Remembering Bob Foster – his left hook was wicked

Bob Foster was born with a lethal left hook.

I was thinking about that hook several years ago when I called the former light heavyweight champion to ask if he’d appear on The Ringside Boxing Show.

After half a dozen rings, a soft female voice said, “Hello.”

I introduced myself.

“Could I speak to the former champion?”

‘Oh,” she said, her voice suddenly sounding excited, “Yes, please hold.”

Bob Foster – Brutal Knockouts

I did.

After a minute or so, a gruff voice said, “Hello.”

“Is this former light heavyweight champion, Bob Foster?” I asked.

“Yeah,” he said.

All I could say was, “Great.”

My mind flashed through some of Foster’s fights I had watched on television years ago. It was one of those surreal moments of, ‘Am I speaking with that guy.’

I was.

Foster had won the light heavyweight title in 1968 by knocking out Dick Tiger with his Sunday punch, a whipping left hook. That hook had gravitas. 41 of 47 opponents had failed to go the distance. In 1972, Foster brutally knocked WBA titleholder Vicente Rondon with a three-punch combination punctuated by that left hook. The defending champion had worked himself into a lather over the WBA and Rondon.”I didn’t really want to knock him (Rondon)out,” said Foster.”I wanted it to go 15, so I could beat him bad. I hate him and hate the WBA.”

A bad man.

Bob Foster Documentary – The Sheriff of the Light Heavyweights

But not when he threw hands against heavyweights. His first and last losses in his 64-fight career were against heavier fighters.

Joe Frazier blitzed him with what else, a left hook in Detroit.

Foster was more comfortable in the 178-pound division. He knew it, but the bigger money was too tempting. Foster earned $80,000 bucks for knocking out Mike Quarry, and $125,000 when he faced and was stopped by Muhammad Ali.

Two months after destroying Rondon, Foster fought Quarry in Lake Tahoe in 1972. Quarry, the little brother of heavyweight contender Jerry Quarry, had won 35 fights in succession. He had recently captured the NABF light heavyweight title. Unlike his more powerful brother, Quarry was a boxer first, but he was tough and determined. He planned to box Foster and stay away from his vaunted left hook. He’d utilize his strengths, but Foster was the best opponent he’d ever faced.

Hall of Fame quality.

Quarry moved around the ring. He jabbed, landing a few jabs. He did well in round three, clipping Foster with some solid shots. The champion just looked at him. Quarry’s undoing was his lack of concussive power. He couldn’t hurt Foster, but the champ could hurt him.

That happened in round four. Foster’s long jab was stinging Quarry. The younger fighter looked a little gassed. Foster was stalking. Barely a minute into the heat, Quarry stopped moving and mixed it up. Foster landed a sharp right. The round was close to over when Foster unleashed his left from hell. The blow landed, leaving Quarry on his back. A count wasn’t needed.

“I thought I might have killed him,” Foster told me.

I nodded into the phone. Many in the crowd and watching on television thought the same thing.

Foster dominated the light heavyweight division for six years. He made 14 successful defenses against 13 different opponents.

Bob Foster retired in 1978 and was inducted into the International Hall of Fame in 1990.

Sadly, he never appeared in The Ringside Show. I called a week or so later and was told Foster was in the hospital. He died the following day.

Bob Foster – Highlights & Knockouts

His lethal left hook lives on in memory.