Does Sugar Ray Robinson have a better win than Duran beating Leonard in Montreal?

Bull****. For yrs leading up to Montreal Duran was celebrated as unusually great. He was the fighter of the decade. And the fighter of the decade in MSG which is pretty huge for the 70s. Most of the New York writers, Sprorts Illustrated, Sport magazine and 1/2 the experts picked him to win. Newpapers were all over it because it was the GREAT ROBERTO DURAN vs the new golden boy Leonard. Fury vs. Finesse!.
Yes. People knew EXACTLY how great Duran was. Your post is 100 % wrong. That is just it; after Montreal, Roberto never fought that style again. Hunger satiated. The animal was gone.

 

Acording to boxrec's page on the fight ....

• Leonard was a 9 to 5 favorite.
• In a UPI poll of 30 sportswriters, 16 picked Duran to win by knockout and one picked him to win by decision. Of the 13 who went with Leonard, eight thought he would stop Duran.

So, yeah, Leonard was a clear favorite but a whole load of sportwriters expected Duran to win !

 

I was referring to the Lalonde titles.

Again, the Hearns win is disputed.

No one is denying Leonard's greatness, I am just putting his accomplishments in context with Lamotta's.

 

No, it isn't.

 

Yes, it is, and it is another one you can look up on youtube for yourself.

 

He was looked at as great as a LIGHTWEIGHT! Very few expected the performance in Montreal as a WELTERWEIGHT!

 

Probably one of the best knockouts yet not opponents is Fullmer. I met Fullmer and Basilio when he won the title back when he was old. Kid Gavilan.. And the fact is, I just don't think the way Duran beat Ray with his tactics was that impressive. He intimated a young fighter. I have a story about Basilio about my friend since it comes up at times when Basilio does, I don't like saying it because it makes my friend look bad. Even the last Lamotta fight to me proved more than Duran against Leonard because Ray was not yet at that stage. I think a win over an older fighter means more at times than a younger. I have a story about Basilio. When I took a picture with him in 1997 I think it was when I lived in LA, right when the picture was being taken he put his hand over my eyes. Rough kind of way. That was no big deal, then he didn't do that when the next picture was taken. After this my friend who was with me said, once when we I Basilio, some guy wanted his picture and as the picture was taken Basilio put his hands right on the guys nuts hard. Just slammed them. My friend said, if he did that to me I would have punched his lights out. Well the next time I saw him he forget what he told me and his wife said to my friend (her husband), remember that time Basilio hit you in the nuts when you were taking a picture?

 

Yeah, a couple of Youtubers would convince me. No one of note has questioned it as far as I know. Not even Hearns or Steward.

EDIT: In fact, Steward went on record to say it was a good stoppage: https://www.boxingforum24.com/threads/what-are-your-thoughts-on-the-leonard-hearns-stoppage.571501/

 

Only the people who watched it live at the time.

 

So you mean to say there was a big uproar over the stoppage? There wasn't, though.

 

Duran's win over Ray not that impressive? I think we will just leave it there. This is just Duran hate, obviously, and not so much about SRR and any win.

 

I don't think it was a great win. Ray Robinson over Fullmer is better. Ali over Liston is better. Frazier over Ali even in the first fight. .. I don't think a young fighter who is intimidated and made to fight another man's fight is a great win. Hopkins over Tito was a better win. Honestly. Had Duran beaten Ray of 1981? Very different.

 

Interesting.

 

The Fullmer knockout was devastating but I've always thought there was something not quite right about his knockout of Olson to regain the title in 1955.

 

1955-12-09 : Sugar Ray Robinson 159¾ lbs beat Bobo Olson 159¼ lbs by KO at 2:51 in round 2 of 15

• Location: Chicago Stadium, Chicago, Illinois, USA
• Referee: Frank Sikora

• Ring Announcer: Ben Bentley
• World Middleweight Championship (4th defense by Olson)
• Photo #2, Photo #3, Photo #4, Photo #5

Notes

• Olson was a 3-1 favorite.
• The was a crowd of 12,441.
• The gross gate was $128,462 and the net gate was $107,051.
• Olson received 35% of the gate and a share of the $75,000 in TV and radio money. His total came to $61,718.
• Robinson got 25% of the gate and a share of the TV and radio money. His total was $45,513. However, shortly before the fight, he was tagged with an $87,000 federal tax lien.
• Robinson put Olson down for the count with a combination of punches in the second round.
• Robinson became the first boxer to regain the World Middleweight Title.

External Links

• The Associated Press - December 10, 1955
• The United Press - December 10, 1955

Gene Fullmer vs. Sugar Ray Robinson (2nd meeting)
(Redirected from Fight:18008)

This content is protected

Sugar Ray Robinson throws a left hook at Gene Fullmer
1957-05-01 : Gene Fullmer 159¼ lbs lost to Sugar Ray Robinson 159½ lbs by KO at 1:27 in round 5 of 15

• Location: Chicago Stadium, Chicago, Illinois, USA
• Referee: Frank Sikora
• Judge: Frank Clark
• Judge: Jim McManus

• World Middleweight Championship (1st defense by Fullmer)
• Photo #2

Notes

• Fullmer was a 3½-1 favorite.
• The Associated Press reported: "Alert to charges that Fullmer was guilty of rabbit punching and Robinson of continuous holding in their first bout, the Illinois Athletic Commission advised it's referees to penalize the fighters for any violations."
• There was a crowd of 14,757, which produced a gross gate of $158,643 and a net gate of $124,647.
• ABC (American Broadcasting Company) aired the fight live on television and radio. Radio-television receipts were $100,000.
• Each fighter received 30% of the revenue, which totaled $67,394 apiece.
• Introduced in the ring prior to the bout were Carmen Basilio, Kid Gavilan, Joe Louis and Barney Ross.
• Robinson knocked out Fullmer with a left hook to the chin. Robinson later called the blow "the most perfect punch of my career."
• Fullmer later recalled: "I didn't know anything about being hit. I didn't know anything about being down. The first thing I knew, I was standing up. Robinson was in the other corner. I thought he was in great condition, doing exercises between rounds. My manager crawled into the ring. I said, 'What happened?' He said, 'They counted to ten.' Up to then, I didn't know."
• Fullmer was ahead 19-18 on all three official scorecards. The fight was scored on the five-point must system.

External Links

• "Fullmer, Sugar Ray Clash in Title Go Tonight" Associated Press, May 1, 1957
• "Robinson Knocks Out Fullmer" Associated Press, May 2, 1957
• "Aging Robinson KO'S Fullmer In 5th; Meets Basilio In June" Associated Press, May 2, 1957
• Boxing is...Reflections on the Sweet Science by Thomas Hauser, University of Arkansas Press, 2010