Marvin Hagler vs. Ray Leonard

[ßringer]

I dont wanna sound like a SRL fanboy and a Hagler hater but i never thought Hagler was exceptionally skilled a fighter. I think he was a good counter puncher without being expectational but his gifts like power, strength, durability tenacity and those good Boxing skills albeit not spectacular made him formidable.

I think Leonard and Duran were better technicians and thats why they were so competitive with Hagler. Hagler fought guys like Roldan, Fully Obell, Sibson, Hamsho, Vito, guys that would come straight at you and with Hagler's left handed counter punching stance they were pretty much good matches for him style wise.

More saavy technicians like Leonard, Duran made Hagler's skills look far more conventional.

I am inclined to agree with this.

You are spot on in your comparison of Leonard and Duran's skillsets as compared to Hagler's.

He was a very solid boxer/puncher and I really enjoyed his counterpunching abilities, but when compared to the talents of some of his contemporaries ; Hagler fell quite short, IMO.

[bojangles1987]

I can't help but smell robbery when one of the scores is 118-110 Leonard, which is absolutely ludicrous to the point we should be su****ious. I had it 8-4, maybe 7-5 for Hagler. This fight always makes me mad because Leonard did a bunch of dancing and taunting and basically everything to make himself look good except fight, and the judges and crowd fell for it. Everyone wanted Leonard to win that fight so bad, the fact he didn't get his head knocked off made people want to give it to him. You should have to do more to take the title from a man that had held it for as long as Hagler was middleweight champ.

[ßringer]

I can't help but smell robbery when one of the scores is 118-110 Leonard, which is absolutely ludicrous to the point we should be su****ious. I had it 8-4, maybe 7-5 for Hagler. This fight always makes me mad because Leonard did a bunch of dancing and taunting and basically everything to make himself look good except fight, and the judges and crowd fell for it. Everyone wanted Leonard to win that fight so bad, the fact he didn't get his head knocked off made people want to give it to him. You should have to do more to take the title from a man that had held it for as long as Hagler was middleweight champ.

I don't consider that to be true, at all.

Have you actually watched the full fight, or just it's episode of "Legendary Nights" where they paint that picture?

Because Ray was doing more than just dancing and showing off.

118-110 is an awfully wide score, and the fight itself was definitely closer than that but I myself had it 7-5 Leonard.

[GJC]

sugar ray clearly won that fight. this is also one of the many reasons why hes included in my all time favorites

Whatever your view you can't treally say anyone won it clearly hence this thread 20 odd years on

[Benncollinsaad]

Nobody won clearly, but it definitely wasn't one of the greatest robberies as everyone was screaming about. I knew one guy who actually stopped watching boxing because of his outrage at the decision! Now that is taking it too far.

As you said, Hagler is to blame for not being more aggressive and persistent from the start. He let SRL take the first five rounds for crying out loud!

[hookoutofhell]

i watched the fight for the third time about 6 months ago. every time iv watched the fight iv watched it neutrally and every time i come to the same conclusion - 115-113 for sugar ray leonard.

imo hagler would have won if he had turned up for the first 5 rounds, of he hadn't been constantly switching stances and if he had made it a 15 rounder.

[GJC]

You need 6 rounds for a draw. Hagler did not win because Leonard did not lose.
Id like to see a show of hands of who did actually give Hagler 7 rounds

Like I've said I had it as a draw or a wafer thin Hagler win but I wouldn't give Hagler 7 rounds or indeed Leonard 7 rounds, I'd have to watch this again but as I recall there were a few level rounds in there?

[bojangles1987]

I don't consider that to be true, at all.

Have you actually watched the full fight, or just it's episode of "Legendary Nights" where they paint that picture?

Because Ray was doing more than just dancing and showing off.

118-110 is an awfully wide score, and the fight itself was definitely closer than that but I myself had it 7-5 Leonard.

I'm not going to pretend there's no way Leonard could be considered the winner, 115-113 Leonard is fine but most of those close rounds were only close because Leonard would throw some flurry at the beginning and end of those rounds, and get those rounds despite spending 75% of the round doing nothing. I hate that, so I scored most those rounds for Hagler because he did more work. Most of those flurries did nothing and missed too, they looked more impressive than they were.