Where do you rank George Foreman?

Discussion in 'Classic Boxing Forum' started by dcarlota, Mar 22, 2025.


Where do you rank George Foreman?

  1. GOAT

    3 vote(s)
    3.8%

  2. Top 3

    4 vote(s)
    5.1%

  3. Top 5

    18 vote(s)
    23.1%

  4. Top 10

    43 vote(s)
    55.1%

  5. Top 15

    9 vote(s)
    11.5%

  6. Top 20

    0 vote(s)
    0.0%

  7. Top 25

    1 vote(s)
    1.3%

  8. Top 30

    0 vote(s)
    0.0%

  9. >Top 31

    0 vote(s)
    0.0%

  10. I'm not sure

    0 vote(s)
    0.0%
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  1. dcarlota

    dcarlota Member Full Member

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    Just thought that I'd like to ask the question of where you rank George Foreman among former and current heavyweights.

    I think he's at least top 10, above 7. his power was unmatched and he was a daunting and formidable character, in his early days. His ring IQ and defence, especially in his comeback career was underrated, and he knew how to walk somebody down. Although he wasn't the most technically skilled or smartest fighter, he fought all kinds of pugilists, from the out fighter Muhammad Ali, the puncher Joe Frazier, the boxer Evander Holyfield, and the mover Michael Moorer, and at times, if he did lose, he did give those mentioned before some trouble to deal with.

    And so, my final verdict is he is, at his highest, top 4. Maybe below or at a similar level to tacticians like Larry Holmes or Lennox Lewis, but he has a puncher's chance in any fight he gets into, and it's anything but something to deny.
     
    dcarlota, Mar 22, 2025
    dcarlota, Mar 22, 2025
    #1
  2. The Undefeated Lachbuster

    The Undefeated Lachbuster On the Italian agenda Full Member

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    right at #4 above Holmes and beneath Marciano, both of his careers are HOF worthy
     
    The Undefeated Lachbuster, Mar 22, 2025
    The Undefeated Lachbuster, Mar 22, 2025
    #2
    Sooncreate3!, swagdelfadeel and dcarlota like this.
  3. drenlou

    drenlou VIP Member Full Member

    73,927
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    Jan 22, 2015
    Anywhere within the top 5-10 rankings IMO.
     
    Last edited: Mar 22, 2025
    drenlou, Mar 22, 2025
    drenlou, Mar 22, 2025
    #3
    Jel, Kid Bacon, Noel857 and 2 others like this.
  4. PRW94

    PRW94 Well-Known Member Full Member

    1,876
    3,219
    Nov 26, 2020
    6th
     
    PRW94, Mar 22, 2025
    PRW94, Mar 22, 2025
    #4
    TipNom likes this.
  5. PunishingJab

    PunishingJab New Member Full Member

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    Nov 24, 2023
    Mid to lower top 10… even with his incredibly unique career I just cannot rank him above guys with long dominant runs.

    My other issue with Foreman is that I’m not entirely sure how good he was. If I took the 20 greatest big men over 200 lbs and had a round robin tournament, I wouldn’t have any idea where he’d end up…

    The harsh truth is that he never went the distance against a skilled big man and won.

    And there’d be guys in that top 20 who he just wouldn’t be able to blow out in the first half of the fight… then whether he’d be able to outpoint them over the distance I just couldn’t answer that.

    Great career though.
     
    PunishingJab, Mar 22, 2025
    PunishingJab, Mar 22, 2025
    #5
    Pedro_El_Chef and The Long Count like this.
  6. KasimirKid

    KasimirKid Well-Known Member Full Member

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    Jun 1, 2018
    GOAT for the next three or four days at least.
     
    KasimirKid, Mar 22, 2025
    KasimirKid, Mar 22, 2025
    #6
    Frankus, Kid Bacon, Historical boxing society and 5 others like this.
  7. MixedMartialLaw

    MixedMartialLaw combat sports enthusiast Full Member

    1,434
    2,228
    Jun 30, 2021
    Can we agree that conducting this poll the day after the man died will heavily skew the results toward an emotional rather than a factual choice?
     
    MixedMartialLaw, Mar 22, 2025
    MixedMartialLaw, Mar 22, 2025
    #7
    Paul McB, Hotep Kemba, Pedro_El_Chef and 4 others like this.
  8. PRW94

    PRW94 Well-Known Member Full Member

    1,876
    3,219
    Nov 26, 2020
    Live or dead, he’s long been No. 6 on my list behind Ali, Louis, Holmes, Johnson and Marciano, and ahead of Frazier, Liston, Tyson and Lewis.

    And before someone says he’d destroy Marciano … and I agree that he would … my rankings are not based on who’d win H2H.
     
    PRW94, Mar 22, 2025
    PRW94, Mar 22, 2025
    #8
    Jel and Overhand94 like this.
  9. Shay Sonya

    Shay Sonya The REAL Wonder Woman! Full Member

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    Aug 15, 2021
    I currently have him at #4.
     
    Shay Sonya, Mar 22, 2025
    Shay Sonya, Mar 22, 2025
    #9
    Frankus and Mark Dunham like this.
  10. SonnyListon>

    SonnyListon> #1 Sonny Liston fan Full Member

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    May 14, 2024
    Anywhere from 1st to 3rd for me. Truly a champion.
     
    SonnyListon>, Mar 22, 2025
    SonnyListon>, Mar 22, 2025
    #10
    Mark Dunham likes this.
  11. Overhand94

    Overhand94 Active Member Full Member

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    Jun 23, 2024
    For me, he is certainly in the top 10 and just outside the top 5.
    Ali and Louis are obviously ahead of him, I would put him behind Marciano/Johnson/Holmes (very arguable with the latter).
    Ahead of Tyson/Holyfield/Lewis/Frazier/Klitschko/Liston.
     
    Overhand94, Mar 22, 2025
    Overhand94, Mar 22, 2025
    #11
    Jakub79 likes this.
  12. RulesMakeItInteresting

    RulesMakeItInteresting Boxing Junkie Full Member

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    Mar 23, 2019
    Ali
    Louis
    Holmes
    Holyfield
    Lewis
    Foreman
     
    RulesMakeItInteresting, Mar 22, 2025
    RulesMakeItInteresting, Mar 22, 2025
    #12
  13. bboyrei

    bboyrei Member Full Member

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    Aug 23, 2021
    Top 5

    His second career really made up for it.
     
    bboyrei, Mar 22, 2025
    bboyrei, Mar 22, 2025
    #13
    greynotsoold likes this.
  14. Bigcheese

    Bigcheese Well-Known Member Full Member

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    Jun 7, 2015
    Somewhere between 5-10 all time. As impressive as his comeback was I can't really rate those wins higher just because George was old.
     
    Bigcheese, Mar 22, 2025
    Bigcheese, Mar 22, 2025
    #14
  15. Macedoine62

    Macedoine62 Active Member Full Member

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    Dec 23, 2023
    Goat
     
    Macedoine62, Mar 22, 2025
    Macedoine62, Mar 22, 2025
    #15
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