Quote Originally Posted by mikeeod View Post
I think that on the night Bowe beat Evander ( first fight), he would have been difficult for any heavyweight in history. Bowe was in great shape, had great movement, was a true “big man”, had fast hands, and great fundamentals/technique inside and out. That being said, I never saw Riddick that good again.

Lennox, like most fighters, had a tendency to take certain opponents lightly- Bruno, McCall, Rahman...etc., but I always found him to elevate his game and fight his best vs those he viewed as legitimate threats- Ruddock, Tua, Tyson, Evander...etc. Lennox reached his peak under Manny Steward, but he was a big man, had the harder punch, was pretty mobile/athletic, and was very intelligent in the ring behind his educated left jab. Riddick and Lennox ushered in the age of the super heavyweights.

I don’t think either was scared of the other, I think they were trying to maximize the payday and let the fight marinate but missed their opportunity when Lennox was stopped and Riddick got fat. This was similar to Manny and Floyd (Manny getting stopped by JMM) waiting a littl too long to maximize their profits/ revenues, although unlike Bowe/Lewis they still did pretty well having their fight years after the expiration date. This has happened to AJ as well- some of the luster is now off him vs Tyson and/or Wilder.

As to who wins- I think Riddick is a little too mobile for Lennox if they fight and Riddick is close to what we saw when he first won his title. Later on, say 1994 and after, I think Lennox beats him. Remember how bad Riddick looked vs Evander in the rematch and both Golota fights, Lennox doesn’t lose to those versions of Bowe in my opinion.
I'm with you there on neither being literally afraid of the other. On Bowes front I fault Newman more so for all the double talk and reneging on the previous agreement that winner of Lewis - Ruddock would be mandatory challenger next out as the wbc put it out. Of course there are always politics and numbers to be ironed out but the 90-10 split they put forth seemed a non starter. I never saw the proposed meeting around 95' as serious with Bowe waddling in at 250 with Buster Mathis Jr around the time Lewis Lost to McCall. The only one that mattered was the one Bowe opted out of by binning his belt on stage at the urging of Newman, something Bowe says he now regrets. The wbc, network and the four fighters all knew what was on the table. Today I cannot a heavyweight champ doing something similar and not being ripped to shreds for it . Bowe is such an enigma. To me he arguably peaked in the instant. On fight night v Holyfield I he was the definition of a multi geared versatile big man. The outside game and ability to mix inside was brilliant. But his biggest fight was self discipline and focus. What could have been. It'll always go down as a promising gem of a showdown but risks were reserved.