Ray Leonard Doesn't Retire From 1982-87 and Fights...

Curry: I'd pick Leonard in a very even sided fight
Duran: Leonard would win, but Duran would give him problems
Hearns: 50/50 fight. Might actually might Tommy the slightest favourite.
McCallum: Close match. McCallum probably edges it
Kalambay: Ray would have been too worn down by this point. Kalambay wins
Nunn: Same as above

 

In the time frame you suggest I think Hearns is the one who might beat Ray.

I pick Ray to be just a little too good for Curry and Duran at this point.
Hearns at JMW is near on unbeatable for me.
Kalambay and Nunn were still at European and NABF level at this point. Im not sure they would cope with facing a legend and all the hoopla that goes with it. Beating a Barkley or Tate is a very different kettle of fish to facing a Leonard in a big fight.
McCallum is interesting. Im not convinced he has the footspeed to keep SRL in front of him long enough to do what he needs to win.

 

did he fear going blind when he fought Howard?

how about Hagler?

Lalonde?

Norris?

Camacho?

why would he fear going blind at one point then make several fights knowing he could go blind?

this is why I'm saying the excuse doesnt sit well. Only if Ray had never fought again, should this discussion be taken seriously

with Pryor, what else do you call if when another man issues a challenge to your face in front of people and you dont take it?

Did Leonard ever take that fight?

No, but he sure found a way to secure a quick matchup with Lalonde

 

As the only eye doctor here, I'll say that rooster has a really good point. Leonard's first retirement was self imposed after his first, and only, retina surgery as far as I know. His retina wasn't healing itself during his time off. It should've been in the exact same state as it was when he came back. I don't have any specifics for how bad the injury was to begin with.

 

Leonard Loses to Duran and Hearns, and splits with Nunn and McCallum.


Leonard wins over Kalambay and Curry is a live underdog.


I think after the first loss to any of the above, spirals him into drug addiction and it will effect his legacy greatly. Leonard had to have the time off to get right.

 

I don't know. Ask Aaron Pryor. He was legally blind and kept taking fights in Wisconsin and Oklahoma because they had no athletic commissions.

It wasn't an unreasonable fear.

 

He loses every fight

 

He had one eye that corrected to 20/70 (off wiki) and one normal eye. Legally blind means both eyes are 20/200 or worse. Huge difference and different retina injury than Leonard had.

 

i'd pick for him in the first 3 and against him in the last 3

 

If the proposed time frame is 1982-1987 then Nunn and Kalambay likely wouldn't be factors as neither of them were world champions or had much name recognition at this time. The possibility that he might have ran into them two-three years later is another story.

 

Leonard had already fought at junior middleweight.

 

The Wiki site you mentioned said he had 20/400 vision, but it was 20/70 with his corrective glasses on (after his cataracts were removed).

Unfortunately, you can't wear corrective glasses in the boxing ring with you. That's why he was barred from fighting in States that actually had an athletic commission.

It was big news at the time.

 

I know.

I said if he had to choose between Hagler and Pryor, I think he'd have chosen Pryor in 1982, because Hagler was two divisions above him and he already had a contract with Pryor.

Pryor had just signed it when Leonard was injured training for the Stafford fight.

If Duran and Hearns and Benitez, etc. were all at junior middleweight - with belts - there'd have been no rush to move up two divisions to fight Hagler in 1982.

 

I believe Elton is referring to the time Pryor turned down seven times his previous career high purse to fight for significantly less money against the Lennox Blackmoore and Dujuan Johnson's of the world (of course, not before ducking a fight with Duran for a similar amount of money.)

 

I've never heard of fighters being banned for refractive error. Several including Larry Holmes have worn contacts in the ring.