By Ken Hissner: Former Olympic Gold Medalist and World Heavyweight champion talks about his upcoming movie April 28th, “Big” George Foreman, on the DAZN Boxing Show.
When asked about doing a bio of himself he said, “To do a movie, all the things you tried to hide camp to light again.” What was the hardest part of doing the film? “I didn’t mind looking back at my victories, but not losing my title to Muhamad Ali in Africa was different.”
Asked about the greatest moment in the ring, he said, “I was a 19-year-old boy winning the Olympic Gold Medal. That was the most magnificent moment of my life.”
Asked about being a commentator for HBO, he said, “When I was offered the contract to commentate, I did it for 13 years fighting with Larry Merchant.” Asked about the best fight he commented for. “It was with James Toney. I named all my sons George and said if I had another, I’d name him James Toney.”
When asked about how much time did you have to think about your comeback? “I’d couldn’t have even make a mistake. I didn’t have that anger anymore. I picked up the rage being a sparring partner with Sonny Liston. I saw the way he was, and I fought I should be like that.”
When asked about selling the George Foreman Grill, he said, “It was a thrill to sell. I had been on the street corner selling religion, telling everyone about Jesus.”
When asked about today’s tall fighters today, he said, “In my day, you didn’t see good tall fighters like Deontay Wilder.”
Who was the hardest-hitting boxer you fought he said, “Ron Lyle.”
When asked about his relationship with Ali after retiring, he said, “I had rage toward him, but after finding God, we talked on the phone a lot, like comparing how many kids you had. I couldn’t fish with him because he couldn’t keep quiet when I was concentrating on fishing. He became a great friend of mine.”
Who was the most skillful boxer of all time? He said, “Joe Louis.”
When asked who was the most skillful fighter he fought and he said, “Muhammad Ali!”
When asked about the toughest fight he had and he said, “Ron Lyle!”
When asked about the best advice he was ever given and he said “having two pockets keep some money in one of them when spending from the other.”
When asked who was more scarier Sonny Liston or George Foreman, he said, “Walking up the steps to spar with Sonny Liston was the scariest.”
I was fortunate to watch a preview of this upcoming film and thought, “It was great! It shows how angry of a person he was. Winning the Olympic Gold Medal, fighting Muhammad Ali, and carrying the little American Flag in Mexico City, then winning the world title and coming back after ten years and again re-winning it at the age of 45.