Why was George Foreman so successful.

his natural power made up for his lack of boxing skills... he hit like a tank and just crushed guys...

 

:good Yep, Big George was great at cutting off the ring.

 

Punching power.

I have to say though, his technique was laughable, some of his fights are cringe worthy to watch due to his primitiveness.
He looked so utterly amateurish in his first career that its astonishing that he got to the top tiers of boxing. Of course he had the great equaliser of having fists like rocks.
Foreman was actually a superior boxer in his second career.

 

except against tommy morrison... i never could figure out why he didn't cut off the ring more in their fight... i know he was a lot older at that time but along with age comes experience so who knows...

 

Pure, unadulterated power and shrewd matchmaking.

 

His chin was the real key, how many fighters have we seen with this sort of power and strength that was also supported by an iron chin? Not many.

 

If a fighter just has power then he has little more than a pair of shorts.

If he has power and durability then you have something to work with on a world level.

If he has power durability and a crude but efective style he can overturn mountains with only a moderate amount of polishing.

 

Pure power, size and strength can make up for technical imperfections.
A skilled, smart boxer will come sooner or later to expose these weaknesses (Ali, Young).

I think he was somewhat lucky to catch a declining/unfocused Frazier, although i think he would've destroyed a prime Frazier too. Same story with Norton who was (in hindsight) susceptible to punchers.

But off the top of my head i can't think of another champion who absolutely destroyed one top10 ATG HW and one top30 HW in 2 rounds a piece. You gotta give him credit for that.

Also, i think his footwork was pretty good. Same people think you have to dance like Ali around the ring to have good footwork. Wrong. Footwork also includes finding the appropriate range and knowing when to plant your feet (especially for a puncher like Foreman) and Foreman was quite good at this.

 

1. He was VERY strong. And he was powerful and could take a punch.

2. He fought plenty of set-ups.

 

As most have already stated, his strength and power play a huge role. When you combine that with his chin, willingness to fight, and that stiff stiff jab of his; you get that package that allows for George to dismiss technique.

George has an incredible will, watch the Lyle fight, and an amazing chin. He is willing to walk through what would keep most guys at bay. He does not always have to give a fighter the respected distance, and look for his moment to come forward or counter. At times, he could simply walk over and beat the hell out of his opponent. If you could not make George miss you with defensive skills, you needed to be able to take his punch or move well enough on your feet with enough pop to keep him honest.

 

Foreman was very good at timing his shots, besides having arms like logs. If you watch him fight he never had very looping shots, it was more like slow powerful short and mid range hooks and overhand shots that would take thier toll on his opponent when he timed them right.

 

Very hard puncher and carefully managed early in his career,avoided guys like Quarry for one and got past his 1st 37 fights with out really fighting a contender, former lightheavy Peralta (gave him a stuggle) then caught Frazier at the right time...even an older Goerge avoided, Tyson,Lewis,and trouble fighters but that is a sign of smart management, in his case it was him.