Just how did Benitez beat Duran..And I believe Duran Fought a great fight!

Great post even though it contradicts mine.

I wonder if Duran from the Moore fight is better. I do not think Duran from the Benitez fight looks so impressive. Duran from the Moore was at his defensive best, slipping and countering but maybe if that were Benitez in the ring Duran would have to kick it into another gear that he most likely did not have.

I say Benitez beat Duran from the Moore fight but with much more difficulty than he accually had with Duran.

 

Hmmmmm....I gotta say, I cannot see Welterweight Benitez dealing with Montreal Duran all that well. Benitez did not move around as much as slip and counter. Duran is going to force him to fight hard at a gear he won't like at the same times missing much more than normal.

Duran in that fight always threw in combination.

 

I like Benitez, I wanted to see a even fight when I watched it for the first time, but Benitez wasn't even in it. I'd actually go as far to say that it was a lopsided contest. Benitez could do nothing about Ray's jab and barely landed a clean shot throughout the whole fight. A good whippin'. Totally under-appreciated performance.

 

Greetings Addie! With all due respect, what fight were you watching? ONLY a Leonard 'nut hugger' (not saying you're one ) would call their scrap 'lopsided'. I remember hearing about Ray telling Angie more than once: "He's there and then he's not there!" The fight was razor-thin in most people's minds. Hey, the younger snot-nosed Wilfred blew it; didn't train properly, etc...A 'whippin'? hardly. Stopped six seconds before the bell? Leonard gets a close decision. A 'whippin'? hardly.

 

It's funny how people keep talking about Montreal Duran. It's comical. If Ray fought a rematch with Montreal Duran, he probably would have won. Hearns probably KO's Montreal Duran. A well-trained Benitez would have been in the fight with Montreal Duran. Montreal Duran is overrated because of the tactical errors Leonard made. Even so, the fight was close.

 

I dont know if Ray Leonard could have ever beaten Montreal Duran. If he tried to move he would have been run down like a dog in the street. Hearns gets KOd by Duran as well.

It wasnt just "Montreal Duran" that was just his most famous performance. Its the way he was in his prime. This is a guy that shutout Carlos Palomino who was a fine fighter in his own right.

Montreal is rightfully viewed as one of the greatest performances in history partly out of respect for Leonard as well. He was an elite Welterweight in his prime.

Good luck with that theory though. You seemed to have bought Angelo Dundee`s excuses hook line and sinker. Every losing fighter has an excuse. Leonard`s are just seen as Gospel. Just like Ali`s excuses are taken at face value. The common denominator? Angelo Dundee and his stooges in the media.

 

Everyone has a style they're bad against. Benitez, I think, would always have given Duran problems. Benitez could out-think and contain Duran, and had enough power to dissuade him from going Dejesus II on him.

 

I scored Leonard vs "Montreal Duran" a draw.

 

I don't have a problem with Montreal Duran losing that fight. It was very, very close. I have scored it both ways on occasion.

 

I think because Leonard never said he felt he won the fight, everybody said it is such a great victory for Duran. And everybody ran with the story. I guarantee you a lot of the people who claim Duran's win over Leonard is the greatest win ever, haven't even watched let alone scored the fight.
Leonard actually looked great most of the time in that fight, just like Duran.

 

I think mose people that you discribed see Duran's body language during the fight and especially, immediately after the fight and get the impression he was in charge and in complete command. Add that with the second and third round where he was rocking Leonard and pinning him against the ropes and you might think that this was a dominant win. But, scoring is not done that way. It is who wins the most rounds, as you know.

Montreal was one of those close fights that is separated by one round and even that round is hard to judge. Duran is rightly glorified because he moved up from lightweight, as arguably the greatest lightweight ever, to bang heads and take the fight hard to Sugar Ray Leonard, who usually without question, in the top 5 of all-time great welterweights.

Just typing that last line feels monumental.

My current card (It always comes down to round 1 and 15. Do I give anyone the first round and did Duran really deserve the last round?)

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Exactly, the scene right after the last bell when Duran shoved Leonard away makes it look like he won the fight.
Leonard wrote in his book that he went on holiday after the fight (Hawai I think) and half of the people told him they felt he won the fight. Furthermore one judge had it a draw at first but later scored it for Duran. All 3 scorecards were razor close which was a reflection of the fight in my opinion.

 

That statement is hard to defend. I'd go as far as to say the vast majority that watched and scored the fight pick Duran a winner, and it is rated among the best wins of all-time on Leonards merit.

When I score it, Duran has it locked up around the tenth. Leonard did battle hard and was stronger in the last third. Duran outfought and out-thought Leonard on the inside, which is no shame. All in all, Leonard lost as valiantly as one can, and was even the stronger man near the end.

But he didn't win, and he didn't draw.

 

I had Duran ahead in New Orleans at the time of the stoppage.

 

Leonard is obviously more humble than most have ever given him credit for because he had that fight in complete and utter control.