What happened to Ray Leonard?

He actually had the women issues before he won the championship. He mentions it in his book, along with sleeping with someone the night before the wedding.

 

I'll give him this - Bonaduce was a scrappy guy; he was a DJ at a Philly station when I lived in New Jersey and I used to listen to him in the mornings. He knew he was going to get clocked, just wanted to see how long he could last against someone of Ray's caliber. And he found out ...

 

Yeah, but he also says that it was a new level concerning beautiful women he threw themselves at him after Hearns. Add to that all he had already achieved and all the money he had earned - and getting up every morning to run seemed a less and less attractive concept.

 

This...

I'll also add I was in HS when Ray won the WW championship and when he got his detached retina that was considered instant retirement back then.

 

I know Ray didn't have all the fights that maybe other ATG's have had, but back in his day a detached retina was a death sentence for a fighter. What he lacks in quantity he make up for with quality, and to me he is still the best fighter of my lifetime. Beautiful to watch and deadly.

 

There is nothing wrong with that. It isn't until the women start to steal your coke that problems arise. Some will even help ya look for it .

 

Even though Leotis Martin stopped him, Liston forced Martin into retirement before going down by detaching his retina.

 

he was featured on the celebrity ghost show, "the haunting of ....." a few years ago as well!

 

His hands were going as well.

 

Ray is ALWAYS a tough one for me. Like a lot of things in life, there is...a very grey area when we talk Ray Leonard. Was he afforded nearly every advantage along the way...granted waaaay too many concessions? Sure. But when I pull from memory...i think back to what WE ALL saw in between the ropes in New Orleans 1980, in September 81...again in Vegas 87. Those wins are amongst the best of all time....universally recognized. And I’m not even gonna really touch on Kalule.

Is everything we know about Montreal true? Yeah, we know Roberto moved up 2 divisions and had maybe the greatest win ever. And we know all the circumstances surrounding the rematch what?? 5 months later?? Yeah...but that doesn’t diminish Ray’s achievement. He. Made. Roberto. Duran. Quit. It was almost unthinkable.

Then he goes on to Vegas in the Fall of 81...in the most anticipated fight of all time and exceeds expectations and gets a prime, undefeated Tommy Hearns outta there in 14?? Come on man. This is stuff of movie scripts.

So now he has the detached retina. He’s down for the count. By all accounts this is a death sentence in boxing in the mid 80s. And then he comes back! 5 years (kinda 2)after Hearns and takes on the most fearsome mother ****er in the game. Marvelous Marvin Hagler...who hasn’t lost a fight in nearly a decade. And sure...he dictates all the terms. He picks the size of the ring and the ounce of gloves and he goes on to win. That alone tell me Ray was great enough to know what his limitations were. He was smart. But he knew what was in his control. Then he went out and won the fight.

No matter what...Ray deserves credit for what he did between the ropes in those 7 years. No matter what else happened. He beat Benitez, Duran, Hearns and Hagler. And no matter what the circumstances were...we don’t get to discount what he did.

He’s top 10 all time and would have been in any era. He was good enough and smart enough to adapt to his circumstances would always adjust accordingly. That’s so...so rare. He’s a champion in any era.

 

Pretty sure the doctors told him not to fight.

 

I read somewhere that his cocaine use ruined his reflexes and Ray said the reason he took Coke was because he was groped by a pervert when he was 15 years old, the man who committed this crime was an amateur boxing coach who was training the Olympic team!

 

This is valid. Good post. It is sort of when I post about Duran, I know I will get insults for my opinion, but I believe it. And if that is what you believe then it is a good opinion. It gets people talking and thinking. I know my posts about Duran get people thinking why didn't he ever knock out a great fighter. It doesn't change opinions, but it does make people think. As for Ray. I thought about it myself. The guys Ray beat were so good I felt he could not be denied greatness, but you made a good point and I thought about it sometimes myself especially in the late 1980s when Ray was active and almost arrogant in the things he did. Now he is all smiley and all that, but he was arrogant at one time near the Hearns rematch

As for 1982 and retiring. . It is almost like he knew he got through Benitez,Duran and Hearns and for most people that is a whole career to fight that level, and he fought them in less than 2 years. So he might have known he was feeling tired and could not keep up. Pryor was there. And even his lesser wins were good. Unheard of competition and Kalule, who would have been a great win for anyone in 1981. My feeling is like you on why he quit a little. He felt his luck would not have held up and his confidence was not there which might have had to do with the retina but he was always so aware of things and very sensitive, and he was hit hard by Finch I remember and Hearns was so tough for him before that. He knew had Hearns not gotten tired he would have lost. He knew he could not go back to fighting lesser guys, it would always Hearns rematch or Benitez again who was at 154 or Duran at 154 in those years. etc. I think he knew maybe he could not beat the top guys as easily. He did have a hard road. So getting out then he was on top.

I remember how he came back with Howard in 1984. Then he quit saying he didn't have it not giving himself a chance. I am retiring for good he said then. Then Hagler in 1987 and in May retired again. Then the Lalonde nonsense of 2 titles in one night which really bothered me, and then Hearns at 162 and Duran in Dec... He sort of stole fighter of the decade when Hagler and Hearns and Duran fought the whole decade, and to be honest Hearns was the only fab 4 who fought ever year of the 1980s, and fought a title fight every year except 1983.. But Ray got fighter of the decade. It was almost orchestrated like his Lalonde win. Which is why he would get booed at fights in the late 1980s. People were not too crazy about his fights by 1989 and handpicking.. I think he was top 10 ATG just on his wins. Maybe I put too much on being fellow greats, but what else can it be for me..

Ray was more sensitive than Hagler or Hearns or Duran also. He had heart in the ring because he would not lose and I think losing scared him. I think those other 3 had more natural guts than Ray, which will make people argue here also. They didn't seem afraid to have a tough fight or get knocked out and come back and try again. Ray would not have done that. I remember Hearns was knocked out by Barkey and was in with Kinchen months later. He didn't seem to be worried about what damage that did to him. Ray was always aware and I think that made him more tired in 1982 than those other guys would have. They seemed to go with the flow of boxing than he did. He knew how to steal the decade I give him credit. Although somehow he did get top 10 ATG to me.

 

Bonaduce? Ray just flurried and then put that last punch in with a little power.

 

The outcome of one surgery for a retinal detachment and another can be totally different. If it's a good outcome, it shouldn't really affect performance. Anyone who has had a retinal detachment is predisposed to habe another though.