Would it have been in Foremans interests to have been matched harder early on?

Absolutely, and Lombardi also said, "The harder you work, the harder it is to surrender." George didn't work as hard for many of his wins as Jerry did. Mac Foster was a terrific come from behind triumph for JQ, of a type George did not produce until Moorer.

I've been very outspoken in my belief over the years that George was genuinely afraid of Jerry, not because of what he charitably says today, but because of his obvious reticence when asked about taking Jerry on in interviews conducted during the early 1970s (in sharp contrast to Liston's stated enthusiasm to Cosell for a match with JQ following Sonny's stoppage of Henry Clark), combined with the fact that they did not square off. (King Roman, instead of Jerry for the title in Tokyo? Are you kidding me? Lyle and Shavers should have gotten JQ directly to a title shot.)

Speed, combined with reach and mobility intimidated Jerry. (JQ and Bugner would have been an interesting challenge for both. Does Joe's lack of initiative cost him here, or does he use his ability to keep matters at range for neutralizing JQ?) Stamina intimidated Jerry, because he, like Coetzee, had doubts about his own staying power. But when faced with strength and power, he seemed utterly fearless. George wasn't the kind of puncher who typically induced bleeding with his fists. Where the risk of butting is concerned, Jerry's stature wasn't comparable to Foreman's, unlike the 6'5" Wepner. Nobody blew out Jerry early, not Mac Foster, Shavers, or a peak Frazier, coming off his minute and a half starching of Ziggy. George would definitely find himself getting extended with Jerry, who had the late round firepower necessary to do serious harm if Foreman gassed. Peralta twice proved conclusively that Jerry was not too small to compete with George.