Id go with Holmes on this one,as much as i like Bowe when he fought someone who had a good jab he had problems and Holmes had a wonderful jab and had the size to be able to contend with Riddicks size.Holmes UD
Tough fight to pick. Holmes, of course, was the more proven and dedicated of the two. But of all the past heavyweight champions who I think would have given Holmes a lot of trouble, Riddick Bowe would have been high on the list. Holmes would probably be a little too fast and sharp for Bowe, but it would be a close fight. Bowe's reach, height, and jab would keep him in the fight all the way through.
Holmes is the faster, sharper better boxer with superior jab. But he did gt dragged into wars and this would be no different. Holmes 9-6 decision
A motivated Bowe with Futch in his corner is a very formidable and dangerous opponent. We are not talking about a green Spoon , Williams or other associated newbs Holmes fought down or struggled with. Bowe's style is about aggression and bringing pressure without letting up and he has a top notch chin /recuperative powers to back that form of fighting up. Even when in questionable shape against Holyfield he fought tree minutes a round aka did not take any rounds off. He is also one of the very best Big man effective infighters . Larry has to stay strictly on the outside and keep jabbing while circling and cannot get mad and go tit for tat when stung which he did a lot in his career. He certainly don't want to be on the inside with Bowe. While Bowe does throw a more looping than straight right it still could land and give larry considerable trouble. Bowe has also a very effective jab when he decided to use it, see the Gonzales fight. This is a 50/50 fight , if Riddick follows the Futch strategie to the tee it could be a very long night for Larry. BTW, someone mentioned that Golata would beat Bowe every single time, lol, let me ask you this Einstein, why the **** did the Mental midget resort to continous low blows to get a out of shape Bowe of him ? Because he could not deal with the heat Bowe was bringing aka the opposite of him ...............Riddick fights to the finish under all circumstances. Fact : no low blows and Golata either quits or gets stopped in fight one or two . Period. As a matter of fact he did quit twice to avoid getting knocked out. Poor Andrew CANNOT deal with pain.
Bowe wins maybe 2-4 rounds against a prime Holmes his lack of defense turtle like footwork and inability to handle a jab would play straight into Holmes hands.
15rnds Holmes ko easy. 12... Holmes will get hurt, he actually kos Bowe in 10. Larry was a sick puncher when he was hurt.
I'd favour Holmes by 15 round UD. The only way Holmes' loses this fight is by letting Bowe get inside his reach where he was one of the best as a stand-up fighter. Riddick Bowe is capable of making this interesting in the final scoring. Between the two fighters, I see Holmes possibly hitting the canvas a couple of times early, due to Bowe's overall power.