The world was saddened when the 2-time world champion and public figure George Foreman passed away at the age of 76. 

He, and his legacy, certainly will never be forgotten.

Born in Marshall, Texas, Foreman took up boxing in the Job Corps when he met Nick “Doc” Broadus, who started him on a training program.  Shortly after, he began his amateur career with a first round knockout, and that was only the beginning.  He would eventually find himself representing the United States Olymic Men’s boxing team in 1968 in Mexico City.   He would power his way through the competition to win the Olympic Gold Medal.

After winning the gold medal,  Foreman began his pro career, where he built a record of 37-0, with 34 knockouts and was the no. 1 contender, where he would travel to Kingston, Jamaica, and face the world heavyweight champion Joe Frazier for the championship of the world.  

On January 22, 1973, billed as “The Sunshine Showdown,” Foreman would enter the fight as a 3 to 1 underdog against the heavyweight champion Frazier.  It didn’t bother him at all as he made arguably the biggest splash in boxing history when he dismantled Frazier in 2 rounds to win the championship that night.  He would go on to make 2 successful title defenses before losing the championship to Muhammad Ali on October 30, 1974, in the famous “Rumble in the Jungle” in Kinshasa, Zaire.

After losing 2 1/2 years later to Jimmy Young in San Juan Puerto Rico, Foreman would retire from the sport and would serve as an evangelist minister in Houston for the next 10 years.  In 1987, he would announce his return to the boxing ring to being his quest to regain the heavyweight championship, which was greeted with laughter. 

Despite the criticism and laughter from the public and media, Foreman had the belief he could be successful in his return to the ring.  Almost resetting his career, Foreman would re-build his career from scratch by taking on opponents from good to bad, with the perception of being a better story than anything else. 

That perception changed on April 19, 1991, when he faced Evander Holyfield for the heavyweight championship.  Despite losing in a unanimous decision, Foreman showed his comeback was definitely legitimate and fought well against the premier heavyweight of his time.  After that fight, HBO signed him to be an expert commentator from 1991 until 2004. 

As his well, put together comeback reached his seventh year, Foreman found himself in line for yet another title shot when he faced Michael Moorer on November 5, 1994.  Basically viewed as his last chance to make history, Foreman made the most of the opportunity when he would land the perfect 1-2 on Moorer and knocked him out in round 10 to become the oldest man to win the heavyweight championship of the world at age 45, completing his mission.  The mission that no one, aside from him, thought he could pull off. 

The win got him many endorsement deals, especially the well-known George Foreman grill, which is still a phenomenon today.  Other endorsement deals included commercials with Doritos, Pepsi, and Meineke.  There was also a video game with his naming rights, and many TV show appearances.  One could argue that it was his punch that KO’d Moorer got him these deals and essentially became, in general, the largest financial purse in boxing history at the time.

Going from a young and disturbed former champion who couldn’t get over losing his championship to Ali in 1974 to becoming a very, kind-hearted human being when he returned in 1987 with a consumer friendly personality,  one could say Foreman was a real life celebrity makeover who wasn’t only  successful in the ring, but also successful outside of it.  Being a preacher, getting the  endorsement deals, the broadcasting career, the books he wrote, opening the George Foreman Youth Center, the video game, and just recently, the movie about his career, he was just an amazing human being during his time on this earth.

The world felt his when it was announced that he passed away.  He may be done, but his legacy will forever live on.

A legacy that certainly was one or a kind.

Rest In Peace, Big George.

Photo Credits; NBCnews, Chron, Reddit, BadLeftHook

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