Michael Moorer defends the heavyweight title against George Foreman. Entire HBO program from beginning to end. Hosted by Jim Lampley, Gil Clancy, and Larry Merchant. Recorded on VHS November 1994.
Who would try to degrade George? But @69Mucci I've watched this a bunch, with different commentaries. You are right, Moorer was always ahead but George was consistently hitting heavy shots. Moorer took too many punches, why didn't he move? No love for Teddy Atlas but he was right. But ❤ Big George!
@@alexhubble Foreman claims he was pulling his right hand for all of the fight to make Moorer think his power had gone. Foreman said if he'd shown his full power early on, Moorer would've boxed a lot more cautiously and given him the run around, so he waited to catch him with it late in the fight. Moorer on the other hand basically said that Foreman "got lucky".
@@Aristotelezz May had been Moorer 'thought' he had felt the power of Foreman until Round 10. One could hear every punch Foreman landed, and surely Moorer felt these. May had been a matter of Moorer not wanting to go on with another two rounds of this.
@ Simon Lomax - Moorer was a decent fighter, maybe not great but good enough for it to be seen as a massive achievement at that age to beat him. A lot of fighters would have gone down with some of those shots Moorer landed, the man is underrated and doesn't get enough credit, this is a fight he was on his way to winning pretty easy, his own stubborn attitude cost him.
imagine being 24 years old, absolutely exhausted after every round, and then you look at your 45 yo opponent and he's standing in his corner. That has to destroy a man's confidence. Foreman wasn't human
Apparently it was because Lampley was told by Foreman how he was going to win, and yet had not prepared any lines in the case Foreman did pull it off, so those were the only words that came out. "It happened" as Foreman said it would.
Jim & Larry wat do u have to say? Now? Eat ur words u were disrespecting George every step of the way & then this happend a moment of mementum magnitude, It was a fairy tail, I mean what do u say to something like this?? Apart from you can "ACHIEVE ANYTHING" & Would have loved to seen the faces of the doubters on Hbo🤣
I hate to look back in hindsight BUT I remember watching the broadcast and for some reason YOU really thought George had a chance that night. For me it was when running out to Sam Cooke's If I Had A Hammer.....it just felt like this might be his night. I gave up hope by the 5th round but then.....it happened LOL
1:08:51 foreman knew all the tricks in the book. Look at the slowmo how he throws the jab and brings it back and hooks Moorer's left guard and pulls it down in order to enable his right hand punch to go in.
1:09:01 you know - you are right - but not only that - Foreman pulls against Moorer's left wrist with his left Jab glove after throwing the jab - and Moorer reflexively resists Foreman, so he is actually pulling Foreman toward him - while Foreman simultaneously throws his right - which double leverages the force - I never saw it from that perspective before.
foreman beat bums, he ducked Tyson because he was warned by the coward in your profile not to fight him and foreman listened to that mediocre idiot and didn't fight Tyson
The Impossible Dream (The Quest) "To dream the impossible dream To fight the unbeatable foe To bear with unbearable sorrow To run where the brave dare not go To right, the un-rightable wrong To love pure and chaste from afar To try when your arms are too weary To reach the unreachable star This is my quest, to follow that star No matter how hopeless, no matter how far To fight for the right without question or pause To be willing to march into hell for a heavenly cause And I know if I'll only be true to this glorious quest That my heart will lie peaceful and calm When I'm laid to rest And the world will be better for this That one man, strong and covered with scars Still strove with his last ounce of courage To fight the unbeatable foe To reach the unreachable star"
I think George Foreman is the only Boxer, in Heavyweight history..that went from Champion, to Preacher, to Boxing analyst, and Commentator, to Return and Regain The Heavyweight Championship...all at the age of 45..
Moorer is so gracious in defeat. Everyone loves that GF won (including me) but it is also the worst moment of Moorer's career and he is so composed, no insults or excuses and just says "the best man won". All class.
Thank God this is preserved. I can remember my mother (rest in peace) her and I saw this the night it happened. Mike Tyson is my favorite boxer; George Foreman was hers. One of the greatest moments in sports history.
Great story! The two hardest punchers. One has the record for youngest heavyweight champion, the other has the record for oldest heavyweight champion. ✌️❤
Legends of boxing in Foreman's corner, Angelo Dundee, Archie Moore. Foreman will not be remembered for losing to Ali, but this historic comeback, boxing legend now is George Foreman.
Exactly. Excellent comment. This occurence can bring tears to a grown man's eyes. (With all due respect to Michael Moorer, who is a champion.) Big George, a wondrous human being.
George was a smarter fighter in his second career than his first career. And my God, could he take a punch! It's the one thing that really separates him from Mike Tyson, who had a glass jaw post Kevin Rooney.
@@GOPMAN71 Tyson doesn’t have a glass jaw. That’s wrong. In Tyson’s legit losses, he took a lot of shots against bigger men. These are heavyweights, any heavyweight can be knocked out with basically any shot. Tyson took a lot of shots against Douglas, Holyfield, and Lennox. He went past the 7th with those guys. A glass jaw would a guy getting knocked out earlier in fights. Tyson actually can absorb quite a bit of punishment. I was surprised he lasted as long as he did with Lennox. I can’t stand how everyone wants to act like Tyson wasn’t really a great fighter. I was an actual fighter, believe me there have been precious few heavyweights who had Tyson’s ability. Only a handful of heavyweights in the history of the sport could beat Tyson. Actual fighters will tell you the same thing, actual trainers (aside from Teddy, who has a personal gripe) will tell you that Tyson is an all time great heavyweight.
1:09:12 The overhead view is really the only angle where you can see the full power of the final punch. It’s more obvious that George is putting his weight behind it and you can also see how his fist goes right through Moorer’s chin - like it isn’t even there.
Who is watching this fight in 2020, 25 years later? I loved this fight when I saw it live when I was 11 and I love this fight now at 36. Still gets me every single time I watch it!!!! What a fight, what a win for Big George Foreman!!!!
@@markjackson6431 If my memory serves me right, Moore was a lot more bitter and surly about the outcome of this fight. Didn't he say Big George was “lucky?” I don't think Moore appreciated Foreman’s “I had it all planned” attitude afterward.
@@fuchsiaswing8545 moore did say that it was nonsense for Foreman planned to knock him out even though the truth is that exactly what Foreman planned and executed.
@@fuchsiaswing8545Moorer didn't look so lucky on the deck being counted out. Whether George planned it all along or not, it was a perfect one, two combination. Actually George's combination before that had Moorer hurt badly.
And it's not like he beat someone who was also "over the hill." He beat a young guy in his prime. And he did it when the guy was winning the entire fight. But George never gave up.
Atlas after the first round said "our sparring partners were better", that's the good news. Atlas should have told Moorer the bad news, your in the ring with the hardest hitting heavyweight that has ever lived.
Harry Carpenter when Ali wins the Rumble In The Jungle: "Oh my God, he's won the title back at the age of thirty-two!" George Foreman: "Hold my holy water!"
yup.. who at the time was 35-0 with 30 knockouts. Moorer was no pushover, he had some serious power during his career as well. Couldn't stand up to that devastating Foreman right hand tho, that hand is the thing of nightmares.
As I sit here this Father's Day June 21st 20/20 I am reminded of the first time I saw this live. It was my last year in Middle School I remember sitting there with my dad watching this and both of us rooting for big George to make history and he did. I remember my Dad and I cheering loud throughout the house when he won. So I find myself watching this fight again at 40 years old celebrating fathers day with my two sons. Big George is no longer boxing HBO boxing is no more my dad has passed on to the better life and the world we live in today is so crazy. It's a trip how life is and how time fly's by and how changes occur in an instant. Make as many memories as you can make them count like big George made his opportunity count. Happy Father's Day to all the fathers out there.
In an added bonus, it seems the best gets brought out when you are facing insane circumstances. George would have something else to deal with..... Where his parents live, there was a massive flood. 29:03 is the proof of this which is absolutely insane. He had to help relocate them and it was weighing heavily on his mind in this fight in addition to trying to win this fight, in which of course he did and the rest is history.
Man.. the weight of those punches in the 10th was something to behold.. completely different sound on impact then punches earlier in the fight.. Big George was throwing some bricks out there and landing them to great effect.
I love how George made Gil Clancy eat his words. "George isnt a one punch knockout fighter and he has very little chance of beating Moorer." What does George do? He kos Moorer with one punch👊👍
It's true that Foreman was not a one punch killer like Tyson. Foreman hit very hard, maybe even harder than Tyson, but his punches were slower so they had more concussive force but landed less cleanly. I think Clancy was generally right in saying that Foreman "clubs people to death", but just in this instance Foreman landed so clean that Moorer was obliterated.
Tbf he was kind of right. It was the accumulation of right hands that made moorer susceptible to the KO. If foreman would of went for it in the 3 first rounds moorer would have taken it and went on his bike winning a UD.
George also knocked out Gerry Cooney with one punch.it was a beautiful left upper that put Gerry down and out in sections just like when they use dynamite to blow up and flatten old buildings, first the bottom crumbles,than the top part falls down down onto the top portion, that's exactly how George crumbled Gerry Cooney.
I was 4 years old when this happened. First time I'm seeing this. Just imagine. No one believing in you. Everyone laughing at you for daring to accomplish what everyone deemed impossible. Then you becoming the World Champion. Let alone at the age of 45. Damn I dont tear up alot, but this made me cry a little. This is awesome.
I miss the 80's 90's and the VHS recording days of the past. Never were in great recording quality but was always the intent of capturing a moment in time. Thanks for uploading this fight :)
@@jasonmoody4219 I think machiel Moore was winning the fight; however Georgie Forman got a lucky ghost punch;; they say body punches are the best in boxing;; I only watch the fight once ; to me it was a boring fight: Mike Tyson fight are more exciting
@@jasonmoody4219 machiel Moore was winning the boxing match ;; then the ghost punch::::then came George Forman 👻ghost punch "" ❤ Mike Tyson fight with Evander hollyfield & Lennox Lewis watch both countries of time ;; age is not a factor they all basically the same age Evander hollyfield is older ;; machiel Moore was winning the fight;; George Forman was in his 40s old ;; muhammad ali told George Forman do not fight Mike Tyson in the 1980s ;;; George Forman lost to Tommy Morrison
Absolutely. And Ali's fear of the biggest rematch in boxing history, was obvious when he scheduled an old slow white bum chuck Wepner instead. 😆🤣 It's still crystal clear today.
@@bradhuskers ali couldn't walk at this point. his parkinsons disease kicked in way before this fight. if it was a 32 year old muhammad ali fighting the 24 year old george with the wisdom george had now, the result would've still been the same. Muhammad ali was a once in a life time fighter. there will never be another one like him. obviously the same is absolutely true with george.
Seeing this for the 135th time. Watching in Norway - in the middle of the night - then. Still get the goosebumps! Teddy Atlas was like Nostradamus in the corner. Telling Michael what he SHOULD NOT DO! Great coaching. Rotten fulfilling. But - wow! I love George Foreman! And think he should be aside Ali! The two best heavyweights from 1965-1995.
I suspect the only people who weren't cheering when Moore hit the deck were too overcome with emotion to cheer. This was the first time in my life I wept with joy over the result of a sporting event. It was something special.
George had this under control from the beginning. He was being smart. Making Moorer believe his punches were not as powerful as everyone thought. Moorer fell for it too. No pun intended. This fight almost reminds me in a way (albeit different) of the Zaire fight with Ali, where Ali outsmarted the younger Foreman and then took over when the time was just right and Foreman was spent. I think Ali taught Foreman a valuable lesson and that is why he was able to make a comeback being in his forties. Wisdom will almost always prevail in any situation if used properly. Lastly, to the people saying the fight was fixed and blah blah... You try taking a Foreman right hand on the point of the chin and even survive. The man has such power he could easily kill someone. That's why he was softening Moorer up early on with 50% shots (if that) to make SURE HE DIDNT GET BACK UP over and over (Frazier). Deep down, George is a soft hearted, spiritual man who knows he can kill or hurt his opponent easily and holds back as to not permanently injure them. So he got into Moorer's head, gave him false confidence, and turned it up to 100% in the 10th and went for the KO. People don't realize how smart and wise Foreman is, especially when he made his comeback..
G Man Absolutely. Foreman is and always will be really good. If even a 45 year old George foreman could come into this time period now and be in the heavyweight division, I think he would beat wilder, Joshua, and maybe Fury but Fury is very awkward as a fighter.
That's what George said after he won. George was struggling to get to that point. He wasn't under control. That was some hype that he created after the fight was over.
With all due respect I call bullshit on the notion that he planned it this way. Of course he was hoping he would be able to KO the slightly chinny, relatively inexperienced southpaw in Moorer, but he most certainly did not have the fight under control. He was getting soundly outboxed. Moorer lost this fight every bit as much as George won it, yes, but not because George went in planning on lulling him into standing in front of him. He stood in front of George because everything he did was working and working well. George just went ahead and took advantage of it. The bottom line is, regardless of anything, Moorer was chinny and that ultimately told the tale. But hey I've been wrong before.
No disrespect but Foreman's strategy was easy to predict; he was old and slow and wasn't going to match him punch for punch. EVERYONE knew Foreman was eager to fight Moorer because Michael had a paper chin.
My friend the boxing trainer thinks Teddy is over-rated. The problem when you up the velocity against Foreman is that the more you come to him the easier it is for him to hit you.
Everyone who knows boxing and watched Foreman in his comeback knew what he was going to do. The problem is George is a GREAT puncher and a GREAT boxer who has determination that cannot be surpassed. I miss watching big George. Never will be another.
@@l.cruces2223 Damn sure did!👍 Moorer chose to stand toe to toe with Foreman, thinking he could knock him out & instead, he undersetimated Big George. Morrer would never be the same fighter again.
Absolutely one of the most beautiful shots thrown in the hwt division. This fight in so many ways is glorious.Big George with one punch became more than anyone before him, or since, he put himself into a category that is very unlikely to be repeated again. This Foreman is like a tank, one way or another he is going to hurt you, and it's really a joke how several of the announcers were claiming Big George did not have his punching power anymore. HELL at his current age of 69 he can knock down a mule. Big George is a credit to this sport, and I.M.O certainly belongs in the top 5 all greatest hwt champs.
He has one of the best records for certain and easily top three hardest punchers of all time.No one will ever take twenty years off and come back for the strap either.So yeah your opinion is a fact as far as I'm concerned.
I think it was Moorer who said that the right hand before the eventual knockout punch left him virtually out on his feet. By the time George landed the big shot, Moorer was already on his way to the mat.
Jeffrey Haefner From what I've heard and read is that George was always worried he would seriously injure his opponents and he frequently pleaded with the ref to stop a lot of his fights.
George is a real Christian. He’s a really good guy. I remember when Oliver McCall had his breakdown against Lennox, the announcers were roasting him but George was full of compassion. He wanted to hug the guy. He started boxing again because the church he pastored needed a new roof and wanted to pay for it. Little did he know what God had in store for him, becoming heavyweight champion again and then the Foreman grill which made him upwards of $200M.
George’s immediate reaction, and his handlers understanding this and “joining in the celebration “ was amazing. Collected himself in prayer. He made believers out of dreamers.
No one gives Foreman credit for being so crafty in this fight. He fought Moorer but never let out his full punching power. Just good solid shots. Moorer, who was way faster, suddenly thought he could handle George’s power and decided to stand in front and box him. In the 10th, you suddenly see the real power shots from Foreman. And Moorer is knocked out. Foreman had to get Moorer to stand in front of him and fight. And to do that he had to trick him.
I was 14 and watched this fight live with my pops, I never seen a crowd so pumped for a fighter as Big George. I still get chills when I see this KO. George Foreman is the man!!!
It's so creepy and cool how both color commentary and Teddy Atlas is telling Moorer exactly what will be the mistakes that get him upset. He worked so hard tonwin the title...got careless, disregarded instruction and ended up flat on his back laid out with blood leaking from his nose.
Nose and mouth, the final punch broke his mouthguard and required 26 stitches (to anybody who thinks that Michael Moorer would "let himself" get punched by the strongest man the sport has ever seen)
It was actually the right hand right before the knockout which did the damage, Moorer was out on his feet after that until the second one-two put him down.
It's just amazing how much power Foreman had in his right hand. He was 45, it was towards the end of round 10, and the punch was not a fully-extended wallop to the head, but a sort of half-length punch to the side of his head - and yet it left a pretty well seasoned and strong boxer almost unconscious for a period of time. Who knew that cheeseburgers could be so good for your health?
Wearing the same trunks when Ali outsmarted him 20 year previous, Foreman outsmarts an opponent to win. The fact a movie has not been made of this dude is frankly ridiculous. Luckily 2022 should fix that. And I just love the disbelief in the commentators: "it happened?!"
Moorer’s problem was not listening to his corner. Atlas takes flack, but he knew what he was doing. Forman was pulling his punches and lulled Moorer into thinking Forman had no power.
Many years before, Jim Corbett was leading champion Jim Jefferies by a wide margin and was on the verge of regaining the heavyweight championship. Corbett told his corner he wanted to mix with Jeffries. His corner begged him to stay away from the bigger stronger Jeffries. Corbett was knocked out that next round.
I could watch this 10th round over and over again. That big close-in right hand was an exclamation point, but what Foreman does the entire round is what wins it for him. Just one big thud from those heavy punches George threw after another all round, square to the head. It's a masterpiece two minutes from George, paying off his plan to lure Moorer in the whole fight.
What a beautiful impossible dream it was. And that amazing symmetry/asymmetry with George wearing the same trunks as in Zaire, but with Dundee in his corner, a completely different man than he was in 74, but still with that devastating right hand...one of the greatest nights in boxing history.
I was still a one-month-old baby when this fight happened. I am 29 years old now turning 30 and this fight is moving to watch. Always bring me to tears.
Anybody who has stood in front of Foreman...has been either knocked out, physically, mentally and internally damaged, or brain damaged somehow...These is facts. George Foreman a powerful puncher, even at 45 years old. Briggs? disappeared and a non-factor, Morrison completely disappeared from the picture. Even Holifield lost to Bowe a couple of times and got beaten up by a fat middleweight with great skills called James Toney. Ali, brain damaged and Parkinsons but was in decline after, Frazier became a joke by the 2nd fight against Foreman.
Blaxem Yanzin He had that one mean left hook. He nearly got killed in that fight with Ray Mercer where the ref had a shocker though. That and that Rocky Balboa street fight couldn't have helped!
Anytime I’m feeling down or had a bad day, I can always go rewatch this fight for a spirit lifter. Man this is one of the greatest moments of sports history! "It Happened!!, It Happened!!" 💯‼️
“Southpaw is made to order for George Foreman.” George is so right. Foreman’s jab is always within reach and so is his right which has free reign to the entire body. It’s perfect for George. And Moorer kept walking into that perfect spot and taking it. Wow. Those last two left-rights were devastating for Moorer.
I watched this fight as a 10 year old, and I rooted for the old man the whole time! It was great watching Georges comeback! I will always remember that night!
The only time I’m standing in front of George is to shake his hand. George: thank you for one the the greatest moments in all of sporting history. Unreal.
Not a Teddy Atlas fan, (imo he's the type to know when the camera is on him) but Nostradamus couldn't have given Moorer better instructions than what he gave his fighter..
Atlas saw it coming. Foreman told people behind the scenes how it was going to happen months in advance. Jim Lampley (It happened, It happened) swears that Foreman told him how he was going to win the fight. Everyone except Moorer could see it coming.
This fight is a best example of pride cometh before the fall. Moorer was young and cocky and thought he could show the world that he didn't have to avoid Foreman on top of outboxing him. Foreman is a freak of nature however and Moorer learned of that fact the hard way. The lesson learned here is that you are not a special snowflake and there are people out there who have a special gift you must prepare for and avoid if necessary. You can't always fight the fight you want to fight to prove a point and must account for those strengths. He could have easily outboxed and pointed Foreman for an easy victory but instead chose to show his corner and the world just how tough and great he was and paid the price. Toughness won't save you from your nervous system shutting down from a Foreman right hand, no amount of toughness will. Ali knew this and never got hit cleanly, but if he did, it'd be no difference, that's how powerful Foreman is. Ali was also 32 in his fight with Foreman and knew better from experience from fighting real killers like Liston previously not to take those shots and that he wasn't invincible.
Yeah atlas is sometimes to full of himself. Simple instructions are better in the corner than long winded arguments. A fighter in battle needs clear short bits of advice. If he just said stay away, stay away, you've won the fight, moore would've still been champ.
Around 32:58 Teddy Atlas called & predicted exactly what Big George Foreman was going to do to win this fight! When Teddy talks, as a boxer, you best to listen!
@@euclideszoto997 Holyfield was criticised in his fight against Foreman for holding onto him alot in the last round. To this day, he said he did it because he did not want to give him a chance to get even one good punch in. If you watch Round 11 of that fight, even that late, George managed to wobble him with one of his punches. I think a young Moorer wanted to be the only person other than Ali to knock Foreman out, so he stood in front of him, took shots he didn't need to take, and got KO'ed.
@@MrDioXIII If that was Moorer's intention then he shouldn't complain about the outcome. If Atlas knew that was his intention then he would have told Moorer "get another trainer!"
This is the famous right hand that changed Formans life he was getting commercial deals endorsements George Foreman being lean machine changed everything for him I'm proud of you I don't know him personally but he looks like he's a very very great man
Moorer didn't planned, didn't went defensive or use footwork or complex head movement or some tactic. He made the choice to go for a brawl, thinking he could bear foreman's attacks since they lacked power and stand out as a great fighter. But in truth it was Foreman reserving his strenght for the right moment.
Have some respect please, both of them were great fighters and also remember Foreman is a legend for a reason, we can't all look amazing boxing against the legends.
"I think the myth of George's power has been exposed by Michael Moorer," the commentator says. Let's see...highest KO ratio in boxing history and Moorer falls to the mat 10 minutes after that ridiculous statement. Eat your words. Foreman and Liston were the two hardest punchers in history. Any boxing fan knows that.
That was the case throughout the fight. I think Atlas' problem is that he thought that he had to do all of the thinking for his fighters and the boxers that he had eventually left him because they couldn't function that way.
JIM LAMPLEY WITH THE GREATEST CALL IN THE HISTORY OF SPORTS... "IT HAPPENED,IT HAPPENED" BEAUTIFULLY FITTING FOR THE MOMENT.. IN THE END ,BIG GEORGE GAVE GOD ALL THE PRAISE AND GLORY AFTER THE WIN WAS CONFIRMED..AS ANYONE SHOULD
Big George went into the fight knowing his only chance was to land the big right hand. Notice the entire fight George was pumping the jump and using the left hook. Not even landing it all the time but he kept moorer moving into the direction of his right hand. And George was catching him with some good right hands through out the fight softening moores chin up for the one big shot. That’s what being calm and having ring experience will do for you.
I am 52 years of age and I remember when Ail knocked out Foreman, and now Foreman is once again heavy weight champion of the world which he was 20 years ago. To me he made history in my book. Amen to Foreman.
Ali is the most talented idolized loved by his decision to not fight in the war but foreman’s story is THE most humble, most human most respected by boxing fans and people across the world.
I remember watching this fight when i was a teenager and thinking that Foreman was so ancient and probably shouldn’ have been fighting anymore. Now that i’m an ancient 45 year old, i’m obsessed with this fight. It’s a redemption and validation of sorts. Watching rounds 3-6, i was scared for the old man’s safety. It seemed like he was getting lit up by Moorer’s faster hands and sharp combinations and it was just a matter of time before he got knocked out or concussed. But then midway through round 7, i got the feeling that big George went into kill mode and could smell the victory - and that Moorer’s punches were mostly just an annoyance to him by that time. I wonder what was going through Foreman’s head round by round. When he fought Ali in 1974, he looked ultra aggressive and almost reckless, but in this fight 20 years later he was like a patient and wise grandmaster with sky-high confidence in his skillset and self belief. I digress… what an inspirational moment in sports history.
I remember reading something about Foreman's first comeback fight against Steve Zouski where they said "he looked fat and slow but the power was still there." Fast forward 7 years and he's fighting Michael Moorer, he still looks fat and slow but man...that power.
He didn't think George could hurt him. Little did he know, George wasn't putting all his power into his punches until Moorer started standing in front of him.
I don't really believe that he ever ate all of that. That was just his way of selling the avuncular image to the public, mostly the middle-aged public.
I understand why there are legitimate reasons why other greats should be the GOAT. Big George is the GOAT to me because he completely changed his style and regained the title at age 45. For me, there's nothing better than that.
Forearm is an intelligent boxer. He waited out the early rounds as he knew he isn't fast enough and Moorer would easily dodge his punches resulting in a gassed out Foreman in the later rounds. He was saving his energy for when Moorer is tired and not moving quick. Brilliant!!
Foreman lost his championship 20 years earlier, by having incredible power, but not the greatest ring wits. He even admitted that Ali 'hustled' him. He won this fight, tapping into his incredible punching power, but also had incredible ring wits and also a powerful faith. This fight was awesome. It is interesting, because even Holyfield knew he had to tie Big George up in the last round. Moorer stayed 'in the pocket' with Big George, and Big George eventually caught up with him. He 'hustled' Moorer...:) Amazing fight...
+mikem987 I like the term you use, that he 'hustled' Moorer. Michael Moorer's over confidence was his undoing. He was his own worst enemy on this night. He was not listening to Teddy Atlas, he was not moving laterally, and he simply just did not respect BIG George Foreman's power. Perhaps Michael was 'hustled' to believe that George could not hurt him. He found out that he was wrong.....THE HARD WAY.
jasona9 Very true. He didn't think the 'old man' could get to him. He should have listened to Teddy, who picked up on the fact that George was setting him up. Even Holyfield, with his great chin, respected Foremans power and tied him up the last round. Moorer needed to 'stick and move' the last 3 rounds and he would have coasted to a unanimous decision. It would have been remembered as a very efficient victory for Moorer, rather then a historic victory for Foreman. Foreman, was actually an intelligent fighter in the 70's, knowing how to cut off the ring, but he became very shrewd in his comeback. He learned how to 'hustle' other fighters his second go around.
+mikem987 what a night but this night sadly ended a carrer before it really got started in micheal morrer it ended a career of teddy atlas now he got back to training Timothy Bradley but he might always be a little short of getting that one fighter that could his chance of greatness we will see
I would say that foreman learned from his fight with Ali and took all that punishment just to bide his time and energy for his knock out punch just like Ali did to him during their fight. Most of his punches were not hurting moorer and it was strange to see that from one of the greatest punchers ever until out of nowhere he knock out moorer. He no doubt knew even before the fight that he had to knock out moorer with one solid knock out punch and he made moorer comfortable enough to think he can take foreman's punches(even though thats the most stupidest thing you can even think about doing to foreman) and that made moorer stay right in front of foreman so he can land that nuke right to moorer's chin.
I think you're right in terms of Foreman learning from Ali.. Foreman didn't use a rope-a-dope tactic, but he did patiently bide his time and setup Moorer. Atlas was even telling Moorer that Foreman was setting him up, but Moorer didn't listen. Moorer is known now as not having the greatest chin, but at the time it wasn't as well known. It showed how smart of a fighter Foreman was, that he sensed that the ko was there for the taking if he could just setup Moorer properly. Foreman, even in his younger days, was a smart fighter, who was adept at 'figuring out'' another fighter out and then implementing the plan sort of like a machine. He got even smarter and shrewder the second-time around.
