Did former world heavyweight champions Riddick ‘Big Daddy’ Bowe and Gene ‘The
Fighting Marine’ Tunney have one loss too many to make anyone’s top ten list among heavyweight champions.
In 1988, Bowe was 104-18 in the amateurs and lost to future world champion Lennox ‘The Lion’ Lewis, representing Canada in the 1988 Seoul Olympics finals in South Korea, receiving the Silver Medal in the Super Heavyweight division.
Bowe, 43-1 with 28 stoppages out of Ft. Washington, Maryland, held the WBC title from November to December 1992 before vacating it. He had the WBA and IBF titles from November 1992 to November 1993. He held the WBO title from March of 1993 to January of 1996.
Turning pro in March 1989, Bowe won his first 34 fights, winning the vacant WBC Continental Americas title over Elijah ‘Phoenix Steel’ Tillery (23-4) in his twenty-seventh fight by DQ in October 1991.
In previous fights, Bowe stopped former WBC and WBA champion Pinklon ‘Pink’ Thomas, 30-4-1, after eight rounds. Later, he stopped the 1984 Olympic Gold Medalist Tyrell Biggs (19-3). He defeated former WBA champion Tony ‘TNT’ Tubbs in his next fight, 29-2. Three fights later, he knocked out former WBA champion Bruce ‘The Atlantic City Express’ Seldon (18-1).
In November 1992, Bowe defeated the 1984 Olympian and WBA, WBC, and IBF world champion Evander ‘The Real Deal’ Holyfield (28-0), improving his record to 32-0. In Bowe’s first two defenses, he stopped former WBA champion Michael ‘Dynamite’ Dokes (50-3-2) and Jesse ‘Thunder’ Ferguson (19-9).
In his next defense, he lost for the first and last time to Holyfield, 29-1, by majority decision in November of 1993. He re-won the WBC Continental title, defeating 1992 Olympian Larry ‘The Legend’ Donald (16-0).
In March 1995, Bowe won the WBO world title, knocking out champion Herbie ‘Dancing Destroyer’ Hide (26-0). In his first defense, he knocked out Cuban Jorge Luis Gonzalez (23-0).
In Bowe’s next fight and their third fight, he stopped former champion Holyfield, 31-2, and was stripped of his title two months later.
In back-to-back fights, Bowe won by DQ over Andrew Golota (28-0), and retired. He came back eight years later and won three fights before retiring. That one loss to Holyfield, who he beat in their two other fights, seemed to keep him from being considered one of the top ten in his division despite a 43-1 record only losing to Holyfield.
Taking a look at Gene ’The Fighting Marine’ Tunney (65-1-1), with 48 stoppages, out of Greenwich, Connecticut, he only lost once in his career, that to legendary pound-for-pound former world middleweight champion Harry ‘Pittsburgh Windmill’ Greb (196-12-5)for the American Light Heavyweight title in May of 1922.
He would go on to defeat Greb twice after that before fighting to a draw, and in their fifth fight, he defeated Greb.
Tunney would win his next five fights and the heavyweight title, defeating NBA champion Jack ‘Manassa Mauler’ Dempsey (57-5-8) before over 120,000 attendance in Philadelphia.
A year later, they had their rematch, and in the seventh round, Tunney was knocked to the canvas. Dempsey ignored a new rule that he had to go to a neutral corner—some fourteen seconds passed when Tunney got up from the canvas, later known as ‘The Long Count’.
Tunney would go on to win the decision. He defended his title a second time by stopping Tom ‘The Hard Rock from Down Under’ Heeney (32-8-5) of New Zealand, in eleven rounds in July of 1928, retiring after the fight ending with a 65-1-1 record. That lone loss to Greg cost him from most people’s top ten heavyweight champions.
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