Duran of Montreal vs Leonard of the rematch

Indeed.

Leonard is somehow responsible for Duran being an undisciplined slob in-between fights, and Hagler had bullet holes in him by 1987. Inexplicable.

 

Modern nutrition

 

quite strange if you think about it. you'd almost think some of the people on this forum were the fighters' lawyers or even family... how people get so attached to their opinions is beyond me. well ok, it's not, but i felt like a grandiose expression!

 

Indeed. I'm often accused of being a MAB "fanboy", but I've never made outrageous claims like he was a shot item by 2003 or that he was robbed in the Jones rematch. Some posters here are guilty of allowing their love of certain fighters cloud their perception of reality. Makes for great comedy though.

 

comedy it most certainly is. i guess i've just never been one for having 'heroes'. but it is sweet that people take it all to heart. for me, boxing is just a sport. a fascinating one, and even an important one historically... but still just a sport. fans of football, tennis etc. all do it though.

 

Yeah. I even think you overcompensate by not agreeing that MAB was robbed in his first fight against Morales. No way Morales won that one.

 

I thought at the time that Duran should opt to unify the title against Hearns after Montreal. The common perception after Hearns-Cuevas was that Tommy might kill him. (Immediately after Montreal, pundits were writing that Cuevas would knock him out if he tried fighting Pipino the same way. Then, Hearns took Jose out.) Duran would have never let himself go the way he did if he thought his life was on the line for his next bout. Hearns was still quite young, and he buckled noticeably when Ray pummeled his midsection. I believe Duran had the defensive elusiveness to slip his way inside, hammer the body, and gas Tommy late.

Prime for prime, Duran always beats Ray in a first time match. SRL would discover that he could be hurt while not being able to inflict hurt himself, as actually happened in Montreal, then not be able to rally as needed to win. Ray telegraphed his shots, but it took a defensively skilled operator like Benitez, Shields or Duran himself to exploit this. Even Benitez did not make Ray miss as much or as badly as El Cholo repeatedly did in Canada.

Yes, I take the 134 pound LW Duran of DeJesus III over the 146 pound SRL of New Orleans and Hearns I. Like Armstrong did early in his WW reign, I think he could have spotted a dozen pounds (although he obviously wouldn't) and still get the job done. Janks Morton has openly stated that he didn't think Ray could beat the Duran of Montreal before New Orleans. In Montreal, Duran may already have been past peak. (Ross was already retired by the age Roberto was at in Canada.)


Regarding their respective performances against Hagler, I consider Duran's to be far more impressive. Marv was near peak, and was far better in addressing his challenger there. If that one had been scheduled for 12, then Roberto would have beaten Ray to the mark by four years. (To those who suggest that Hagler would have stepped up his pace in a 12 rounder, the fact is that he failed to do so against Ray, or Mugabe, or Roldan. Aside from Hearns, he maintained the same pace.)

 

This.

:deal

 

Sometimes i think Duran became the best defensive fighter of all-time by the late 70s.

 

Can you remember how you scored it, B?

 

I've never noticed you to over-sell Barrera. He's certainly not appreciated as much as he should be.

The only nuts i hug belong to Joe Frazier. As long as you acknowledge that Foreman would always have his number, you cant really go wrong with the hugging. He defines what boxing should be all about.

 

And then you read about a 5 fight Peruvian bantamweight from the 60's and change your mind again.

 

'60s

 

I think I once suggested to Greg that MAB was greater than Buchanan.

 

Nah.

Duran and Leonard fought like Duran and Leonard in Montreal. That was peak-for-peak.

Leonard was concerned mainly with dancing and taunting in the rematch, he didn't pull off much clean, effective, offensive work at all.

And Duran didn't start out with the same snap and snarl intensity at all.

If the Duran of Montreal had fought a Leonard using the tactics that Leonard used in the rematch, Duran would've closed the distance on him and made that type of dancing and taunting impossible.

The fight went the way it did in the first fight because Duran's rampant, rampaging approach meant SRL had to fight like a demon with his back on the ropes just to survive. The choice of where and how to fight was never Leonard's to make in Montreal.

:deal