Riddick Bowe

At 57 years old, Riddick Bowe has this physical status:

Riddick Lamont Bowe (born August 10, 1967) is a retired American professional boxer who competed between 1989 and 2008.

He reigned as the undisputed world heavyweight champion in 1992, and as an amateur he won a silver medal in the super heavyweight division at the 1988 Summer Olympics. After turning professional in 1989, Bowe went on to become a two-time world heavyweight champion.

In 1992 he won the undisputed WBA, WBC and IBF titles by defeating then-unbeaten former undisputed cruiserweight champion Evander Holyfield.

That same year, Bowe was named Fighter of the Year by The Ring and the Boxing Writers' Association of America.

Bowe vacated the WBC title later that year in protest, instead of defending the title against their number one contender, Lennox Lewis.

This left the undisputed championship fragmented until 1999.

In a rematch with Holyfield in 1993, Bowe narrowly lost the WBA and IBF titles in what would be his only professional defeat. He later regained a portion of the world heavyweight championship in 1995, defeating Herbie Hide for the then-fledgling WBO title.

In doing so, Bowe became the first boxer in history to win the titles of all four major sanctioning bodies—the WBA, WBC, IBF and WBO—and remains the only heavyweight to do so.

Later that year, Bowe vacated the WBO title in order to fight Holyfield for a third time, and won decisively by being the first boxer to defeat Holyfield by knockout.

1996 saw Bowe engage in two brutal slugfests with Andrew Golota, both of which ended controversially when Golota repeatedly hit him with low blows. Bowe retired from boxing after the Golota fights, making low-key comebacks in 2004 and 2008.

In a 2010 article by BoxingScene, Bowe was ranked the 21st greatest heavyweight of all time.

In 2015, he was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame.

Early years

Bowe was born on August 10, 1967, the twelfth of his mother Dorothy Bowe's thirteen children. Bowe was born and raised in the East New York section of Brooklyn, New York City. His brother Henry died of AIDS, and his sister Brenda was stabbed to death by a drug addict during an attempted robbery.

Bowe was in the same elementary school sixth-grade class with Mike Tyson. "We went to school together the sixth grade in P.S. 396 (in Brownsville.) I really didn't know him," Bowe recalled.

Life outside of boxing

After the Golota fights, Bowe retired from boxing and decided to join the United States Marine Corps Reserve. He said he made the decision both to make his mother proud and to rededicate himself to training, with the intention of returning to boxing shortly after.

Bowe arrived at Marine Corps Recruit Depot Parris Island on February 10, 1997. On his first day of recruit training, Bowe discussed leaving the Corps with Marine commanders, and quit after three days of heavy physical training with his platoon in Parris Island, South Carolina on February 21, 1997.

Shortly after winning his first title against Evander Holyfield, Bowe saw a news story on television that revealed a million dollars worth of medicines donated to the Somali refugees and orphans were not able to be transported to the war-torn region due to a lack of funds to pay for the charter aircraft needed. Bowe immediately had his representatives contact AmeriCares, the NGO leading the effort, and pledged the 100,000 dollars needed to fund the trip - on the condition he could go to the country with the goods, and make sure they got to their intended recipients. While in Somalia, he visited U.S. Marines and an orphanage on the Kenyan border. He was accompanied by several members of his management team, including manager Rock Newman and Head of International Sales Alexis Denny (CEO of an independent media distributor).

Bowe also took action when he heard news of other tragedies. In 1995, when Alexis Denny was in Indonesia on other business, she read Asian news coverage of Rodolfo Yap, a young man in the Philippines who was electrocuted while positioning his antenna so his family could watch a Riddick Bowe fight. She relayed this news to Bowe, and explained to the media at the time 'The heavyweight champion was very moved by the story and having lost a brother and a sister earlier in life, decided to make a financial contribution to the family of Mr. Yap." Bowe authorized her to fly to the Philippines and try to locate the man's family, make a contribution to their expenses, and also provide funds to support the Philippine boxing Team training for the Olympics (in the name of the deceased).

Bowe was convicted of the February 1998 kidnapping of his estranged wife Judy, and their five children. Thinking it would reconcile his marriage, Bowe went to his wife's Cornelius, North Carolina home and threatened her with a knife, handcuffs, duct tape, and pepper spray. He forced her and their children into a vehicle and set out for his Fort Washington, Maryland home. During the kidnapping, Bowe stabbed his wife in the chest. Police captured Bowe in South Hill, Virginia, freeing his family. Bowe agreed to a plea bargain of guilty to "interstate domestic violence", and was sentenced to 18 to 24 months in prison. Despite the agreed sentence, on February 29, 2000, the judge sentenced Bowe to only 30 days, due to a claim of brain damage by Bowe's defense. This sentence, counter to the plea agreement, was later overturned. Bowe served 17 months in Federal prison. On February 8, 2001, Bowe was arrested in Long Island after a domestic dispute with his new wife. Bowe allegedly dragged his wife and left her with cuts on her knees and elbows.

In 2013, Riddick Bowe announced his intentions to start training to be a professional wrestler. He was to make his debut for the UK-based Preston City Wrestling organisation on March 1, 2014. On December 14, 2013, Preston City Wrestling announced on their Facebook Page that Bowe would no longer be appearing due to a disagreement with Bowe's new agent.

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Amateur boxing career

For short, Bowe was studying at the Bedford-Stuyvesant Boxing Association Gym or the "Bed-Stuy BA." Bowe competed in the prestigious New York Golden Gloves Championship and other tournaments as an amateur. He knocked out James Smith in just 4 seconds in 1984, age 17. He lost to Fort Worth heavyweight Donald Stephens in 1985 at the National Golden Gloves championships. He attended Kingsborough Community College, where he studied drama in the hopes of a career after boxing, but also took up a business administration course.

Due to his hairstyle, his acquaintances referred to him as "Don King." "I had the majority of my interactions with Mark, and I'm inspired by what he's accomplished," Bowe said. In an interview, Bowe said, "it makes it possible for me to do the same."

Bowe has won four Golden Gloves Championships in New York. In 1984, he won two bouts as a 178-pounder before losing for his third bout. He won the 1985 and 1988 Super Heavyweight Open Championship, as well as the 1986 and 1988 lb Open Championship. Bowe was ranked the top light heavyweight in the United States in 1985.

He was a light heavyweight runner-up for the 1986 World Championships and 1986 Goodwill Games but did not qualify because of some reason. During the year-and-a-half hiatus, he gained more than 30 pounds and soared from light heavyweight to super heavyweight, attracting the 1987 Olympic Festival in the United States.

Bowe said he had suffered a hairline fracture in his right hand during one of his two battles at the Olympic Festival in 1987. The fracture, he said, was revealed in X-rays he had taken at home. Bowe's hand was being treated, according to Roosevelt Sanders, the head coach, but had no idea it was broken. Bowe said he kept those injuries private from the US team coaching staff for fear of being kept out of the tournament.

Bowe was kicked out of the Olympic-year training camp for the first time because U.S. Olympic boxing Coach Ken Adams didn't like him. After Bowe lost to Salters in the 1988 Olympic Box-offs at Caesars Palace, U.S. Army superheavyweight Robert Salters, a Brooklyn-born 25-year-old artilleryman who took up boxing in 1986 and had fewer than 20 amateur matches in his 16-month career before refrained from the match, became a true nemesis for Bowe during his amateur career. Salters dropped him twice before refining the match to almost a "He was talking about me, and that helped me physically," Salters said. Bowe had been boxing with ligament damage on his right hand's middle knuckle, which he recovered the day before the Box-offs, and with a fractured right ankle, the judge eventually managed to find a winner despite the fact that the judges had to choose a winner despite the 58-58 scores. Bowe was awarded by the fifth unidentified judge, who ruled the match 58-58, on unidentified subjective grounds. Despite giving Bowe a rocky start on four occasions in a row, the Salters never turned pro.

Bowe earned the silver medal in the 1988 Seoul Olympics, outpointing Soviet Alex Miroshnichenko in the semifinals and losing a tense match against Lennox Lewis, the future world heavyweight champion. Bowe had a dominating first round, with 33 of 94 punches thrown (34%) and Lewis landed 14 of 67 (21%). Bowe was warned two warnings for headbutts and suspended a point for a third headbutt in the first round, but replay clearly showed there was no headbutt. Ferdie Pacheco, a commentator, disagreed with the deduction, claiming that they did not hit heads, not heads. Lewis got a few punches in the second round. Despite Bowe's ability to continue, the referee awarded Bowe two standing eight counts and waved the game off after the second one. Pacheco opposed the stoppage, calling it "very strange," but Marv Albert said Bowe took "a pounding."

Bowe ended his amateur career with a record of 104 victories and 18 losses.

Professional boxing career

After losing in the Olympics, Bowe became a professional. Eddie Futch, a highly respected trainer, took on Bowe's job as he saw the potential. Bowe had more potential than any boxer he's ever worked, according to Eddie.

In March 1989, Bowe became a professional, knocking out Lionel Butler. Bowe's then boss, Rock Newman, kept the war alive in 1989, defeating journeymen, the most notable of which was Garing Lane, whom he defeated twice. Bowe took his first step up in class in September 1990, defeating fading ex-champion Pinklon Thomas, whom he dominated until Thomas died after eight rounds. Bowe defeated Bert Cooper in two rounds in the following month, adding to his name and high ranking.

Bowe defeated 1984 Olympic Super Heavyweight Gold medalist Tyrell Biggs in March 1991. In Bowe's upcoming fight, ex-champion Tony Tubbs appeared to outbox and outsmart Bowe in a close match, but only to have the judges award Bowe a unanimous decision. Bowe knocked out future world heavyweight champion Bruce Seldon in a single round in August 1991. In the seventh round of a world championship eliminator, he knocked out South African Pierre Coetzer.

In 1991, Bowe defeated Elijah Tillery in two tense bouts. The Washington Convention Center's first war was fought in Washington, D.C., as the 'wild fight' came to an end. Bowe dominated the first round, but Tillery was disqualified. Tillery walked toward Bowe and taunted him, while Bowe responded by punching Tillery. Tillery fired several low kicks at Bowe, sparking a slew of punches on Tillery as he lay on the ropes. Bowe's manager, Rock Newman, grabbed Tillery from behind on the ring apron and pulled him over the ropes as Bowe continued to punch punches. Tillery somersaulted over the wires and was swiftly apprehended by security. Tillery and Bowe began a war of words as the ring was restored and the fighters returned to the ring, and minor incidents continued until the ring was cleared. Tillery was infamously disqualified for kick Bowe, with Bowe winning, much to the surprise of the television announcers. Karl Milligan, the referee, had stepped back from the two fighters to separate them and stepped forward as he did so, inadvertently missing the action behind him after the call between the two combatants. The fighters met in two months later at Convention Hall in Atlantic City, with Bowe dominating and stopping Tillery in four rounds.

He fought reigning heavyweight champion Evander Holyfield for the disputed heavyweight title in November 1992. Bowe was awarded unanimously in an exciting match, flooring Holyfield in the 11th round. However, most boxing enthusiasts will recall that this was the tenth round. Ring Magazine's "Round of the Year" was made possible by the epic back-and-forth discussions. "That was one of the best rounds in heavyweight history," Al Bernstein said.

Period!"

Lennox Lewis, Bowe's long Olympic rival, defeated Canadian Donovan "Razor" Ruddock in two rounds, establishing himself as the World Boxing Council's top candidate a few weeks ago in London. The Bowe-Holyfield and Lewis-Ruddock fights were part of a mini-tournament in whichby all four fighters promised that the two champions would meet together for the disputed world heavyweight championship. In Bowe's favour, HBO's $32 million purse should be divided 90–10, a 'absurd' bid that Lennox Lewis turned down. Kelley Maloney, Lewis' boss, referred to as Frank Maloney at the time, turned down another bid for Lewis to fight on a Bowe undercard, citing his mistrust of the Bowe camp during the aforementioned financial talks. Bowe responded by organizing a press conference in which he smashed the WBC world heavyweight championship belt into a garbage can and relinquished it in order to protest the WBC's and WBC's conduct regarding the fight payoff.

Bowe's first defense of his remaining titles came on February 6, 1993, when he defeated 34-year-old former champion Michael Dokes at Madison Square Garden and knocked him out in the first round. Bowe completed a goodwill mission to Somalia in February 1993, in the Vatican's general audience. Bowe defeated Jesse Ferguson in the second round of Bowe's upcoming fight, May 22, 1993 in Washington, D.C., D.C. This was a rematch with Evander Holyfield.

Bowe seemed overweight in the rematch against Holyfield. He had entered training camp at 266 pounds and weighed in at 246 lbs, eleven pounds heavier than in the first round with Holyfield.

Hard punches were exchanged between Bowe and Holyfield. Bowe's belts were returned to Holyfield by a majority decision. This fight was also notable for a strange stunt in which parachutist James "Fan Man" Miller crashed into the open air arena, landstonging in the wires by Bowe's corner. This enthralling act brought the match in the seventh round by almost a half-hour. Bowe said afterwards that owing to the unfair postponement, the match should have been declared a "scientical draw" or a "no contest."

Bowe participated in two comeback battles in August 1994. Referee Arthur Mercante, Sr., a much smaller Buster Mathis Jr., who was struggling to connect with his bobbing and weaving target, struck Mathis while stunned by what was called an accident. Bowe punched Larry Donald at a pre-fight press conference in December 1994, defeating him by 12 round unanimous decision for the WBC Continental Americas Heavyweight Championship, giving the 16-0 heavyweight champion his first defeat.

Bowe defeated the WBO version of the world heavyweight championship by knocking down England's Herbie Hide six times en route to a sixth-round knockout in March 1995.

Bowe defended the WBO heavyweight title against his archrival in the amateurs, Jorge Luis González, at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas in June 1995. When making Bowe appear to be a hyena, Gonzalez announced a desire to eat Bowe's heart and likening himself to a lion. Bowe defeated Gonzalez in the sixth round by a landslide. He vacated the WBO championship shortly thereafter. Bowe and Evander Holyfield fought in a rubber match after the Gonzales war, their third and final match. Bowe was knocked down during the match, but Bowe remained adamant and gained their eighth round victory.

Bowe was matched against undefeated heavyweight contender Andrew Golota at the Madison Square Garden in an HBO Boxing match after defeating Holyfield in the third bout of their trilogy. Bowe's weight issue resurfaced once more as the favorite entered the ring at a career high of 252 lbs. Despite being ahead of points, Golota was suspended several times for low blows and then disqualified in the seventh round after a volley of punches to Bowe's testicles. Bowe's entourage rushed the ring after Golota was disqualified (Golota fired punches from one of them, requiring 11 stitches to close the wound caused by the radio) and assaulted Golota's 74-year-old trainer Lou Duva, who collapsed in the ring and was forced to leave The Garden on a stretcher. The entourage began rioting, combating with spectators, employees, and policemen alike, resulting in a number of injuries before being led out of the arena in what became a long televised ring spectacle.

Many sports shows, including SportsCenter, were broadcast, and there was a lot of public interest in a rematch. Pay Per View was the subject of the match. Golota, who had dropped Bowe in the second round and being dropped later, was leading the scorecards until being disqualified in the ninth round for repeated testicles. Despite not having another riot, this battle was nonetheless tense, with Golota's camp's unsuccessful attempt to reverse the fight's verdict.

This combat was shown on HBO's documentary Legendary Nights: The Tale of Bowe-Golota.

Bowe returned from boxing on September 25, 2004, after seven and a half years away, defeating Marcus Rhode in the second round. An overweight Bowe barely won by a ten-round split decision in a second comeback battle in April 2005.

In 2005, Bowe declared bankruptcy. With the support of new manager Bob Bain, Bowe, 41, returned to the ring for the first time in over three and a half years, the Wladimir Klitschko versus Hasim Rahman world heavyweight championship fight in Mannheim, Germany, where they defeated Gene Pukall in an eight-round unanimous victory over Gene Pukall.

Riddick Bowe's boxing record stands at 43 wins and 1 loss, with 33 knockouts. Let's Get It On's veteran former referee Mills Lane's autobiography, he appeared to have been one of boxing's finest boxers, but let's get it on.

Bowe's combat weight ranged from 218 to 271+1.0 kg (98.9 to 123.0 kg). His prime fighting weight was 235–245 lb (107–111 kg). Bowe won all of his most notable victories during this time period.

Bowe is ranked as the 32nd top heavyweight of all time by BoxRec. Bowe's first fight with Evander Holyfield is one of the greatest world heavyweight title fights of all time, due to his in-fighting skills, jab, and combination punching. On a visit to South Africa, Nelson Mandela was met following his triumph. Bowe's manager at the time, Eddie Futch, lamented that Bowe never recovered from his injury for his subsequent bouts. Bowe, however, was good enough to defeat Evander Holyfield, outclass former amateur standout and undefeated champion, and unbeaten pro, Jorge Luis González, as late as 1995 and well past his prime, and bludgeon over-matched Herbie Hide to win the first male to defeat the world heavyweight championship, which was then regarded as the first man to stop Evander Holyfield, outclass former amateur standout and undefeated pro, Jorge Luis

In a survey of a panel of 30 trainers, matchmakers, and members of the boxing industry, Bowe was ranked 19th highest heavyweight of all time in 2017. Bowe, who has been described as both a "super talent" and a "super waste," only had one good fight before winning the Holyfield title and then disappointed in his apparent natural ability due to laziness.

Bowe's reputation suffered as a result of the poor challengers he faced as champion (Michael Dokes and Jesse Ferguson), who then lost the title to Holyfield in a rematch. He has also been chastised for abandoning the WBC rather than defending it against mandatory challenger Lennox Lewis, fracturing the uncontested championship until Lewis unify the titles in 1999.

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Bowe is the first boxer to win all four major championships (WBA, WBC, IBF, and WBO), an achievement that has only been duplicated in the heavyweight division, which was only captured by Tyson Fury.

Bowe's sole loss, to Evander Holyfield in 1993, was revenged in 1995, implying that he completed their trilogy 2-1 ahead. Bowe defeated every challenge he faced as a professional, with the exception of a 1994 no-contest with Buster Mathis Jr.

Bowe is one of five former heavyweight champions to have never suffered a stoppage loss during his career, alongside Gene Tunney, Rocky Marciano, Sultan Ibragimov, and Nikolai Valuev.

Professional kickboxing career

Bowe made his Muay Thai debut in March 2013, after having worked under Kru Airr Phanthip and Kru Chan in Las Vegas. In Pattaya, Thailand, he met Levgen Golovin for the WPMF Super Heavyweight World Championship. Bowe was knocked down five times from kicks to his leg on June 14, 2013. About halfway through the second round, the championship match came to a halt.

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