Leonard says Hearns was his biggest rival AND toughest opponent

IMO if Leonard had contiuned fighting after the Finch fight he would more than likely have moved into the jr middleweight division sometime in 1983. Thats if the proposed Hagler fight at the time never materialised at middleweight. If Leonard never retired in 1982 the negotiations might well have favoured Leonard and Hagler to meet at 154lbs. This is all just pure guess work. A rematch with Hearns could well have came off earlier than it eventually did.

 

Hearns for me anyway, proved he was a better fighter than Leonard in the fight he lost to him.

 

Thomas Hearns proved to me he was the superior boxer in his first fight with Ray Leonard. However, Boxing skills alone won't get you a win against a fight of Leonard's calibre. Whereas Hearns outboxed Leonard, Leonard outwilled Hearns, and shown a superior ability to take a punch, and proved to be the better fighter. That's key.

Hearns better Boxer, Leonard better fighter.

 

Hagler fought at 160 his entire career. What makes you think he could have made 154?

 

They were in negotiations for a fight in 1982 just before Leonard defended his title against Finch. I have the ITV version of the fight and the post fight interview with Leonard in his hotel room after the fight.

Leonard was a natural welterweight at that stage in his career, but was willing to face Hagler at jr middleweight. He said that he could not go all the way up the middleweight without sacrificing speed and natural power. He also stated that Hagler weighed only 157lbs for his fight with Hamsho in 1981, which is just 3lbs above the jr middleweight limit. Obviously Leonard was coming to the conclusion that if Hagler could make 157lbs, then surely he could make 154lbs. Hagler of course said the same thing. He said that weighing 154lbs was not possible without weakening himself and he too would be giving a lot away.

With my above post, I'm basically saying that possibly the fight could have came off at jr middleweight. Leonard did retire due to the detached retina and negotiations regarding a fight with Hagler might have changed had he continued fighting.

 

I very nearly used the word "boxer" instead of "fighter". I believe at least 50% of the time Hearns would make it to the finish.

 

Boxers who are in shape year round, never balloon up and are unbelievably disciplined can usually cut surprising amounts of weight and be fine.

Look at a ancient Bernard Hopkin's almost coming in as a junior middleweight against Hoya.

He talked about dropping down to junior middle in the mid/early 90's to face Terry Norris. And he meant it.

Hopkin's is far taller than Hagler. Hagler definitely could of made junior middle if he wanted to.

 

Sadly, I don't believe anything Ray Leonard says. He is always working some angle and he never comes clean.

 

For their welterweight showdown, Hearns was literally Leonard's biggest opponent, with the most ominous aura of all his foes. He was serious, tough, and tremendously talented, an amazing package of murderous power and polished boxing skills. But Leonard overcame Hearns, in one of history's very few clashes of two greats in their prime.

Yet in Montreal, Leonard was defeated by a small, past-his-best, but superhuman, fighting machine in Roberto Duran, no excuses. So, to me, Duran in Montreal was Leonard's toughest opponent.

 

that's a new one on me. i never heard that the hagler people considered going to 154 for leonard. when leonard fought larry bonds in syracuse in march 1981 his attorney, mike trainer, invited manny steward and steve wainwright (hagler's attorney) to come in and negotiate. wainwright demanded parity for a leonard fight, while steward was willing to accept less than leonard. that's how hearns got the 1981 bout - (maybe trainer was using wainwright to gain leverage on steward) - but as far as i recall nobody mentioned hagler dropping to 154 during that period. nor do i remember it coming up before leonard's 'retirement' gala at the Baltimore Civic Center, November 1982, with Hagler at ringside, awaiting what he thought would be Leonard's announcement of their bout.

Marvin probably could have made 154 - he was 157 1/2 against Duran - but he would have refused to do so on principle. He was too old school - too firmly established in his identity as a middleweight.

 

Hagler was never going to fight Leonard at a catchweight, it was all part of the windup toward the superfight at the time.

 

I never said that. Read my post again. Hagler indeed wanted the fight at middleweight. As I stated in my post.

 

The funny thing about Leonard and Hearns was that Leonard really did'nt want to fight Hearns again until later on when he thought the Hit Man was washed up:nono He knew the risk