Riddick Bowe - Riddick Bowe Timeline

Riddick Bowe Timeline

• August 10, 1967: Born in Brooklyn, New York City, United States
• 1988: Lost to Lennox Lewis for the Olympic gold medal in Seoul, South Korea.
• March 7, 1989: Debuted as a professional, beating Lionel Butler
• July 8, 1990: Beat Art Card in first nationally televised bout
• October 21, 1991: Declared winner by disqualification over Elijah Tillery who began kicking Bowe until he was grabbed around the neck and thrown outside the ring by Bowe's manager, Rock Newman. A melee ensued. It would not be the last time things went chaotic before or during a Bowe fight.
• November 13, 1992: Won the world heavyweight championship, beating Evander Holyfield. Bowe and Holyfield slugged it out for 12 rounds, with Bowe having a slight edge. A knockdown in the 11th round sealed Holyfield’s fate, and Bowe would win by unanimous decision.
• Early 1993: He and his manager Rock Newman visited Pope John Paul II in the Vatican City, offering him the autographed gloves that Bowe used to beat Holyfield. The Pope accepted the gift.
• February 6, 1993 Bowe knocked out former WBA heavyweight champion Michael Dokes in the first round, in his first title defense.
• May 22, 1993 Bowe knocked out Jesse Ferguson in the second round, in what his trainer Eddie Futch called his greatest performance.
• November 6, 1993: Lost the title to Holyfield, by decision in 12.
• August 13, 1994: His fight with Buster Mathis Jr. declared a no contest after Bowe hit his opponent while Mathis Jr. lay on the canvas.
• December, 1994: In the final pre-fight conference before their fight, he threw a one-two combo at Larry Donald. He beat Donald by decision in 12.
• March 11, 1995: He won the lightly regarded WBO world heavyweight championship, knocking out Herbie Hide in six rounds.
• Summer of 1995: He and Jorge Luis Gonzalez engaged in a series of violent press conferences across the United States before their fight. Their last pre-fight conference was held behind protective glasses. Bowe won by knockout in six.
• November 4, 1995: He and Holyfield, fought the last fight of their classic trilogy. Bowe seemed to dominate the early rounds, and the ailing Holyfield was struggling in the fight, a fight that commentator George Foreman was notably concerned about, repeatedly saying the fight should be stopped. Holyfield however had a spurt of energy early in the sixth round, and knocked Bowe down. Bowe recovered from the knockdown and went on to win by knockout in round eight.
• July 11, 1996: He defeated Andrew Golota by disqualification in round seven after being repeatedly punched in the testicles. The ensuing riot became breaking news across the United States, and an infamous night in the history of boxing. Golota was hit in the head by a member of Bowe’s entourage with either a large mid-90s cellphone or walkie-talkie, bloodying him.
• December 14, 1996: He defeated Golota in their rematch, again by disqualification. Golota was ahead on all three scorecards, but at the end of the ninth round, Golota landed three brutal shots to Bowe's testicles. It turned out to be Bowe's last fight until 2004. Bowe declared there would not be a rematch. For a long time after Golota was disqualified Bowe lay unmoving in the ring with his eyes closed, which prompted fears from some about his condition. His slurred speech during the post fight interview did little to alleviate those fears.
• December, 1996: Bowe announced he would leave his wife and children and large fleet of cars in Fort Washington, MD to join the United States Marine Corps. He dropped out of boot camp soon afterward.
• 1999: He kidnapped his wife and children at her parent's community in North Carolina. They were released unharmed, after an interstate drive.
• January, 2001: Bowe applied for a presidential pardon from President Bill Clinton stating, "I became the heavyweight champion of the world from hard work. I was able to provide certain necessities to my large family. Many people depended on me and still depend on me to this very day for certain necessities," Bowe wrote. "If I am not given back my livelihood, we might just lose everything."
• May 18, 2004: Bowe was released from federal prison after serving 18 months for kidnapping. He announced his intention to return to boxing and attempt to reclaim the world heavyweight championship.
• September 25, 2004: After seven and a half years away from boxing, Bowe returned with a second round knockout over Marcus Rhode. In a second comeback fight in April 2005, Bowe narrowly defeated journeyman Billy Zumbrun, in a fight in which Bowe was badly overweight and absorbed many heavy blows from Zumbrun.
• On October 17, 2005 he declared bankruptcy.
• On November 9, 2007, Riddick Bowe announced that he will enter the world of Mixed Martial Arts (MMA), fighting exclusively for the promotional outfit Xcess Entertainment, with his first fight being December 12, 2007, against lanky Philadelphia journeyman David R. Stec.