Ring Magazine Fight of the Year. Chris was a real, old school, tough guy. I met him a couple of times. His old rival, John Conteh, would drive him around as Finnegan was blind in one eye, (A gruesome injury which he carried as a badge of honour), and rarely completely sober. John was hugely protective of Chris which demonstrates the soul of our sport. As a double act, they were priceless.
If Hagler’s best opponent is the one who entered the ring with Hagler in the best form (release) that night, then it’s Ray Sugar Robinson. I compare Robinson from the fight Hagler vs Robinson, with opponents as they were when they entered the ring with Hagler.
As name value goes, Duran or Leonard. Hearns was also a fearsome opponent that gets somewhat undervalued because of the way Hagler blew him out. Hagler beat a lot of high level opponents that could - on their night - be argued very highly. As somebody mentioned, Antuofermo was no joke.