Not the smartest idea for Moorer to make Foreman 1st title defense but who knew!?

He should have got that business done sooner...

Bing bang... Bop boom.

 

Typical risk/reward title defense we saw for that decade. They thought George was too old and too slow for a southpaw sharpshooter like Moorer. They knew Michael wasn't going to have to work particularly hard to land on this guy. It wasn't as if he had to create openings--they were already there. Just get him in good shape.

And there were lots of other tough toss up fights for Moorer at the time. Lewis. Tyson. Riddick Bowe. Ruddock. Even guys like Mercer or Morrison and guys like that could have been real tough matches for Moorer.

I though an Old Foreman or old Holmes were definately the type fights for him in that nice payday/not much danger of losing type calculation. But George set a trap and ended all that.

 

It was a smart buisness decision. as already stated Moorer was supposed to handle Foreman pretty easily. Moorer just stood in front of Big George and got caught.

 

It was a brilliant business move. What else was Moorer going to do? Should he have fought the far more dangerous Lennox Lewis for half the money and notoriety? A bout with Oliver McCall would have drawn about 500 fans. Tyson was in prison, Holyfield was apparently one foot in the grave, and although Bowe was a lucrative option to cash out for the future, why **** away your title in the first defense?

Who does that leave besides Foreman? Bruce Seldon? Tony Tucker? A feverishly anticipated rematch with Bonecrusher Smith?

 

Bowe, Lewis and Tyson would have all destroyed Moorer and very quickly as well.

 

Thing is, what happens in a best of three or best of five between these two? Planned or not, George did catch lightning in a bottle, it was the final career knockdown or stoppage he ever produced, and even Angelo Dundee felt it necessary to ask him if he was "all right?"

Foreman was coming off his loss to the chinny Morrison, and hadn't fought in nearly a year. Moorer had been far more impressive against Alex Stewart and won a lopsided decision over a passive but still extremely lethal punching Bonecrusher Smith. He was coming off a title win over an opponent who had previously defended that title successfully against George.

What wasn't smart was for MM to forget he didn't have a legitimate ATG HW chin, but still a LHW chin. Already dropped by Holyfield, and twice by Cooper, he got too smug in his one sided shellacking of Foreman to that point, and forgot it was Morrison who was tiring by the end of his win over George. Foreman previously demonstrated with Coezter and Bigfoot that he could now retain knockdown potency beyond round five, with more than sufficient power to hurt MM as Cooper and Holyfield had.

Defending against Foreman wasn't a bad idea. That was lucrative publicity for what was developing into the most lopsided defeat of George's career [think Holmes-Cobb or Holmes-Shavers I]. The bad idea was in attempting to force a stoppage when the deadly hooking Morrison had previously known better than to even try.

 

On paper it was a smart decision because Foreman should have been a name fighter who posed comparativley little risk to him.

What else was he going to do, fight Lewis?

 

couldn't believe George, who's head was pounded to a pumkin, could take that kind of punishment from Moorer, who could crack big time.

thought it wouldn't have been outta line for the ref ta jump in 'n stop it several times.

 

Its funny how people bash Moorer. Well at least Moorer beat Holyfield something Tyson couldn't do and unlike Lewis who never got up from a knock down and continued fighting Moorer showed heart against Holyfield in their second fight by keep getting up. Moorer was also able to hurt Holyfield with his punches something Tyson or Lewis couldn't do.

 

The right way to fight Foreman was the way Morrison fought him...the wrong way was Moorer's example...getting so full of himself and just standing there catching that right hand bomb.