George Foreman was 38 years old when he made his comeback to boxing in 1987 after a 10-year retirement. His return surprised the boxing world as he initially looked out of shape, weighing 267 pounds for his first fight back

. Foreman stated that one of his motivations for returning was to raise money for a youth center he had created, and to prove that age 40 was not a "death sentence"

. He went on to have a successful second career, eventually becoming the oldest heavyweight champion in history at age 45 in 1994, when he knocked out Michael Moorer to reclaim the heavyweight title

. Foreman finally retired for good in 1997 at the age of 48