Do Bowe & Tunney Have One Too Much Loss?

Was former world heavyweight champion Riddick ‘Big Daddy’ Bowe and Gene ‘The
Fighting Marine’ Tunney has one too many losses to make anyone’s top list of heavyweight champions.

In 1988, Bowe went 104-18 in the amateurs and lost to future world champion Lennox ‘The Lion’ Lewis, who represented Canada in the finals of the 1988 Seoul Olympics in South Korea, for the silver medal in the Super Heavyweight division.

Bowe, 43-1 with 28 stops out of Ft. Washington, Maryland, held the WBC title from November to December 1992 before vacating it. He held the WBA and IBF titles from November 1992 to November 1993. He held the WBO title from March 1993 to January 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 at October 1991.

In previous fights, Bowe stopped former WBC and WBA champion Pinklon ‘Pink’ Thomas, 30-4-1, after eight rounds. Later, he stopped 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 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 suffered his first and final loss against Holyfield, 29-1, by majority decision in November 1993. He also 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 Jorge Luis Gonzalez of Cuba (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 the next bout, Bowe won by DQ over Andrew Golota (28-0), then retired. He returned eight years later and won three fights before retiring. That one loss to Holyfield, who beat them in their other two fights, seemed to keep him from being considered one of the top ten in his division even though he was only outscored 43-1 by Holyfield.

If we look at Gene ‘The Fighting Marine’ Tunney (65-1-1), who has 48 stops, from Greenwich, Connecticut, he has only lost once in his career, and that was to the middleweight world champion Harry. ‘The 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 go on to win his next five fights and the heavyweight title, defeating NBA champion Jack ‘Manassa Mauler’ Dempsey (57-5-8) before traveling to over 120,000 people in Philadelphia.

A year later, they had their rematch, and in the seventh round, Tunney was knocked out. Dempsey ignored the new rule that he must go to the neutral corner – fourteen seconds passed when Tunney got up on the canvas, later known as ‘The Long Count’.

Tunney would go on to win the decision. He defended his title for the second time by stopping Tom ‘The Hard Rock from Down Under’ Heeney (32-8-5) of New Zealand, in eleven rounds in July 1928, retiring after the fight at 65-1-1. record. That lone loss to Greg cost him most of the top ten heavyweight championships.