Marvin Hagler v Mike McCallum

McCallum UD, just overall a smarter boxer but it'd be close

 

This is the problem with these opinions.It is obvious that Hagler was past it in these 2 fights.

 

In 1988,Mike McCallum got outboxed by Sumbu Kalambay at middleweight,but he's going to beat a prime Hagler?Fraid not.

 

This. You get some preposterous revisionism on some matches as time passes. When both McCallum & Hagler were both active, there wasn't a lot of demand for this fight...that's because it wouldn't have been deemed as very competitive.

Disappointing for some to contemplate, but true. By the end of his career McCallum had an impressive body of work, but at the time, not nearly enough to convince many that he would have dethroned MMH.

 

I like Mccallum but damn he is getting overrated.Kalambay boxed his ears off EASILY and while Kalambay was a great boxer he wasnt on prime Leonard or Haglers level.
I mean look at how a damaged Curry was pickinHg Mccallum apart until Mccallum knocked him out and imagine Leonard/Hagler prime in with Mccallum.
And for the record its been said MANY times that Mccallum was hard to work with and alot of possible fights he could have had would fall through because Mccallum would outprice himself right out of the fight.

 

exactly

 

this happened a few times and then he did not know how to market himself. And losing to Kalambay after his first big win against Curry took away the momentum he got from that fight.

 

Hagler never fought McCallum although McCallum was one of the top guys at the time.

 

That's because he cheated himself out of the opportunity to get the big fight by doddling around cutting weight at 154.He has no real justification for his bitterness towards Hagler, who would have fought him had he opted to go the classic route through the other contenders at 160.


Well unless it was circa 86 by the time he managed to establish himself, by which time Marv was only in it for the big money fights.still, i think McCallum could have established himself as a contender by 83 or 84 if he played his cards right.

 

Hagler by decision in a very good fight.