Foreman Takes On ‘Serious’ Opponent Former Gold Gloves Shannon Briggs Thinks He Has It Together
With new medication to treat his asthma and a dairy-free diet, Shannon Briggs is feeling like a new man, and he can’t wait to get in the ring with George Foreman on Saturday night to prove it.
“This is the edge for me, and it’s time for me to fly,” Briggs said Monday afternoon from his training camp in Miami.
If Briggs (29-1) can get past Foreman (76-4) in their heavyweight bout at the Atlantic City Convention Center, to be broadcast by HBO, then his career will indeed take flight.
Briggs is coming off an emotionally draining period. Last year, one of his close friends was shot and killed, his mother died of a heart attack on his birthday (Dec. 4), and he lost the first boxing match of his professional career, being knocked out in the third round by Darroll Wilson. All this left Briggs spinning, and he was not in top physical condition either. Briggs believes his asthma contributed greatly to his loss to Wilson.
Right after that bout, Teddy Atlas, Briggs’ longtime trainer, questioned Briggs’ ability and his claim of having asthma. They parted ways, and Briggs is now working with Carlos Albuerne.
Briggs is still stung by Atlas’ criticism.
“That was the hard part of the breakup, him saying that he didn’t believe I had asthma,” Briggs said. “He knows that I’ve had asthma all my life. He went with me to the doctors when they were treating me. He’s seen the records to prove it. What he said is more than far from the truth.”
Since leaving Atlas, Briggs has had three fights and has won them all, albeit against opponents who weren’t the caliber of Foreman. He believes he is back to the boxing style that made him a Golden Gloves champion in 1992.
Marc Roberts, Briggs’ manager, said he took Briggs to Cranford, N.J., to see Dr. Clement Maccia, who oversaw tests revealing that Briggs had only 45 percent lung capacity. Recently, Briggs said he discovered that dairy products were not good for him, so he has cut them from his diet.
Briggs, 25, has been carefully groomed throughout his career, but now it is time for him to move up. A victory over Foreman, who won a 12-round split decision against Lou Savarese at Bally’s in Atlantic City in April, would represent a big step up.
At 48, Foreman is almost twice Briggs’ age. That difference represents a vast amount of ring experience. Foreman had 32 fights before Briggs was even born.
But he shows no signs of slowing down, because he has carefully chosen his recent opponents. A few weeks ago, while promoting his fight with Briggs, Foreman described his perfect opponent. “I want to catch guys who are not motivated, guys who don’t want to fight,” he said.
Briggs said he is not that guy. He is also not going into the ring with the notion that most of Foreman’s recent opponents have held.
“I don’t feel like I have to knock George out, so I’m not even going to put that kind of pressure on myself,” Briggs said. “I’m confident that I can go in and fight for 12 rounds and win a decision.”