There aren’t many fighters that George Foreman didn’t take on during his illustrious career.
Foreman first became world heavyweight champion at the age of 24 in January 1973, when he knocked out Joe Frazier inside two rounds in Jamaica.
After defences against Jose Roman and Ken Norton, then came the legendary ‘Rumble in the Jungle’ against Muhammad Ali in October 1974, which Ali won by eighth round knockout to dethrone ‘Big George.’
Foreman retired in 1977, taking a decade away from the sport before he returned in 1987, and began to work his way back towards world title contention.
After an unsuccessful bid against Evander Holyfield, Foreman would go on to defeat Michael Moorer by 10th round stoppage to once again claim world honours, leading to him earning the honour of being the oldest world heavyweight champion in history.
Foreman’s career eventually came to an end after a defeat to Shannon Briggs in November 1997. His final record stood at 76 wins and 5 defeats, with an impressive 68 of those victories coming by knockout.
A fight between Foreman and Mike Tyson was touted for the early 1990s but never transpired, with many boxing fans often wondering what would have happened if the two men had faced each other.
While Tyson was known for his ferocious power, is another fighter that ‘Big George’ has in mind when discussing who he is glad he never stepped into the ring with – Earnie Shavers.
“I never fought Earnie Shavers. Thank goodness.”
Foreman believes there has never been another puncher like Shavers.
“Nobody can hit like Earnie Shavers. He had a crunch punch and he was like a welterweight, if he caught you then you were going to take a stroll down memory lane. He was the best at executing a punch.”
Shavers is widely regarded as one of the biggest heavyweight punchers of all time, with 70 of his 76 victories coming by knockout.
He challenged for the world heavyweight title on two occasions, losing to Ali in 1977 before then suffering a defeat to Larry Holmes in 1979.
Shavers knocked out the likes of Ken Norton, Jimmy Ellis and Jimmy Young during his career which began in 1969 and ended over a quarter-century later in 1995. He sadly passed away in 2022 at the age of 78 following a short illness.
