Riddick Bowe vs. Andrew Golota
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| Date | July 11, 1996 | ||||||||||||
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| Venue | Madison Square Garden in New York, New York | ||||||||||||
| Title(s) on the line | None | ||||||||||||
| Tale of the tape | |||||||||||||
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Riddick Bowe vs. Andrew Golota, billed as "Big Daddy's Home", was a professional boxing match contested on July 11, 1996.
Background
After defeating Evander Holyfield in their 1995 rubber match, former Undisputed Heavyweight Champion Riddick Bowe would take an 8-month layoff before returning in July of 1996 to face the virtually unknown Andrew Golota, who was undefeated in his professional career, but had yet to face a quality opponent. On May 16, 1996 , Bowe and 1988 Olympic rival Lennox Lewis had finally reached an agreement to face each other in September of that year. Before that match would take place, both men would agree to a tune-up bout, with Lewis taking on Ray Mercer while Bowe would face Golota.[1] Prior to the match, the confident Bowe declared himself "The People's Champion" and paid little attention to Golota, instead looking ahead to his long awaited bout with Lewis and a potential superfight with Mike Tyson.[2] Though Bowe entered the fight at a career high 252 pounds, 12 pounds heavier then what he weighed in his previous match with Holyfield, he nevertheless was made a 12–1 favorite. When explaining his weight gain, Bowe made it clear that he had not trained much for Golota, infamously asking "How do you train for a bum?" Golota's trainer Lou Duva remained confident that his fighter could defeat Bowe, saying of Bowe's weight gain "He's everything I want him to be"[3]
The Fight
From the opening round, it was clear that Bowe was outmatched. Golota was able to land his jab at a constant rate and landed nearly half of his 69 punches in the first round while Bowe was only able to land 17. The two men would have a close round 2 with both men landing powerful shots on one another, though Golota also hit Bowe with several low blows leading referee Wayne Kelly to issue a warning to Golota. Though Golota had outboxed Bowe in the third round, another low blow to Bowe with 40 seconds left led to a final warning from Kelly, who informed Golota that points would be deducted should he continue to hit below the belt. Golota would dominate roound 4, staggering Bowe with a combination at 1:40 of the round. However, with 25 seconds left in the round, Golota again hit Bowe with a low blow that sent Bowe to his knees in pain. Kelly deducted a point from Golota and called for time with 19 seconds left in order to allow Bowe recuperate. Though Bowe had the option to take a five minute break, he decided to continue after using less than three of his five minutes. Golota would easily win the fifth round and would continue to control the fight in round six before another late low blow cost Golota another point on the judge's scorecards. Seemingly unfazed, Golota would continue to punish Bowe in the seventh round, constantly hammering Bowe with a bevy of combinations, but like rounds four and six, Golota again lost control and hit Bowe with another low blow that caused Bowe to again fall to the canvas in pain and Kelly to stop the fight and award Bowe the disqualification victory.[4]
Post-fight Riot
Immediately after the fight was stopped, members of Bowe's security team entered the ring and approached Golota, who had his back turned as he was going back to his corner. One of the men pushed Golota from behind which caused Golota to respond by throwing punches at the man. Another man, later identified as Jason Harris, began hitting Golota in the head with a walkie-talkie, opening up a cut that required 11 stiches to close. 74-year old Lou Duva was also injured in the melee and collapsed to the canvas after experiencing chest pains and ultimately had to be taken from the ring on a stretcher. Eventually Golota's fans entered the brawl and would continue to trade punches with Bowe's entourage and fans inside the ring as well as outside of it. In the end, 10 arrests were made, eight policemen were injured and nine spectators had to be hospitalized.[5]
Aftermath
Bowe's poor performance ended the possibilty of a match with Lewis, but interest was high for a rematch with Golota. In October of 1996, three months after their first match, it was announced that Bowe and Golota would meet again in a rematch that would take place on December 14 in Atlantic City, New Jersey. Bowe admitted that Golota had humiliated him in their previous fight and vowed to be ready for their rematch, but Golota again took control of their match and was ahead on all scorecards before again running into trouble with low blows that lead to another disqualification loss. After his second consecutive poor performance, Riddick Bowe would announce his retirement from boxing at the age of 29. Adding insult to injury, Golota would ultimately get the WBC title match with Lennox Lewis that Bowe had wanted. Golota would not last long in his fight against Lewis, however, being knocked 94 seconds into the first round.
References
- ^ Deal With Lewis Frees Tyson to Seek Title, N.Y. Times article, 1996-05-17, Retrieved on 2013-05-27
- ^ Bowe Gets a Crown, but He Longs to Rule, N.Y. Times article, 1996-06-13, Retrieved on 2013-05-27
- ^ Riddick Looks Fat & Juicy, Polish Foe Licks Chops, N.Y. Daily News article, 1996-06-11, Retrieved on 2013-05-27
- ^ Down and Dirty, Sports Illustrated article, 1996-08-19, Retrieved on 2013-05-27
- ^ 'Riot' follows Bowe's victory Golota's low blows stop bout, Baltimore Sun article, 1996-07-12, Retrieved on 2013-05-27