Hagler vs. Leonard II - Why Not?

Hagler was beaten. Thats one thing I noticed. :good

 

Me too

 

Hey, I know, why not have a debate about who won??????


I think Leonard might have given Hagler a rematch if Hagler was prepared to bow down to Leonard and do it when Leonard wanted to do it. I actually think it would have been a wild one. Hagler would have had the extra motivation he lacked in the first one and maybe Leonard would have been lacking it, and somewhat overconfident. He did repeatedly say in the months after the fight that he "knew exactly how to knock Hagler out."

A replay could have seen Hagler even slower than in the first one and clearly outpointed this time. Alternatively, I have a sneaking suspicion that Leonard's overconfidence, plus the wearing effect of the first fight, could have seen him taking harder punches and getting worn down and busted up. Remember, in Leonard's next 4 fights he was knocked down 5 times and cut severely enough to force a stoppage if it had come earlier in the fight.

Shame it didn't happen.

 

JC Chavez went back down to a more natural weight of 140lbs for him.
I never saw Whitaker chase him there.

....and besides, the rematch would have eventually have happened again had both fighters kept on winning. Chavez just happened to run into Randall!

.....but honestly, Chavez pretty much had the same thing to say that DLH did after fighting Whitaker......the result will be the same, nothing will change. Chavez felt he won, but also felt that if you thought Whitaker won, you'd see it for Whitaker the 2nd time around.

....and then when DLH fought Whitaker years later and a rematch was talked about......DLH reiterated those exact sentiments!

 

All boxing fans would have loved to have seen a rematch. The fight was close and controversial and quite entertaining.

I scored it for Hagler, so I figure he at least deserved to be granted a rematch. And the millions on the table should have made this fight happen.

Then again, I think Leonard perhaps lost out more than Hagler did. I was impressed by his performance, esp. coming off that layoff, but he was narrowly outpointed on my card. He came back fought some meaningless fights and contrived "super" fights with Hearns and Duran, and ended up looking like crap. A 1987 rematch with Hagler, win, lose or draw, would've been more worth more.

 

A rematch is usually only mooted if the first fight is competitive. :hey

 

That's fair enough :good

 

Harsh; even I admit Sweet Pea was competitive in the bout.

 

Didnt Leonard say Hagler could have a rematch if he admitted he lost the first fight?

 

That was smack talk with Hearns.

 

If I remember rightly Ray Leonard said in the post fight interview he was retiring... Then corrected himself and said unless Mike Tyson came down to 160....

 

Sounds like you were having one of those days like when you said the Whitaker - Chavez draw was good for boxing and Whitaker

 

Hagler let Leonard dictate terms for their match, even though Ray was the challenger, just to get him into the ring for that huge payday. Marv would have been the challenger in a rematch. Ray probably would have stipulated 12 ounce thumbless gloves, a 24 foot ring, 80% of the proceeds, and a ten round limit before agreeing to take on Hagler a second time.

 

Ray learned that from Duran in New Orleans. Hagler was his Montreal, and he wasn't about to make the same mistake Roberto did in going back to the well once too often. Say what you will about SRL. One thing he's not is stupid.

 

There's a fair difference actually. Hagler was always going to be the summit of Ray's career, even as early as around or just after the Hearns match. Ray was retired for years but still yearning that match, as he said it was his last challenge to conquer. Duran's buildup to Leonard was just another fight, tho a huge one. It was never thought of as his definite crowning achievement or one last summit. Leonard was just another stage in Duran's career, where as realistically Hagler was Leonard's last stage - as bourne out by subsequent performances.

What Leonard learnt from Duran was to never underestimate and opponent, and never let him get to you psychologically. Duran had Leonard right where he wanted him by the time they entered the ring. From calling his wife a puta/*****, to all the rest of it Roberto had Ray fighting the exact fight he yearned and it paid handsome dividends. These lessons were well learnt as Leonard became the master of psychological warfare and was never caught offguard again.