Sugar Ray Leonard vs Donald Curry

Leonard UD Curry

 

I'd have loved to have seen this fight. Curry had all the skills to hang with Leonard and the rest of the elites, but in the end you'd have to favor Leonard primarily on intangibles. Curry was the goods though, one of my all time faves to watch.

 

Curry was a class below Leonard. Curry does not have the tools to beat Leonard.

 

Curry could move around the ring like Hearns, but when Leonard swarmed in throwing fast combinations, Curry would inevitably get caught. Leonard TKO about seventh or eighth round. Unless this fight was fought with thumbless gloves(like the Finch fight?) The awkwardness of that would have Curry escape to last the distance.

 

I think Leonard gets a late rounds knockout. He would pour it on and hit Donald and cut him and then stop him after Donald goes into a shell.

 

I think Leonard would have got to him and stopped him in the second half of the fight. Curry, at his peak, was an exceptional talent but Leonards movement and speed would have negated a lot of Curry's counterpunching skills. I think a more frustrating fight for Leonard would have been against Starling, who I believe, would have taken Leonard to the limit.

 

I agree with everyone picking Leonard, and think the majority view of late stoppage is a good choice.

I do think tho that Curry would be substancially harder than Starling. Curry's sheer speed, power, snap and sharpness at his short best would have Leonard struggling for rhythm and dominance. Ray's speed of both hand and foot would IMO have Starling stretched.

 

I'd imagine a slightly lesser version of Sanchez-Nelson in which the young Curry would take ray by surprise early on but Leonard's class would shie through in the end.

 

A great legacy fight for both men ( though more valuable to Curry than it would be for Leonard. ) I'll go with the concencus and pick Ray by stoppage late. Donald was a very good boxer with respectable power, but Leonard topped him in both categories, and Curry's questionable wiskers wouldn't help much either.

 

I could just see Starling, with his stubborn defence, good chin, ring generalship, and awkwardness causing Leonard a lot of frustration. I certainly see a distance fight, whereas with Curry, I think Leonard would take him out.

 

I go for Leonard who after all was still at his peak. I do wonder though how Curry would of been effected. He was never the same after his first defeat against Honeyghan.

 

Besides Finito and Marquez, Curry was one of the classiest Txtbook fighter ive ever seen with a flawless punching form. Unfortunately he was a notch or two below Leonard imo and even in his prime, Leonard would have been too much for him.

Leonard knocks him out late in the fight.

 

I would agree Starling might be more likely to last, as he had great defense and durability and would not IMO be as aggressive (or anywhere near as dangerous i reckon) as Curry. At his peak Curry, tho no slugger/brawler, was pretty much there to fight.

I'm a BIG fan of Moochie and just think Leonard's style and assets are all wrong for him.

 

Hey Mag 1965,is that Duran with Hearns in your pic? I just knowticed that.