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I fought Lennox Lewis and Evander Holyfield but controversial British boxer was the hardest puncher I ever faced
Riddick Bowe was one of boxing’s best heavyweights in the thriving 1990s boxing scene as the volatile New Yorker was champion of the world.
After finishing runner up at the 1988 Olympics, suffering a final defeat to Lennox Lewis, Bowe was intent on making amends in the professional code but a fight against his amateur rival never materialised despite several attempts to get the battle over the line.
Despite never facing Lewis, Bowe would feature in other memorable contests with a trilogy against Evander Holyfield being the standout story of his eventful career.
Bowe won their first meeting in a heavyweight classic, and he became world champion after outpointing the Atlanta man in 1992.
Holyfield would gain revenge the following year before Bowe settled the rivalry with an emphatic stoppage in 1995.
Bowe left boxing in 1996 before resuming his career in 2004 with a number of low-profile fights and he eventually exited the sport for good in 2008.
In 45 fights, Bowe was only beaten once, and after sharing the ring with the likes of Holyfield, Lewis, and Andrew Golota, he says Herbie Hide was the hardest puncher he ever faced.
Bowe beat the British fighter in 1995, but he credits the controversial Norwich man as being the biggest hitter he shared a ring with.
“You’re not going to believe this, [but] I would have to say Herbie Hide,” said Bowe when speaking to The Ring.
“He hit me and I thought, ‘Oh s--t. I can’t allow this guy to hit me again because I don’t know what I’ll see next.’”
“Initially I was trying to box him, and he was real fast. I said I can’t box him because he got me beat, so I fought him.”
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