If Thomas Hearns had won the first Sugar Ray Leonard fight.

They probably would've had that rematch at 154 pounds, where they both would've moved up tutside of Starling, Curry, and McCrory, no reason to stay at 147.I still think, in this scenario, Ray ends up with the better career, and would stop Tommy in a rematch if it happened.

 

Tommy was moving up to 154 lbs. anyway,
which means the 147. lb titles (WBA and WBC) would have been vacated.

This one takes a little thought.

An immediate re-match would have not been in the cards.
Tommy would have made Ray work for it.

 

I don't think he would have stopped Tommy in a rematch. Especially at that time. Tommy was a little inexperienced when he fought Ray in 1981. He was great, but he didn't hold yet. A little similar to the Leonard who fought Duran. Ray got better after he fought Duran in 1980 and Tommy got better after he fought Leonard. Both Leonard and Hearns after those first losses were much better fighters.

 

Tommy probably would have picked up the WBA Light Middleweight Title in Japan,
versus Tadashi Mihara (recent vacant Title winner over Rocky Fratto in 11/81) in early 1982.

Big-bucks to fight in Japan too...
Then Tommy goes for an easy-defense in the summer, possibly Sean Mannion or Gary Guiden.

Ray Leonard probably goes after a vacant-Welterweight Title, WBA-version
first in early 1982, versus Roger Stafford (recent winner over Pipino Cuevas).
Then a quick easy-defense in the summer, against maybe Bruce Finch,
and then Tommy in the fall of 1982 at 154 lbs.

 

Mike Tyson vs James Douglas?!?

 

Tyson KO8!

 

Tommy Hearns wins a decision in the fall of 1982 over Ray Leonard at 154 lbs.

 

Leonard would still hold the WBA 154 belt but his next challenger would be the new "Ray Leonard" in fighting Davey Moore. If he won that then the Leonard circus would have come to an end at 154 in a unification with Hearns & no where for him to go after that except up to face Hagler & that would be the final nail in the Leonard coffin.

 

I think the WBA Light Middleweight Title was vacated,
and #2 Tadashi Mihara fought #3 Rocky Fratto in November 1981 for the
title.

#1 Charlie Weir (South African) was in the waiting, and in-line next.

If Ray Leonard wanted to keep the WBA Title, he would have been forced to
defend against #1 Charlie Weir first.
Or go after Wilfred Benetiz (a second time) for the WBC Light Middleweight Title,
in the spring of 1982.

All very confusing.

 

If Leonard fought Davey Moore, he'd have starched him in six rounds.Maybe a fight with Ayala could have been made, and he would ended that myth as well.

 

Had Tommy beat Ray in '81, he'd have propelled himself higher in the ATG ranks, but Leonard would still be the story.

Leonard was a safety-first negotiator as well as a fierce competitor, but had he lost to Hearns, his ego and hunger would have, in the end, forced him to come back from it and redeem himself. That being said, if he waited too long to face Hearns -if he faced him after Hearns moved up into the JMW division where he was most dangerous, I think he would have gotten knocked out. Leonard and his Machiavellian assistants would have strived to get Hearns down as low as they could so he'd be weak. Steward would have to be smart enough to insist that Hearns had grown out of 147 and force Leonard to accept that he was not the star here and could not dictate terms. If Steward was smart enough to do that, then he would have watched Leonard fall to Hearns because I for one, just don't think that Leonard could beat a full-blown Hearns.

And that would've been the end of that.

 

Yeh i'am sure Leonard still held the 154 belt up till the Hearns fight as insurence then binned it. Leonard would def been between a rock & a hard place if he's lost to Tommy. What with his high profile bandwagan status i don't think he'd have been that happy to be seen to taking on the 154 low profile no $$$$$ contenders.

No doubt the WBA would have bent over for him so letting him fight Davey Moore in feb 82 now that would have had the moniker of master & pretender attached to it seeing Moore was getting plenty of ink as the next SRL in some quarters of the press. Again the Benitez fight would have been fraught with end game career ending danger & again for me thats a pick-em with me going for Wilfred at 154.

To be honest it looks game over for Leonard as what with his profile there's absolutly no escape from re-matching Benitez/Duran or fighting Hagler & if Tommy gave up the 147 crown as expected to chase another mega payday at 154 then Leonards got to fight him sooner or later. Leonards the hunted here & i don't see him beating Tommy/Wilfred/Roberto or Marvin.

 

If Ray lost versus Tommy, I think the WBA Light Middleweight Title would have been
vacated. He won, so he actually was the Title Holder, until he vacated it.

With a loss, Ray would have been slotted #4 in the WBA Light Middleweight Rankings,
behind #1 Charlie Weir, #2 Tadashi Mihara, #3 Rocky Fratto.

So if Leonard went after the WBA Light Middleweight Title, the odds would have been that
Davey Moore never wins that version, and Roberto Duran never beats Davey Moore.

My guess, if Ray Leonard lost, both he and Tommy Hearns go up to 154 lbs.
Leonard goes after WBC Champ Wilfred Benitez, in May 1982, after Benitez beats Roberto Duran in January 1982.

Hearns goes after the WBA version, versus Mihara, also in early 1982.

 

I doubt that he would have been stripped of the 154 title as thats why he won it as an insurence. You know how the WBA or WBC worked regarding Leonard! Anything that Leonard wanted he got, there's no way that would make finacial sense for Leonard to go in as a contender. They'd let him keep the 154 crown as he's the $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$. He could have gone straight after Maurice Hope's WBC in a unification & then taken on Benitez/Duran & then Hearns at 154 providing Tommy stayed at 147 for a year.

I don't think the leonard camp would have taken on Kalule unless there was some backroom agreement that he keep the 154 title if he lost to Hearns. He was the WBC 147 title holder so i don't see it as a problem seeing he was WBA & it's not making any $$$$ sense to strip Leonard as everyone loses out on the leonard $$$ bonanza. That would have been the shrewd move in Feb 82 & that was to take Hope's WBC 154 crown thus making him an undisputed champion so making for another MEGA $$$$$ battle with the undisputed 147 king & conquerer in Tommy.

Everyone else would have been forced aside or bought off to make way for the re-match or as an undisputed 154 king there's the fight with Hagler. It had all the makings of mega $$$$$$ showdowns if he went & took Hope's crown. Leonard or his management team would never have allowed Leonard to be reduced to challenger/contender status, to much money invested in the Leonard brand for all to lose IMO.