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The Foul Pole: Story of Andrew Golota


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Story of Andrew or Andrzej Golota is a story of both tragedy and great unfulfilled promise. It is a story of one young man who came to Chicago from the ghetto of Warsaw to realize his dream of becoming a professional boxer. Seemingly, he had everything needed to succeed and possibly even become a world champion. But the thing that stood in his way is one he never completely managed to conquer: his own mind. Instead of becoming the first Polish world heavyweight champion ever, he became just another "what if?" and, quite like Ike Ibeabuchi, a man whose mental state was worrying. This is the story of The Foul Pole, Andrew Golota.

 

Born as Andrzej Golota, on January 5 1968 in Warsaw, the young Andrzej grew up in the ghetto part of the city and was early exposed to the hardnesses of life, becoming a street fighter. Eventually, he started boxing and in 1988 captured a bronze medal at the Seoul olympics as a heavyweight. As amateur he posted 111 wins. In 1990, he got into a bar fight in Poland and badly beat up a man called Piotr Bialostocki. To avoid jail, he fled to Chicago, where he started working as a truck driver. Soon, his imposing and powerful physique as well as his boxing background came to the fore and in 1992 he turned pro. Most of his wins were by knockout and of his first 21 wins, 19 came by knockout within 3 rounds. However, in a 1995 fight against huge Samoan Samson Po'Uha, his unorthodox antics first came to light when he bit his opponent on the shoulder in round 4, after absorbing some hard punches. He managed to get back and stop Po'Uha in the next round after decking him three times. On March 15 1996, he fought on the same card as David Tua and John Ruiz, it was his first big card. His opponent was the 24-1 Danell Nicholson, trained by Emanuel Steward. Golota was the better man for most of the fight, but showed his bad temper when he intentionally butted Nicholson once in the fifth round. Nicholson then had a resurgence in the sixth round before Golota again gave him a beating which led to a corner retirement after round 8. This victory opened doors for him. However, the troubling signs of bad behavior he displayed here and in the Po'Uha fight would just turn into a big nightmare. Golota was trained by legend Lou Duva but even he could not temper the big angry Pole. He signed to fight Riddick Bowe on July 11 of the same year. Bowe's last fight was the end of the trilogy with Evander Holyfield and he won it, but he was on a slide, it turned out. Golota exposed that as he easily dominated him in the fight and jabbed at will, landing combinations in heaps as well. The crowd present at the Madison Square Garden was speechless. Here was this almost unknown guy from Eastern Europe who reminded you of a bouncer and he was destroying a legend. However, it soon became apparent that something was wrong with Golota: he was landing low blows in heaps as well. Despite numerous warnings, he just couldn't or wouldn't stop.

 

So, when a big low blow sent Bowe down to the canvas in pain in round seven, mayhem errupted as his entourage entered the ring and attacked Golota and his cornermen. Golota was hit on the head with a cellphone by the head of Bowe's thuggish entourage and responded by hitting him. However, the thugs far outnumbered him and his cornermen and they had to be escorted out of the ring. As they left, the brawl only escalated and suddenly there were two armies consisting of fight fans and Bowe's entourage and fans fighting eachother. Most of the fight fans were also Golota fans and the riot suddenly gained racial overtones. In the end, 22 people were injured and 16 arrested. Lou Duva was in a critical condition and had to be carried out on a stretcher. It was named the Event of the Year by The Ring. So, what should have been a great night for Golota, instead turned into a nightmare and a disqualification loss and forever put a stamp on him as a dirty fighter, giving him the moniker of "Foul Pole". Amazingly enough, a rematch was signed. This time, Bowe trained harder and came in at 239, opposed to the 252 he weighed in for the first fight. Despite that, Golota was the better man again and sent Bowe down in the second and the fifth, while Bowe managed to knock him down in the fourth but was still behind on all scorecards after eight rounds. However, once again, Golota had retorted to low blows and it again became Bowe's rescue, as he was again sent down by a hard blow under the belt in the ninth round and Golota once again lost by disqualification. This time the security was much better than the first time, so a riot was avoided. Golota suffered a broken jaw and had to go to hospital and so was unable to explain himself at the press conference after the fight. Lou Duva said: "I can't defend him. I wish I could. I can't explain it. I said: "Andrew, you are winning the fight. Just get out there and box." What made him do what he did, I don't know."

 

It seemed to be the end of his career and Golota was away from the ring for almost 10 months following his second straight disqualification loss. But then, a new chance came and that chance was a crack at the WBC title no less, against Lennox Lewis. Lewis had recaptured it earlier that year and was making his second defense. The fight happened on October 4, 1997 and it nearly claimed Golota's life. He suffered a panic attack in his dressing room just before the fight, perhaps because the pressure on him had been great. He was making history: the first Polish heavyweight to fight for a world title ever and one of the first Eastern Europeans to do that. Reports say that he was flooded with calls before the fight. Whatever the reason, he was injected with Lidocaine to help relieve his panic. And so, in that condition, he just couldn't do well: he was stopped by Lewis after only 93 seconds, with a barrage of blows as he was pressed against a corner, before he crumpled to the floor. It looked like he was trying to fight but just wasn't able to. About 15 minutes later, he collapsed in his dressing room and was taken by ambulance to Atlantic City Medical Center. Before that, he had to be resuscitated as he had stopped breathing. It was revealed he had suffered a seizure. Afterwards, he filed a lawsuit against his doctor for injecting him with Lidocaine, for 21 million. He got only one million as the case was settled outside of courtroom. The newspapers were raving about Lewis' "heavyweight statement" in the meanwhile, while Golota looked all but finished. It was his last fight with Lou Duva and the two ended their collaboration after that. He made a slow way back, first knocking out journeyman Eli Dixon in 6 only six months after the fight. He also stopped another journeyman, Eli Basting, by TKO 3 and then fought Corey Sanders, the 6'6 behemoth, in an entertaining fight. It was aired on HBO's Tuesday Night Fights and Golota dropped Sanders once before winning a lopsided decision.

 

On October 2 same year, he for the first time had a fight in his native Poland, against the legend "Terrible" Tim Witherspoon. It was a fairly entertaining fight but Witherspoon at 40 just couldn't keep up with Golota at 30 and missed often with his trademark right. Golota won, again with lopsided scores. After decisioning the solid Jesse Ferguson and stopping Quinn Navarre by TKO 6, he was chosen to be a stepping stone for the hyped prospect Michael Grant, who at 6'7 was the tallest opponent the 6'4 Golota had yet faced. Despite that and Grant's 30-0 record including some solid wins, Golota easily found a way through Grant's guard and sent him down twice in the opening round. He was giving Grant a beating and Grant looked bewildered. Both men also fought dirty and were each deducted a point for a low blow. And then, somewhere between the seventh and the eight round, it was as if someone had told Golota that he had to stop trying. Grant took over and then in the tenth sent him down. After rising and beating the count, Golota looked fine but when the referee asked him if he wanted to continue, he replied no to the outrage of Larry Merchant. This raised more questions about his mental state, as well as his next big fight which was against noone else but Mike Tyson, his biggest opponent so far. It was October 20 2000 and Golota was sent down in the first round, however he had his moments and managed to tie up the shorter Tyson a few times. However, following the second round, Golota once again shocked the world when he refused to come out, angering his trainer Al Certo who tried to put the mouthpiece back on him. Golota just yelled "it's over!" and left the ring, to the outrage of everyone present. He was pelted with various things on his way out and the commentator called it an act of cowardice. In the brief interview afterwards, Golota appeared confused and unable to speak properly, repeatedly stammering and just said that boxing was a very difficult sport. A few days after, a CT scan revealed that a bone in his head had been broken and that it could have pierced his brain had he continued, so justifiying his quitting. Also, the original TKO victory for Tyson was turned into a no contest as Tyson tested positive for marijuana. A fortune in misfortune this time it was, at least.

 

Due to the grave injury, Golota had to take some time off from boxing. He again returned in 2003 and stopped journeymen Brian Nix and Terrence Lewis, both by TKO. He then received his second world title shot against the IBF champion, the slick Chris Byrd, on April 17 2004. Byrd at around 6 feet was much smaller than him but also faster and more nimble, with a great defense. However, Golota surprised many when he gave Byrd a tougher and closer fight than predicted. It was also the first time he had fought in Madison Square Garden since that infamous first Bowe fight, 8 years earlier. In the end, the very close bout was justly scored a draw, each fighter getting 115-113 from a judge and the third had it even. This performance got him another crack at a world title, this time against the unpopular WBA champ John "The Quietman" Ruiz. It was November 13 and Golota opened best and sent Ruiz down twice in second round while Ruiz had his moments later on, but to most present in Madison Square Garden, Golota had done enough to win. Unfortunately, he was denied the victory by the judges, who all scored it for Ruiz 113-112 and 114-111 twice, despite the two knockdowns. Next year on May 21 he had his third world title fight in a row against the WBO champ Lamon Brewster, Chris Byrd's cousin, who was a harder-hitting and more agressive fighter than his cousin. He came out like a wind and put Golota down three times, all with left hooks, ending his last attempt at a world title in devastating fashion-after only 52 seconds. Golota would retire but made his third comeback in 2007, stopping Kevin McBride by TKO 6 and then made his last hoorah when he decisioned the tough Mike Mollo in an exciting fight in January 2008. With that he won the WBA Fedelatin title. In November same year his third comeback was disappointingly halted by Ray Austin, who knocked him down in round 1 before Golota withdrew in his corner, claiming an injury. In October 2009, he was matched against fellow Pole Tomasz Adamek, who had just entered the division from cruiserweight. Despite outweighing and outsizing Adamek significantly, he was too heavy and too slow for the younger man, who had him down twice before stopping him with a barrage in the fifth round.

 

Most thought this poor showing would be the last the world had seen of Andrew Golota, but he appeared once more in the ring to take on another countryman, Przemyslaw Saleta, on February 23 2013. Though Saleta was washed up and hadn't fought in years, he proved he was the less washed up of the two when he knocked Golota out with a series of punches in round six. Golota tried but couldn't get up in time. He was now 45 and it seems to have been his final fight. His record is 41 wins (33 by ko), 9 lossed and 1 draw. Golota's career is one of the sadder ones in boxing history as he was capable of achieving more than he did. But various problems came in his way. He has also been involved in as many controversial fights as anyone ever has. As a fighter, he was known for his jab, his power and good footwork and stamina for a big man. His life and career would make a great movie material, not? So long, Andrzej. May you be happier now than when you were fighting.

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Re: The Foul Pole: Story of Andrew Golota

 

The panic attack stuff is absolute bullshit. A Panic attack? Lennox Lewis absolutely destroyed him. Mike Tyson made him Quit. He was a good Heavyweight but a bully - when he got bullied back, he folded. Lennox and Tyson could punch - Bowe couldn't (in comparison).

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Re: The Foul Pole: Story of Andrew Golota

 

--- The Big Dummy absorbing a whole lotta of Golota to his obvious painful detriment is one of the greatest rematch series in boxing that resulted in an epic riot.

 

If Big Dummy makes the HOF, then Golota deserves a place as well to meet him yet again as a reminder of one of the most painful, lopsided encounters in boxing history.

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Re: The Foul Pole: Story of Andrew Golota

 

The panic attack stuff is absolute bullshit. A Panic attack? Lennox Lewis absolutely destroyed him. Mike Tyson made him Quit. He was a good Heavyweight but a bully - when he got bullied back, he folded. Lennox and Tyson could punch - Bowe couldn't (in comparison).

 

If you can't take THE TRUTH, Brit, don't comment. :ranger:

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Re: The Foul Pole: Story of Andrew Golota

 

The panic attack stuff is absolute bullshit. A Panic attack? Lennox Lewis absolutely destroyed him. Mike Tyson made him Quit. He was a good Heavyweight but a bully - when he got bullied back, he folded. Lennox and Tyson could punch - Bowe couldn't (in comparison).

 

Yes the big Canadian Lewis surely give him a quick going over....

 

 

Sent from my SM-G903F using Tapatalk

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  • 7 months later...

Re: The Foul Pole: Story of Andrew Golota

 

I've missed the fact that you have a piece on Golota ;-) I think it'd be interesting if I describe what people in Poland generally think of him.

 

When I was a kid, there were two big names in Polish boxing: Golota and Michalczewski. And I think the reality was like that:

 

Golota - we openly scorn him, secretly loved him

Michalczewski - we openly adore hin, secretly hated him

 

Why? Golota despite his image as a ring bully is basically a story of a former mobster turning to family man. He's been married to the same woman (successful lawyer) for 27 years with no scandals in his private life since. Michalczewski at the same time always looked like a more bright, yet more celebrity-like boxer. Three divorces, strong accusations of wife-beating and possession of cocaine are all on his record.

People outside of Poland generally don't know that there was a strong feud between them as they liked to provoke themselves anytime they were on TV.

 

I'm too young to remember "cult-like" Golota fights against Bowe, but I have some blurry memories from his bouts against Byrd, Ruiz and Brewster. I remember that most people liked his performance against Byrd and thought that he should've won against Ruiz, even though the fight was awful. The fight against Brewster is a different story, though. People went literally mad at Golota there. TV news anchors were joking about him that they don't have to show highlights, because the fight is so short that they can show it in full :haha:

 

Yet, he came back against Bates. It was one of the bigger boxing events in Poland and one of the first fights I've seen live on TV. Golota did well against weak opponent. Later, he had two decent wins against Mollo and McBride and then comes the day I remember like yesterday :haha:

2008-11-07 Friday afternoon. He fights Ray Austin in China. Finally, he wasn't fighting at night and I had a chance too see Golota live against quality opponent. I was in the 6th grade then. I came back after school, turned on the TV and waited for the fight. And it started and ... Golota ruined my day being dropped with the first shot and then quittng because of the injury after the 1st round.

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Re: The Foul Pole: Story of Andrew Golota

 

I've missed the fact that you have a piece on Golota ;-) I think it'd be interesting if I describe what people in Poland generally think of him.

 

When I was a kid, there were two big names in Polish boxing: Golota and Michalczewski. And I think the reality was like that:

 

Golota - we openly scorn him, secretly loved him

Michalczewski - we openly adore hin, secretly hated him

 

Why? Golota despite his image as a ring bully is basically a story of a former mobster turning to family man. He's been married to the same woman (successful lawyer) for 27 years with no scandals in his private life since. Michalczewski at the same time always looked like a more bright, yet more celebrity-like boxer. Three divorces, strong accusations of wife-beating and possession of cocaine are all on his record.

People outside of Poland generally don't know that there was a strong feud between them as they liked to provoke themselves anytime they were on TV.

 

I'm too young to remember "cult-like" Golota fights against Bowe, but I have some blurry memories from his bouts against Byrd, Ruiz and Brewster. I remember that most people liked his performance against Byrd and thought that he should've won against Ruiz, even though the fight was awful. The fight against Brewster is a different story, though. People went literally mad at Golota there. TV news anchors were joking about him that they don't have to show highlights, because the fight is so short that they can show it in full :haha:

 

Yet, he came back against Bates. It was one of the bigger boxing events in Poland and one of the first fights I've seen live on TV. Golota did well against weak opponent. Later, he had two decent wins against Mollo and McBride and then comes the day I remember like yesterday :haha:

2008-11-07 Friday afternoon. He fights Ray Austin in China. Finally, he wasn't fighting at night and I had a chance too see Golota live against quality opponent. I was in the 6th grade then. I came back after school, turned on the TV and waited for the fight. And it started and ... Golota ruined my day being dropped with the first shot and then quittng because of the injury after the 1st round.

 

Yeah...Dariusz is like the Polish Sugar Ray Leonard while Golota is the Polish Sonny Liston or Mike Tyson. Even in my homeland Bosnia I once found a sportsdrink Tiger, which Michalczewski endorses. Says something about his star status not just in Poland but generally in East and Central Europe.

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