Solid isn't a good enough adjective to describe that win. Phenomenal is more apt. Benitez was never more conclusively beaten. Ever. To knock the kid out is one thing, but to do that after dominating him at his own game for 14 rounds? It's my contention that had Duran done something similar it would be the stuff of legend. As it's Leonard though we say "solid win". Nah, it was great. I find the ease in which Ray completely nullifies everything Benitez does a little bit disconcerting, especially when you consider how easily Benitez would go on to outbox the great Roberto Duran up at 154lbs. I don't think you'll find a better boxing performance on Whitaker's resume against a fighter of comparable quality.
Benitez suffers (or benefits really) from the same thing Duran does; their inconsistencies make people dismiss some of their losses as them having an off night. I think many people look at the Benitez fight with Leonard and think, well I mean that's a good win but this is the same guy who fought Harold Weston to a draw and really lost to Bruce Curry rather than the one who befuddled Cervantes (in the same way that many dismiss the Benitez win over Duran; after all Kirkland Laing did pretty much the same thing). I disagree both with the sentiment above and with the idea that Benitez was never more conclusively beaten. I think Hearns did as well as Ray.
Then you aren't disagreeing with me, are you? I said that Benitez was never "more" conclusively beaten. Hearns may have outboxed him as conclusively as Leonard did - as you would expect given his physical advantages - but Hearns certainly wasn't any more dominant. So we agree LittleRed. :good
You're right. I also don't disagree with the idea that Benitez was at his best for Leonard. So maybe I do disagree with you? Now I'm confused... Anyway the answer to this question, for K at least, is clearly Jersey Joe Walcott.
No need for confusion. I was simply saying that Leonard's win over Benitez wasn't even remotely close and that Benitez won no more than 3 rounds. This runs contrary to the popular belief that Ray was actually caused trouble in that fight. Ray can laud Benitez's skills until the cows come home, the footage simply tells a different story. It was a great performance and no fighter ever dominated a prime Benitez to a greater degree.
I'm sorry Addie but it's Ray so I have to find some way to dismiss the win. Otherwise I'll lose all my ESB cred. Although it's odd that Leonard's wins are so uniquely degraded here. I don't think there's a comparable fighter on here at least; Ali gets a lot of the same stick but has way more fans. Pac and Mayweather are in the same boat but I think that will pass eventually, once we have a few years of perspective. Ray whipped four absolute top tier hall of famers, with four different styles. Not a lot of guys you can say that about. Hell Ray beat arguably the greatest lightweight of all time, arguably the greatest middleweight of all time, what many consider the greatest head to head fighter of all time at his peak weight, and the greatest prodigy the sport has ever seen. That's a lot of superlatives and Ray has another half dozen solid wins. Anyway I forgot what I was arguing about.
Duran did do something like that, and it was the stuff of legends. BTW, I'm okay with calling the win great, no issue there. I think the stoppage wasn't the right call at that time, but whatever. I think Chavez was every bit of an ATG than Benitez, and likely more so. I think Pea outboxed Chavez every bit as much as SRL outboxed Benitez, likely more so.
Hearns outboxed Benitez, Leonard and later on Virgil Hill Duran outboxed Dejesus {3rd fight} Leonard and Carlo Palomino
