies in your position on Lennox Lewis!

If you believe Bowe would have beaten Lewis, you likely believe Bowe had top 10 AT potential.

If you believe lewis would have beaten Bowe, he likely acheived all or almost all he could have!

Unless pehaps they csored an exciting trilogy with both guys winning once let the 3rd chip fall wherever, they could possibly have raised and solidified both of their rankings!

 

When Eddie Futch a guy who has worked with all the top fighters said Bowe had the talent to be the greatest heavyweight, I dont take that too lightly.

 

everything!

 

I think Riddick Bowe is arguably worthy of a place among the top 10 heavyweights, or top 12-15 for sure, if we're ranking the fighters who we can see on film.

Some of the usual all-time top 10 ranked heavyweights had resumes that are as (or almost as) thin, and with no one on there who you'd put in the same class as Holyfield.

As much as I love Jack Dempsey, to a large extent he's an example of a fighter built up on many second-raters and has-beens.
Sonny Liston beat a few decent contenders and went 2-2 in title fights, and I dont think Floyd Patterson was any sort of convincing bona fide heavyweight champion, not to mention the quit jobs against Clay/Ali.
And there are others who sneak into the top 10s who I'd have no qualms about putting Bowe in the same breath as, including Tyson, whose greatness I was never sold on.

People can scream all they want "but that guy beat X number of RING rated contenders" and other reasons why some guy was better than Bowe. But that's not much to me. I'll say point blank that Bowe beat several men who were better than Don Cockell and Roland LaStarza. Several. And that's not saying Bowe was greater than Marciano, but it's just an example.

 

Lets say he could have won the Holyfield rematch.

That means no Mooreer or Foreman or Briggs.

It also means that Holyfields fights with Tyson probably turn int Bowe Tyson (not bad for Bowe if he wins).

A mega fight with Lewis at the right time, could help him regardless of outcome.

 

I would challenge you to name three men that Bowe beat that were better than LaStarza or Cockel.

He is basicaly a man with one great win, as much as Buster Douglas.