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Former heavyweight champion George Foreman, who fought and lost to Muhammad Ali in the legendary 1974 “Rumble in the Jungle” before regaining the title two decades later, passed away on Friday at the age of 76, as announced by his family in a statement.
“With deep sadness, we share the news of the passing of our cherished George Edward Foreman Sr., who gently left us on March 21, 2025, surrounded by his loved ones,” said Foreman’s family in a message on the boxer’s official Instagram account.
“We appreciate all the love and prayers, and we respectfully request privacy as we celebrate the remarkable life of a man we were fortunate to call our own.”
Born in Texas on January 10, 1949, Foreman was raised in Houston. The man who brought him up was often absent and frequently intoxicated.
Foreman discovered only after he won the heavyweight championship that J. D. Foreman was not his biological father, as his real father, a decorated World War II veteran, reached out.
As a teenager, Foreman dabbled in crime and dropped out of high school at the age of 16. “At 13 years old, George was about 6-foot-2, 200 pounds and the terror of the neighborhood,” his younger brother Roy told the BBC in 2024. “When you're bigger and stronger and believe you’re superior to everyone else, you tend to take things.”
At 16, he began boxing. “I wanted to be a football player,” Foreman stated on his website. “I tried boxing just to prove to my friends that I wasn't scared. Well, 25 fights and a year later, I had become an Olympic gold medalist.”
During the 1968 Mexico Games, the 19-year-old Foreman fought his way to the super-heavyweight gold medal. As he celebrated his victory, 10 days after fellow African Americans Tommie Smith and John Carlos made a Black power salute after the 200m track final, Foreman waved an American flag in the ring.
Standing at 6-foot-4 (1.93m), 'Big George' was larger and stronger than other leading heavyweights of the era.
He was agile on his feet yet fought his way through the professional ranks, ultimately earning a title shot against champion Joe Frazier, whom he defeated in just two rounds.
By the time he faced Ali in his third title defense over 15 rounds in October 1974 in Kinshasa, Foreman boasted an unbeaten record of 40 professional fights. He had secured victories in all but three of those fights within the distance and had not yet needed to build stamina.
Ali’s ‘rope-a-dope’ strategy wore down the towering fighter, who lost in eight rounds. The loss shattered Foreman’s intimidating reputation, particularly in his own eyes. “I just couldn't believe I lost the world title,” he remarked later. “It was the most humiliating moment of my life. It shifted from pride to pity. That was devastating.”
His bid for another title shot collapsed when he lost by points to contender Jimmy Young in March 1977 on a sweltering night in Puerto Rico. Following the fight, Foreman fell ill and claimed he sensed God directing him to change his life.
He retired at 28 and became an ordained minister. When he announced his return to boxing 10 years later, he was bald where he had once worn an afro and out of shape instead of fit, which appeared to many as a boxing gimmick. He later stated that he needed money for his youth center.
Over the next three years, he fought 21 times against mostly average opponents, winning every bout, 20 of which were by knockout. As a prominent figure in a weakened and fragmented division, he earned a title shot against Evander Holyfield in 1991 and then against Tommy Morrison two years later, losing both by points.
In November 1994, he faced Michael Moorer, who had dethroned Holyfield. In the same shorts he had worn 20 years and six days earlier against Ali, Foreman was losing badly until he connected with Moorer in the 10th round for a knockout. At 45 years and 299 days old, he became the oldest heavyweight world champion.
He was stripped of his WBA title and then his IBF title for refusing to face nominated challengers but won three more fights and remained the 'lineal' world champion when he lost on points to Shannon Briggs in 1997 at the age of 48, retiring once more.
Foreman had 81 professional fights, winning 76, with 68 of those victories coming by knockout. In 1994, he endorsed the “George Foreman Lean Mean Fat-Reducing Grilling Machine,” featuring in cheerful TV ads, and became a celebrity outside the boxing ring.
Foreman, who hosted a 1996 TV show titled ‘Bad Dads’, was married four times and fathered 10 children while adopting two.
He named all five of his sons George Edward, explaining that he wanted them to understand, “If one of us rises, we all rise together, and if one falls, we all fall together!”
