Foreman Height: 6ft 3in Weight: 215-220lbs Reach: 82" Golota Height: 6ft 4in Weight: 240-245lbs Reach: 79" I watched the two Bowe-Golota fights for the first time in ages last night. Golota was a real handful back then. Could big George have overcame the weight deficit and prevail here, or would the Pole turn in a Bowe-calibre performance and cause the upset??
Golota would be assaulted. I can't see him standing up to Foreman's power. And pressure. Foreman TKO2
Golota stood up to Bowe though? OK, Bowe was past-prime by then and he never packed the power that George did, but he was still a top class heavyweight, and a mountain of a man. Big George had all kinds of trouble with Ron Lyle remember, though admittedly that was a post-Zaire Foreman. No-one think Golota could have dragged Foreman into a war?
Thing is, I too felt the same thing when I watched the Bowe fights;how the Hell did this guy lose it? With those attributes he looked a lock to do something in that division. It wasn't just mental problems that ****ed him up, a very weary Bowe had minor successes in both fights, and of course Lennox blitzed him and Golota was shown up numerous times as being mentally weak. Foreman isn't going to allow Golota to slam his jab in or throw big shots at him, or rough him up. When the bell goes, that george came straight towardss you, held those hands up, gave you a look and then decided to walk straight through you. Despite Golota being spirited in both Bowe fights, you have to think someone a bit more alert could make him dispirited (lets not forget that Bowe was slowing down seriously and already showing signs of slurred speech and he managed to get Golota wired enough when he was getting beaten down, I'd hate to think how easily Foreman would break his will) and that Foreman is just this. Foreman inside a round, as much as I enjoy watching Golota, a true Wild Man and a fight with Ibeabuchi would've been insane
Golota would be pissing himself during the staredown, and as soon as George hits him, he'd freeze up and get KTFO. Foreman KO 1 or 2.
Nope. Not mentally tough enough or durable enough to deal with someone as powerful, and intimidating as a prime Foreman.
I think a war is precisely what made Golota meltdown. He seemed to do well in boxing matches but when the fight became physical he looked for a way out. I think the fuse became a bit shorter after the two Bowe fights as well.
... Seriously, my appreciation for Golota has improved something of late, but here he is clearly out of his league. He never faced a murderous puncher like Big George, and no way he could deal with the level of punishment that Foreman could deliver. Foreman goes to the jail for battering in 3
Once Golota had a sense of who he was dealing with, he'd unload a fluid three punch combination below Foreman's belt line and make George mad. Golota wouldn't like George when he's mad. This content is protected This content is protected
Bowe really wasn't as big a puncher as he sometimes appeared, certainly not of the Lewis and Foreman caliber, and he made the mistake of getting into a jabbing contest with Golota cause Riddick couldn't do much else when you fought him from the outside. Foreman would just blitz him, shoving him down, pushing him into the ropes, breaking his high guard with powerful hooks and uppercuts until he collapses and refuses to get up sometime in the first round. Golota was too fragile for an aggressive Lewis, he'd fold just as easily against Big George.
'96 Golota was an alarmingly smooth offensive machine, but I just don't see him having the fortitude or the slickness to keep Big George off of him. Definitely has all the ingredients of a classic firefight, but I've got to roll with Foreman.
Assuming the best version of Golota shows up (in other words, not the one that was caught cold by Lewis, for example) I see the fight going something like this: Golata has some early success behind his jab, but he finds himself disconcerted by Foreman's slower but heavier jab. Golata tries to stay on the move popping a jab or 2 or 3 punch combination from the outside, but Foreman begins cutting him off. the fight then turns into a war, and if Golota doesn't do anything weird (biting, like he did with Samson Po'uha, headbutting, like he did with Nicholson, or low blows as with Bowe) then he gets clubbed down by George's big shots after a round or two.
