George Foreman (American Professional Boxer) Biography

George Foreman is a former professional boxer. After starting off as a mugger who engaged in street fights, he went on to become a world renowned boxer. He is known for his epic fights with ace boxers like Muhammad Ali, Joe Frazier, Ken Norton, etc. He has a very interesting life story that involves epic victories, devastating defeats, retirements, and larger than life comebacks. He did not have a consistent boxing career; after each defeat he would isolate himself from the world of boxing. After his well-known defeat at the hands of Muhammad Ali, Foreman became a born-again Christian and devoted his life to god, charity, and his family. But just when the world had written him off, he made a massive comeback at the age of 38, proving to the world that age is just a number. His boxing career earned him a lot of respect and money and he became a successful entrepreneur. In 2002, he was rated as one of the 25 greatest fighters of the past 80 years by ‘The Ring’ magazine. The magazine also ranked him the ninth greatest puncher of the century. He is also the author of multiple cookbooks and children’s books.

George Foreman Biography

Name:	George Foreman
Real Name:	George Edward Foreman
Profession:	Former Boxer
Birth Place:	Marshall, Texas, United States
Date Of Birth:	1949-01-10
Height:	Former Boxer
Weight:	118 kg or 260 lbs
Eye Color:	Dark Brown
Hair Color:	Dark Brown
Education:	Wheatley High School
Religion:	Christian
Nationality:	American
Gender:	male
Zodiac Sign:	Capricorn
Sexual Orientation:	Straight
Parents Name:	Leroy Moorehead, Nancy Foreman
Divorce:	Adrienne Calhoun (m. 1971, div. 1974), Cynthia Lewis (m. 1977, div. 1979), Sharon Goodson (m. 1981, div. 1982)
School:	Wheatley High School
Net Worth:	$320 Million
Salary:	$18 Million +
Monthly Income:	$2 Million +
Annual Inccome:	$20 Million +

Early Life

From one generation to the next, George Foreman’s legacy varies. Some may recall the 24-year-old Texan who knocked out Smokin’ Joe Frazier with a technical TKO in 1973. The same boxer who suffered his first loss to Muhammad Ali in 1974’s Rumble in the Jungle.

The Rumble was a pivotal conflict in Zaire that the Academy Award–winning film When We Were Kings centered on. George Foreman may be better known to younger audiences as the affable spokesperson for Meineke mufflers and the George Foreman Lean Mean Fat-Reducing Grilling Machine on television.

George Foreman came into this universe on January 10, 1949. Born in the Texas city of Marshall. He grew up in Houston with his six siblings. Leroy Moorehead is his biological father, but J.D. Foreman raised him.

George describes himself as a “troubled adolescent” in his autobiography. At age fifteen, he left school to become a thief. After a year, he realized he needed to make changes and convinced his mother to enroll him in Job Corps. He joined Job Corps to earn his GED and gain experience as a carpenter and bricklayer. He began boxing training following his relocation to Pleasanton, California.

George Foreman Net Worth

George Foreman, a legendary boxer and entrepreneur, earned a lot of money from his fighting career and business ventures, resulting in a net worth of $300 million in 2024.

Age	68
Net worth	$300 million
Resisdence	Marshall, Texus, USA
Marital Status	Married
Spouse	Mary Joan Matelly
Source of Wealth	Winnings, Endorsements, Business Ventures
Sponsors	Nike, Mcdonalds, Doritos

Also Read: Michael Phelps (American Swimmer) Biography

George Foreman Awards

He is a two-time world heavyweight champion and an Olympic gold medalist.

Career

In 1968, Foreman went on to win a gold medal in the ‘Summer Olympics’ in Mexico City, Mexico. It was during this time that there were riots in the US over civil rights. The African-American community was still under confusion whether or not to support the US policy. Many African-American athletes were publicly showing their contempt against the US policy. However, it did not deter Foreman from winning the medal for his country.
In 1969, Foreman decided to take up boxing professionally and went through serious and rigorous training sessions. The same year, he took part in his first pro boxing match against Don Walheim in New York City. He won the match in a three-round knockout.1969 and 1970 were glorious years in the career of Foreman as he fought in 13 matches in 1969 and won all of them.
In 1970, he continued winning boxing matches by knocking out 11 men in total. Despite all his wins, people criticized Foreman and said that he only won these matches because he fought against the has-beens.
In 1973, he silenced his critics by fighting the ace champion Joe Frazier. In this epic match, Foreman sent Frazier to the mat twice by the end of the first round. By the end of the second round, Frazier was beaten.
In 1974, Foreman participated in a match against the infamous heavyweight boxer Ken Norton. Ken Norton was notorious for his awkward boxing techniques and for breaking Muhammad Ali’s jaw. By the second round, Foreman had beaten Norton so badly that he wobbled in the ring and the referee had to intervene to stop the fight. This gave Foreman a 40-0 record with 37 knockouts.
In the summer of 1974, Foreman suffered his first defeat. He fought against Muhammad Ali in a match that took place in Congo. It was a tough match where both the boxers fought very hard. By the eighth round, Foreman was tired and with Ali’s final blow to his head and jaw it was declared that Foreman had lost the match.
Foreman made a comeback in 1976 in Las Vegas. He fought against Ron Lyle and after the fifth round Foreman sent Lyle to the ground and won the match. This win helped him gain confidence which he had lost after the match against Muhammad Ali.
In 1977, Foreman won a match against Pedro Agosto in Florida, but lost a match against Jimmy Young in Puerto Rico. Foreman was tired by the second half of the fight and endured a flash knockdown at the hands of Young.
It was in the dressing room after the fight with Jimmy Young that Foreman became ill and claimed to have suffered a near death experience. Later on, he said that it was in that moment of despair and suffering that he decided to change the ways of his life and dedicate his life to Christianity. He became a born-again Christian and stopped fighting.
In the following years, he became an ordained minister in Houston, Texas, and devoted his life to god and his family. He also opened a youth center and shared his spiritual experience on television. He also started appearing on chat shows like ‘The 700 Club.’
After 10 years of keeping himself away from the boxing ring, Foreman decided to make a comeback at the age of 38, surprising everyone. Despite being out of shape, he knocked out Steve Zouski in the fourth round of the match in Sacramento, California.
In 1988, he won nine fights, notably knocking out the Cruiserweight Champion Dwight Muhammad Qawi in one of the fights.
By 1989, Foreman had started using his popularity to sell diverse products by appearing on TV commercials. Thanks to his frequent TV appearances, he went on to become a household name in the US. In these commercials, he was portrayed as a smiling and gentle person as opposed to the image he had as a boxer.
In 1991, Foreman fought the Heavyweight Champion Evander Holyfield for the world title in a pay-per-view boxing event. Although, Foreman lasted the full 12 rounds, Holyfield proved to be too strong for him and Foreman lost the match.
In 1993, Foreman lost a match against Tommy Morrison. Morrison was more agile and younger than Foreman and he tired him out by the 12th round. Foreman was denied an opportunity to fight in another championship match after his loss to Morrison, but he took the case to the court pleading age discrimination and eventually won the case.
In 1994, he fought against Michael Moorer in a title match in Las Vegas, Nevada. For the first nine rounds Moorer boxed well, but in the 10th round Foreman punched Moorer in the chin and the latter landed flat on his back. This win earned Foreman the championship that he had lost to Muhammad Ali 20 years ago—the World Boxing Association and International Boxing Federation Heavyweight title.
In 1997, Foreman took part in a match against Shannon Briggs. The winner was to face WBC champion Lennox Lewis. By the 12th round, Briggs was declared the winner and Foreman retired for good at the age of 48.

Major Fights

In 1974, Foreman’s match, famously promoted as ‘The Rumble in the Jungle,’ against Muhammad Ali was a historical match and an important one in the life of Foreman. At the end of the match, Foreman faced defeat for the first time in his boxing career.
In 1987, Foreman made his comeback after 20 years of retirement from boxing. He won at the age of 38 in a match against Steve Zouski by knocking him out in the fourth round. He won the match despite being out of shape. He stated that he wanted to show everyone that age doesn’t define one’s success or failure.
In 1994, he became the world champion by defeating Michael Moorer in Las Vegas. He won the World Boxing Association and International Boxing Federation, the title he had lost to Muhammad Ali in the epic ‘Rumble in the Jungle’ 20 years back.

George Foreman Record

Title Wins	5
Title Defenses	3
Title-Fight KOs	4
KO Wins	68
KO Losses	1

What is George Foreman’s boxing record?

In a professional boxing career spanning 28 years and four months, George Foreman fought 81 times with 76 wins and 5 losses.

Foreman retired from professional boxing with a record of 76-5, which included five heavyweight world-title wins and three successful title defense fights. He had a 84% knockouts-to-fights ratio with 68 of his total 81 fights being knockout wins, four of which were in title fights. The only knockout loss in Foreman’s career was a 8th round KO loss to Muhammad Ali in a heavyweight title fight.

His last fight was a 12-round majority decision defeat to Shannon Briggs on November 22, 1997.

Some of Foreman’s best fights and notable victories include wins over three Hall-of-Famers (Dwight Muhammad Qawi, Joe Frazier, and Ken Norton), Michael Moorer, Lou Savarese, George Chuvalo, Axel Schulz, and Ron Lyle.

#	Date	Age	Opponent	Res	Via
81	Nov 22, 1997	48	Shannon Briggs	Loss	MD
80	Apr 26, 1997	48	Lou Savarese	Win	SD
79	Nov 3, 1996	47	Crawford Grimsley	Win	UD
78	Apr 22, 1995	46	Axel Schulz	Win ^*	MD
77	Nov 5, 1994	45	Michael Moorer	Win ^*	KO10
76	Jun 7, 1993	44	Tommy Morrison	Loss ^*	UD
75	Jan 16, 1993	44	Pierre Coetzer	Win	TKO8
74	Apr 11, 1992	43	Alex Stewart	Win	MD
73	Dec 7, 1991	42	Jimmy K. Ellis	Win	TKO3
72	Apr 19, 1991	42	Evander Holyfield	Loss ^*	UD
71	Sep 25, 1990	41	Terry Anderson	Win	KO1
70	Jul 31, 1990	41	Ken Lakusta	Win	KO3
69	Jun 16, 1990	41	Adilson Rodrigues	Win	KO2
68	Apr 17, 1990	41	Mike Jameson	Win	TKO4
67	Jan 15, 1990	41	Gerry Cooney	Win	KO2
66	Jul 20, 1989	40	Everett Martin	Win	UD
65	Jun 1, 1989	40	Bert Cooper	Win	RTD2
64	Apr 30, 1989	40	J. B. Williamson	Win	TKO5
63	Feb 16, 1989	40	Manoel De Almeida	Win	TKO3
62	Jan 26, 1989	40	Mark Young	Win	TKO7
61	Dec 28, 1988	39	David Jaco	Win	TKO1
60	Oct 27, 1988	39	Tony Fulilangi	Win	TKO2
59	Sep 10, 1988	39	Bobby Hitz	Win	TKO1
58	Aug 25, 1988	39	Ladislao Mijangos	Win	TKO2
57	Jun 26, 1988	39	Carlos Hernández	Win	TKO4
56	May 21, 1988	39	Frank Lux	Win	TKO3
55	Mar 19, 1988	39	Dwight Muhammad Qawi	Win	TKO7
54	Feb 5, 1988	39	Guido Trane	Win	TKO5
53	Jan 23, 1988	39	Tom Trimm	Win	KO1
52	Dec 18, 1987	38	Rocky Sekorski	Win	TKO3
51	Nov 21, 1987	38	Tim Anderson	Win	TKO4
50	Sep 15, 1987	38	Bobby Crabtree	Win	TKO6
49	Jul 9, 1987	38	Charles Hostetter	Win	KO3
48	Mar 9, 1987	38	Steve Zouski	Win	TKO4
47	Mar 17, 1977	28	Jimmy Young	Loss	UD
46	Jan 22, 1977	28	Pedro Agosto	Win	TKO4
45	Oct 15, 1976	27	John Denis	Win	TKO4
44	Aug 14, 1976	27	Scott LeDoux	Win	TKO3
43	Jun 15, 1976	27	Joe Frazier	Win	TKO5
42	Jan 24, 1976	27	Ron Lyle	Win	KO5
41	Oct 30, 1974	25	Muhammad Ali	Loss ^*	KO8
40	Mar 26, 1974	25	Ken Norton	Win ^*	TKO2
39	Sep 1, 1973	24	José Roman	Win ^*	KO1
38	Jan 22, 1973	24	Joe Frazier	Win ^*	TKO2
37	Oct 10, 1972	23	Terry Sorrell	Win	KO2
36	May 11, 1972	23	Miguel Angel Paez	Win	KO2
35	Apr 10, 1972	23	Ted Gullick	Win	KO2
34	Mar 7, 1972	23	Clarence Boone	Win	KO2
33	Feb 29, 1972	23	Joe Murphy Goodwin	Win	KO2
32	Oct 29, 1971	22	Luis Faustino Pires	Win	RTD4
31	Oct 7, 1971	22	Ollie Wilson	Win	KO2
30	Sep 21, 1971	22	Leroy Caldwell	Win	KO2
29	Sep 14, 1971	22	Vic Scott	Win	KO1
28	May 10, 1971	22	Gregorio Peralta	Win	TKO10
27	Apr 3, 1971	22	Stamford Harris	Win	KO2
26	Feb 8, 1971	22	Charlie Boston	Win	KO1
25	Dec 18, 1970	21	Mel Turnbow	Win	TKO1
24	Nov 18, 1970	21	Boone Kirkman	Win	TKO2
23	Nov 3, 1970	21	Lou Bailey	Win	TKO3
22	Aug 4, 1970	21	George Chuvalo	Win	TKO3
21	Jul 20, 1970	21	Roger Russell	Win	KO1
20	May 16, 1970	21	George Johnson	Win	TKO7
19	Apr 29, 1970	21	Aaron Eastling	Win	TKO4
18	Apr 17, 1970	21	James J. Woody	Win	TKO3
17	Mar 31, 1970	21	Rufus Brassell	Win	TKO1
16	Feb 16, 1970	21	Gregorio Peralta	Win	UD
15	Jan 26, 1970	21	Jack O’Halloran	Win	KO5
14	Jan 6, 1970	20	Charley Polite	Win	KO4
13	Dec 18, 1969	20	Gary Hobo Wiler	Win	TKO1
12	Dec 16, 1969	20	Levi Forte	Win	UD
11	Dec 6, 1969	20	Bob Hazelton	Win	TKO1
10	Nov 18, 1969	20	Max Martinez	Win	KO2
9	Nov 5, 1969	20	Leo Peterson	Win	KO4
8	Oct 31, 1969	20	Roberto Davila	Win	UD
7	Oct 7, 1969	20	Vernon Clay	Win	TKO2
6	Sep 23, 1969	20	Roy Wallace	Win	KO2
5	Sep 18, 1969	20	Johnny Carroll	Win	KO1
4	Aug 18, 1969	20	Chuck Wepner	Win	TKO3
3	Jul 14, 1969	20	Sylvester Dullaire	Win	TKO1
2	Jul 1, 1969	20	Fred Askew	Win	KO1
1	Jun 23, 1969	20	Don Waldhelm	Win	KO3

Personal Life & Legacy

From 1971 to 1985, Foreman got divorced four times. It is said that one of his wives fled to Barbados with their kids but he found them and brought them back.
He has 12 children and two adopted daughters. He adopted Isabella Brandie Lilja and Courtney Isaac in 2009 and 2012, respectively. He lives with his wife Mary Joan Martelly.

Olympics

By training with Doc Broaddus, George Foreman quickly learned all of the ins and outs of boxing. In 1968, George Foreman won a gold medal for heavyweight boxing in Mexico City. Shortly after this inspiring victory, he decided to become a professional boxer.

Early Boxing Career

George Foreman had his first professional fight in 1969 when he was 21 years old. He worked hard in his career, winning 37 matches, before becoming the heavyweight boxing champion, not once, but twice. However, he didn’t win every game he got into. He also became the heavyweight division world champion in 1973.

In 1974, he was defeated by the famous Muhammad Ali. His loss against Ali was the only time he would lose a fight by knockout in his entire boxing career. In 1977, he lost to Jimmy Young, which derailed his boxing career.

Ministry Career

In 1977, George Foreman lost a fight to Jimmy Young. After the fight, George Foreman was feeling anything but well. He claims to have had a religious reawakening. Later, he became a non-denominational Christian minister. He left the position when he resumed his boxing career and came back to the church again once his boxing career was officially over.

Late Boxing Career

In 1987, ten years after losing to Jimmy Young, George Foreman re-entered the boxing scene. He was now 38 years old and he had gained at least 50 pounds since his last fight. He had to work hard to gain back the strength in his muscles, confidence, and fans that he once had. He worked hard and was allowed to face the heavyweight champion, Evander Holyfield.

George did not win, but fans and critics alike praised him for taking on the much younger challenger. He had another title fight in 1994 when he was 45 with Michael Moorer. He won this fight, becoming the oldest heavyweight champion ever.

In 1997, he lost a fight to Shannon Briggs. This would prove to be his last fight. During his boxing career, he won 76 matches, 68 of them by knocking out his opponent. In his whole career, he only lost five matches.

Family Life

George Foreman has been married five times. His past wives are Adrienne Calhoun (1971-1974), Cynthia Lewis (1977-1979), Charon Goodson (1981-1982), and Andrea Skeete (1982-1985). He was married most recently to Mary Joan Martelly in 1985. With his various wives, he has had 12 children. He has five sons, all named George and seven daughters named Freeda, Georgetta, Natalia, Leola, Michi, Courtney, and Isabella,

Advertisement and Branding

In 1994, George Foreman became the spokesperson for a grill named after him. With his endorsement, the restaurant sold like crazy and still sells well today. It is estimated that George Foreman has made millions on the grill.

George Foreman also had a clothing line, books, and a reality TV show, which he starred in with his most recent wife and ten of his twelve children.

Who are George Foreman’s ex-wives?

Over the years, Foreman has said “I Do” to five women.

His ex-wives include:

Adrienne Calhoun

Foreman’s first marriage was to Adrienne Calhoun, the mother of his eldest daughter, Michi Foreman.
The pair tied the knot in 1971 but divorced shortly after in 1974 because he allegedly had an affair with Pamela Clay, the mother of his eldest son, George Foreman Jr., according to Distractify.
At this time, details on Calhoun’s personal life are unclear because she often stays out of the spotlight.

Cynthia Lewis

After Foreman’s divorce from Calhoun was finalized, he went on to welcome another daughter, Georgetta, in 1977 with his ex-girlfriend, Charlotte Gross. That same year, he tied the knot with his second wife, Cynthia Lewis, who is a former beauty queen. Foreman’s marriage to Lewis was also shortlived as the pair divorced two years later in August 1979. They never had any children together.

Sharon Goodson

Two years after his second divorce, Foreman married his third wife, Sharon Goodson.

Not much is known about Goodson’s personal life because she often stays out of the spotlight, but her marriage to the boxer only lasted one year. Foreman and Goodson never had any children together either.

Andrea Skeete

The same year that Foreman divorced Goodson, he tied the knot with his fourth wife, Andrea Skeete.

Not much is known about Skeete’s personal life, but before divorcing in 1985, she welcomed two children with the heavyweight champ, Freeda Foreman and George Foreman III.