Duran/Hearns the myth

Under the different circumstances you described it wouldn’t be out of the question that we might have witnessed a different outcome...... However..... There’s no denying Duran got killed in actuality...

 

It's hard to get that kind of image out of people's heads. In reality it likely wouldn't have gone like that again under different circumstances. To assume it would is a disservice to Duran. Still, it's hard not to see Tommy as a bad style matchup for him as the naturally bigger man.

 

The impression I get from this post is that the real fight was a fluke...but in reality Duran walks through Tommy at 147.

If that is your position, I will discuss from there. (Please correct me if I am wrong)

I believe that Leonard hit harder than Duran at 147 and was faster, near equal in defense and infighting. Against Tommy, Leonard was taking a beating and if not for Tommys chin letting him down, it may have been a pretty dominating fight. I want to reiterate, Leonard was taking a real sustained and systematic beating...Hearns is the real deal.

I say that only because I cannot see Roberto just walking in and roughing up Tommy and putting him out. Tommy is not Palomino and honestly, if you put Hearns in against that Palomino, I think Hearns finishes him in about 3 or 4 rounds. Carlos was too easy to hit that night and Tommy was too fast to miss anything.

At 147...coming directly at Tommy and trying to make a war is a bad idea. Heck, at 160, Tommy had Hagler bleeding like a horror movie and although he was stopped in 3...it is only because Hagler was Hagler. Anyone else would have gone down at least once and probably stopped on cuts or outright KO.

Again...Leonard 147, Duran 154, and Hagler 160 all know that Hearns was the truth and they had to be at their absolute historical best...because as Duran found out...anything less is getting you killed

 

I don't see how Duran deals with Hearns reach and speed ever. They had a plan. Hearns was going to have Duran fight the arms and take it to Duran. Upper body movement is ok if you can avoid the jab. How was Roberto going to deal with that and the speed.. And Tommy plan was you get hit with the jab, you will get hit with the right hand.

 

The worst thing they did was give Duran an advance on his purse for this fight.

He just drank and partied with it.

Unlikely makes that much of a difference anyway.

 

Prime 147 lb Duran v. 147 Hearns would be much more competitive than their actual fight. Duran did about as well as Cuevas in their actual fight. I think hie would have been much sharper and at least greatly tested Hearns at 147. If he could get into the late rounds he could possibly outlast Tommy for a late tko.

 

Good post though I don't think Leonard was hitting harder than Duran at Welterweight. Or as hard. Leonard had those other attributes as they climbed in weight. Especially the height and range to fight on the outside.
But if a guy stood with Duran he could still crack. I think their head to head fight especially Montreal showed that Duran was hitting harder.

 

So the mythical Duran supposedly beats Hearns? Guess what real Duran gets knocked out 10 times out of 10.

 

Duran was quicker than Hearns at 147 and much harder to hit than the Roberto who showed up at the age of 33. Duran ko's Tommy at welterweight

 

Nah. Quicker defensive reflexes and better anticipation, yeah, but nothing else, really.

 

...so you've separated defensive quickness from other quickness? that makes no sense.

 

Pretty much no-one was faster than Hearns at 147. His speed was much of what Duran couldn't handle, particularly when blended in with those brilliant feints which seldom get acknowledged. On top of that he dwarfed Duran for height and reach. Leonard was troubled by his speed as well. It's a hill far too steep.