Duran comes steaming into the semi- having destroyed Carlos Ortiz in a merciless on-sided thrashing; Benny Leonard was less dominant over Ike Williams but not by much. A legitimate clash of the titans. At the beginning of his journey Roberto Duran, seeded 3, coasted like any other prospect, out of the featherweight division and into the lightweight, feasting on journeymen and busted former contenders, smuggled into a title shot on the back of brilliant performances against over-matched foes. Against champion Ken Buchanan he sustained his wonderful level of performance with a borderline great, a fighter he would express admiration for throughout his life; the title changed hands controversially, on an apparent low blow registered as a knockout. Despite the niceties, and to Buchanan’s great frustration, few doubted that the title was in the hands of the best. The Animal Duran was born. His title reign, however, is possibly a tiny bit overrated in the great scheme of things. There have been better, perhaps, at the poundage. Duran liked unranked opposition and there were championship opponents that did not belong in the same ring as him, but he also did away with the top men in that time, allowing no fighter to gain a foothold in the division. Esteban De Jesus defeated him in a non-title fight, as discussed in Part 3, but Duran put him down in the 1974 re-match. Ray Lampkin emerged as the next best lightweight upon De Jesus’ first undoing and Duran horrified with the torrent of abuse he heaped upon the pretender. Lampkin did well in the early going of that fight, boxing an organized retreat against a snorting champion whose pressure slowly withered him. In the final seconds of the penultimate fourteenth round Duran found him with the kind of punch that threatens an exhausted fighter’s life; reports on the after-effects vary but what is agreed upon is that Duran sent Lampkin to the hospital. Post-fight he promised that “next time I’ll send him to the morgue.” Could it be that fear played a part in the capitulations of the contenders that followed Lampkin into the bear pit? It seems plausible upon watching the likes of Lou Bizzarro run and hold throughout the fourteen rounds he lasted with Duran in in 1976, but there is no doubting De Jesus gave his all in Duran’s thirteenth and final lightweight world title fight. The punch Duran landed to unman him was among the best he ever threw. De Jesus spent that fight boxing in his usual pragmatic fashion, engineering openings, countering, taking any opportunity that presented itself and he was running Duran reasonably close. The lazy jab Duran threw to bait him was neither feint nor punch but something in between. De Jesus moved in right-handed; Duran detonated an improvised right cross on his chin and De Jesus was crawling around the canvas in search of a rope. 13-0 in title fights then with a single loss to De Jesus in a non-title fight twice avenged with the prize on the line. “I was born for this,” Duran offered after his final fight at 135lbs. Hard to disagree. This content is protected Benny Leonard (seeded 2) makes a mockery of the notion that boxers from the 1920s were outmoded by evolution in pugilism. He moved like a ballerino, gliding away, floating in, his balance all but absolute. Leonard was not an Ali or a Sugar Ray, his moves were functional as well as effortless and beautiful, but the terrible threat of his punches were the reason for his mobility as he sought the proper position from which to punch. He sought to punch Rocky Kansas from all angles when they met for the fourth and final time in 1922. Kansas hadn’t been stopped for eleven years and a hundred fights, but Leonard left him sagging after a savage assault the likes of which would arguably go unequalled until Ray Robinson hit his stride twenty years later. Leonard was that good; he stands that comparison. Hard to hit and granite of jaw, champion Freddie Welsh seemed impossible to beat in any no-decision bout, as proved to be the case when Welsh got the better of him in 1916 over ten, with the title on the line. No championship for Leonard, though the newspapermen in attendance naming him the better of the two but, unable to score the knockout, the reigning champion left the ring with the title. You can almost see Welsh smirking down the century when, just under a year later, he granted Leonard a rematch, once again over ten rounds. But Leonard was all business. “I am after the knockout,” he said. “I intend to win that title tonight or get well licked trying. This may be the last time I get a crack at Welsh.” Leonard was aggressive, direct, and brilliant. In the ninth, he pinned Welsh to the ropes behind a wall of leather and as the Brit slipped, ducked, rolled, and caught his abuser’s punches on his gloves and arms, Leonard moved his attack downstairs. Welsh fought more than 150 fights and he was only stopped once – May 28th, 1917, in New York, New York when stopping him was the only way Leonard could win the title. That is the difference between the great ones and the true immortals: the immortals find a way. Leonard made himself immortal over the following seven years. No lightweight could beat him. Lew Tendler probably came the closest, pushing him hard in a no-decision bout in 1922, so in 1923 Leonard granted him a decision bout over fifteen, boxed his ears off, sent him scurrying for welterweight. Leonard retired the undefeated lightweight champion of the world. I credit him with seven title defenses (though he is 9-0 in title fights if we allow his Newspaper Decision win over Welsh in their first title fight), ignoring the one he staged against Jimmy Duffy at 140lbs. During this time he was, perhaps, a lightweight unbeatable. This content is protected Who will win under the following rules? 15 round fight. 1950 referee. 8oz boxing gloves. 10 points must. Cast your vote and explain yourself in a post below! You have 3 days.
Oh Lord Benny gets his hair mussed up very badly here. He'd have no idea how to deal with Duran's aggressiveness, and not enough power to discourage Duran. Duran KO's him by the 10th and won't need a low blow to do it.
Steady on matey, not so fast, surely if Duran can be out boxed by De Jesus ( albeit a very good boxer ) can he not be out boxed by Leonard , one of the cleverest/brainiest fighters of them all ? As for a KO for Roberto, not going to be easy, Benny also had a great chin to go with his punching power and brain no ! I am not saying this is win for Benny, just thinking it will not be as clear cut as you seem to believe it will. Respect your views all the same. Keep well.
Didn't Arcel pick Leonard when asked about this match up? I might be misremembering but if he did then Leonard should be the favourite here. Anyway, I'm going to make a case for Benny since I think he is probably isn't going to be given much of a chance. Leonard moves well enough that I think he can dart in and out of range. I think he has enough power to make Duran respect him and is accurate enough that his flurries will make an impression on the judges. Trading with Duran is asking to be hurt, but Leonard's defense and chin are good enough to see him through. Leonard had a great left hook and I could see him using it to great effect to catch Duran with it as Duran comes in to attack and sneaking it over Duran's jab. De Jesus' left hook was a big part of what helped him get the win over Duran and I could see a fight with Leonard unfolding similarly. I'll say that if the fight happens in Madison Square Garden in front of a New York audience Leonard takes a split decision that leaves the newspaper men divided over who deserved the decision.
Pretty sure the gist of this whole series pits "best" against "best" versions. The Duran who lost to De Jesus has no place here.
I'm going to go with Ray Arcel here. I think that- and this is based on many hours of watching Leonard vs Tendler, which I believe is all we have of Leonard- Benny Leonard can move and box very well. From what I have read, he punched well and recovered well when he got hit. Duran is Duran and that man was a very effective lightweight, but I don't buy into the unbeatable, irresistible force school of thought. He spent enough rounds following guys around the ring to make me feel that he is going to have challenges with Leonard. In my estimation, almost every fantasy match comes down to who can make the other guy fight his fight. What separates good from great in boxing is how frequently you can make the other guy fight your fight. Arcel said that Leonard had the greatest mental energy and I think that would be the decisive factor.
Duran actually has the most complete style in boxing for my money. A good enough pressure fighter had a stylistic advantage over anyone. Leonard is as good an outfigher as you could hope for, I actually think he's superior to Pea on the outside. But that's no use if the ring is cut off and the man charging at you is able to slip and deflect anything you throw at him. It's no use if you're up against one of the best body punchers and will find your energy sapped. It's no use if you're up against one of the best combination punchers and you're becoming too tired to get out of range. Duran will do to Leonard what Armstrong did to Ross.
Leonard, the classical upright stylist, liked to dictate the pace and use his smarts and feet to dominate the ring. He's one of the all-time best ring generals ever, and he proved his mettle vs the highest quality of fighters you could hope to find. He was quick, sharp and athletic with superb skills and knowledge. He's a problem for almost anyone. Duran, an amazing all-rounder who preferred to swarm, was every bit as skilled and smart as Leonard. Actually moreso IMO. His quick, well-schooled feet would mean he's able to catch up with Leonard and out-work him. He'd cut off the ring, turning at angles and use his physicality to bull Leonard back. Duran would out-work Leonard, and has all the tools and know-how to implement his strategy and work rate. Excellent match up between two top 10 P4P fighters, and IMO the top 2 LWs ever. Worthy of the finale. Duran UD15 in a tricky fight.
Robert Duran fought Benny Leonard to an absolute standstill in the second ATG Lightweight semi-final forcing the great Leonard to stage a boxing retreat from around the tenth as Duran out-jabbed, out-mauled, out-fought and eventually out-thought the Wizard. Leonard, who enjoyed almost no success until the 9th was repeatedly fouled by low blows from Duran in that round on the opposite side of the referee and despite the protestations of the crowd, went unpunished; he then switched the attack the body and brutalised Leonard around the ring. In the eleventh he switched to his jab and a right hand the the sternum as Leonard sought to protect his midriff; by the fourteenth and final round he was banging Leonard to the body once more as Leonard desperately tried to stage the rally that would rescue his tournament. He finished the fight with two closing eyes as Duran, unmarked, harangued the hostile crowd.
Arcel trained the old welterweight version of Leonard during Benny's comeback, not the lightweight immortal.
