On October 4, 1997, he became the first Pole to challenge for a heavyweight boxing crown when he fought WBC champion Lennox Lewis at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City.

Bowe had not fought in nearly a year since his third and final fight with Evander Holyfield, which he won by technical knockout in the eighth round, and had said regarding his opponent, "how do you train for a bum?

The fight was held at Madison Square Garden on 11 July 1996, and was televised by HBO as part of its World Championship Boxing series.

After being repeatedly warned, referee Wayne Kelly began deducting points from Golota and had done so twice prior to the seventh round.

Early in that round, Kelly took a third point from Golota for punching Bowe in the testes, and warned him that if he did it again, he was going to lose the fight.

Golota continued to fight and with less than a minute left in the round landed several hard shots that appeared to have Bowe staggered.

What ensued was a dramatic riot that left a large number of civilians and policemen injured, including Gołota himself, who was hit by a member of Bowe's entourage with a two-way radio and required eleven stitches to close a cut on his head.

The controversy of Golota vs. Bowe I created interest in a rematch, which was held in Atlantic City, New Jersey on December 14, 1996.

On 4 October 1997, he received a shot at the world's Heavyweight championship against Lennox Lewis in Atlantic City, New Jersey.

Gołota subsequently claimed that an injection of lidocaine for tendonitis in his right knee given to him by his physician shortly before the fight made him woozy and impaired his vision.

Gołota then received a second world title shot, fighting IBF heavyweight champion Chris Byrd at New York City's Madison Square Garden on 17 April 2004.

Though heavily favored to win, Gołota lost when Brewster knocked him down three times inside the first round, prompting the referee to stop the bout.

Gołota fought Kevin McBride on October 6, 2007 in Madison Square Garden and won by TKO in the 6th round, winning the inaugural IBF North American Heavyweight championship.

[10] On 19 January 2008, Gołota defeated Mike Mollo by unanimous decision in 12 rounds to win the World Boxing Association Fedelatin heavyweight championship belt.

[citation needed] He has also participated in Polish version of The Mole (Agent - Gwiazdy), he has been eliminated and finished in eighth place.