Riddick Bowe v Larry Holmes

Very highly skilled HW match-up

I lean towards Holmes to take a close decision prime for prime

 

Can't count either man out, but i'm going with Larry. Bowe shined against Holyfield and his supporters may point out that Holyfield's weakness at that time, slugging it out, is something Holmes also did now and then. However, when he was weary of his opponent's power he could be very cautious, as we saw against Cooney. He'll have respect for Bowe in the same way.

Back to the Holyfield fight. It's clear that whenever Evander committed himself to the jab, he was landing and at the same time had little trouble avoiding Bowe's jab. I believe this is a key point because where Holyfield kept neglecting the jab and boxing from a distance, Holmes may well stay on the outside and work from there most of the time. Bowe's weak defence will see him ship a lot of punches and while he'll go the distance, he'd be pretty marked up from those accurate, sharp Holmes jab's of which he can throw 40 a round during the entire fight. Bowe will have his moments, especially when he does get closer with his uppercut, but Larry has a fine right uppercut himself. I'd say Holmes wins by a 8-4 decision, with perhaps a life-and-death round when he's stunned, but also whitewash rounds where he dominates behind the jab.

 

I believe that Riddick Bowe would win against Andrew Golota at most any time they could have faced each other, and that Bowe would be decisively losing the fight each time. This is because Golota could out jab Bowe. Riddick Bowe's jab was better than most heavyweights, but he could be out jabbed by a fighter with a quicker jab. Golota was such a fighter. Holyfield was able to out jab Bowe at times, as well.

Larry Holmes is faster than Bowe's, and is a step above any fighter Bowe ever faced. Bowe was not the best defensive fighter in the world, and Holmes was an accurate puncher. Holmes would beat Bowe worse than Golota could ever dream of.

I'll assume this bout is 12 rounds, and go with Holmes by lop sided decision.

 

I too would pick Holmes, too fast, too smart to start trading with Bowe on the inside.

 

Perfect summation.

 

larry is tough reaal tough so it's almost impossible to push him around on the inside..he's much thicker then holyfield so i don't think the things riddick did in his finest hour as a pro would work agianst holmes... bowe would definitly work his jab as larry would work his .. larrys was much more crisper sharper deadlier so he'd definitly get his home more then bowe... larrys right hand also much more accurate and vital then bowe..although bowe had him in power ...bowe just didnt crack hard enough to dust holmes off... he'd definitly have to come in with a decent enough game plan that sees him closeing out holmes jab... movin to the left to throw his and avoid rights... he'd just have to have the pefect game plan to beat holmes...

unless that happens holmes wins 116-114 all

 

Holmes wins a WIDE decision Bowe wins maybe 2 rounds.

Bowe vs the best jab in the business with his horrible defense and inability to handle a jab ?.

Holmes would land at will Bowe receives a much bigger beating then he received in the Golota fights and only survives beacuse of his chin.

 

Agreed, a lopsided bout.

Larry would turn him all night long and that brontosaurus footwork of Bowe is not going to catch him. Bowe would be walking into punches and Holmes would retreat and circle the guy every minute of every round.

 

Holmes by UD, and he'd beat Bowe up in the process.

 

Had these two met, they both would have likely been the most formidable the other has ever met ( save of course, Mike Tyson when Holmes was past it. )

Although Riddick would be a dangerous opponent for Holmes, I am very inclined to picking Larry. Holmes' chin and track record against bigger, stronger fighters who had a greater reach, is pretty solid. Additionally, we saw a recurring theme in Bowe's career, that he could be outboxed by men who had a well polished jab, even if they weren't the greatest fighters such as a declining Tony Tubbs, Andrew Golata, and Evander Holyfield in their second meeting. Not only was Larry's jab superior to all of these men, but he would also bring to the table some things they didn't, such as better footwork, a dangerous uppercut, and greater recuperative powers.


I'm picking Holmes via decision.

 

Wow! Some people here really observe and are knowlegable about the sport! Thought it was degenerating into a Jerry Springer boxing site. Maybe that is just the boxing forum...

Good summations and comments. Nothing left to say........

Holmes UD

 

This looks complex. So, I will try to simplify things.

Larry Holmes actually achieved what Riddick Bowe should have achieved.

So I pick Larry.

 

Good post CP! Bowe has the edge at infighting ,thats about it .IMO.

 

Prime for prime, bowe is top 20...but i think holmes is just too much skilled for bowe in the opening rounds. agree, the jab would make holmes pile up points in the first four rounds and would just box in the championship rounds