After his victory over Bert Cooper in June of 1989, George Foreman fought Everett ‘Big Foot’ Martin on July 20th in Tucson, Arizona. It would be the first time George didn’t stop his opponent, and he settled on a ten round decision win. Critics were all over his performance, saying he never fought anyone worth a damn, and that his comeback was a joke.
Knowing he needed a big name to draw attention, George agreed to fight Gerry Cooney on January 15, 1990 in Atlantic City. The bout was billed as ‘The Preacher and the Puncher’, with scoffers calling it the ‘Geezers at Caesar’s’, which I found ridiculous.
I was excited about the fight, and went to my brother’s apartment to watch it on pay-per-view. I also remember the ridiculously low price of just $15 to watch it.
As far as the fight itself, I didn’t expect much from Cooney. He hadn’t fought in nearly three years since his knockout defeat to Michael Spinks, and now he was fighting a legitimate heavyweight puncher.
The bout itself was not surprise, with George easily knocking Cooney out in the second round. The dramatic way in which he did it however, ,made many start to take George seriously. His huge punching power was never more evident, and his name was actually mentioned after this win as a contender for Mike Tyson’s belt.
With Tyson already agreeing to fight Evander Holyfield if he got by Buster Douglas in February, George wasn’t getting any title shots in the near future. But his name was now mentioned when the list of the top heavyweights was talked about, and that was quite an accomplishment in just three short years.
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