What If...Andrew Golota???

Andrew Golota at one point seemed to have it all to become a Heavyweight Champion. He had the body at 6'4 240 pounds with a 79'' reach. Golota had the skills; strong jab, good power, ability to block punches and take punches. He also had a strong fan base especially among his natives, the Polish, as well as many Americans. What Andrew Golota seemed to be missing was the mental aspect of boxing. As many of you know Andrew Golota has always got to the gates of the promised land (the big fights or heavyweight championships) and just dropped the key. Either by not bringing the total package or as we recall from his two fights with Riddick Bowe he just melted down. As long as Golota's name is ever mentioned in boxing, his two fights with Bowe where he was clearly winning the fight and decided to throw low blows, will always be what comes to mind first. Those two fights will come to mind even before his fight with Mike Tyson where he quit. Even after some time away from boxing when Golota returned and signed with Don King, he went on to have 3 title shots in a row. In the first two fights many argued Andrew deserved the decision, against Chris Byrd and John Ruiz. However in his fight with Lamon Brewster, he just never showed up except for physically, being KOd in just 53 seconds. Andrew still fights today and still has a huge following. As crazy as the heavyweight division is he could still get a title, but at 40 his time is running out. So with all that said lets contemplate, what if.

What if Andrew Golota had better discipline? What if Andrew Golota never had those demons in his head that caused him to throw low blows against Riddick Bowe? What if Andrew Golota was in better shape for his fight against Lennox Lewis? What if Andrew Golota never quit against Michael Grant? What if Andrew Golota never quit against Mike Tyson? What if Andrew Golota had been just a little more aggressive against Chris Byrd? What if Andrew Golota had broke some of the clinches in his fight against John Ruiz? What if Andrew Golota would have shown up more than just physically against Lamon Brewster? What if Andrew Golota had a friend to confide in so he could talk his issues out? What if Andrew Golota had someone to figure out what caused him to throw low blows? What if Andrew Golota had someone to really figure out what was going on in his brain? What if Andrew Golota would have won just one of his four title challenges? What if Andrew Golota would have kept his punches up against Bowe and either won the fight by decision or by KO? What if Andrew Golota would have never lost focus? What if...???

Below is a good video I found that shows some of Andrew Golota's best moments as a fighter and some of his worst. When I think of Golota I think of the good and the bad. I watched him in fights and really was impressed but when I turned my head he would disappoint me. I don't know what to think of Andrew Golota which is why I sometimes sit back and ponder what if.