thomas hearns vs sugar ray leonard
Eight years after their epic World Welterweight showdown, “Sugar Ray” Leonard and Thomas “Hitman” Hearns did battle, again in Las Vegas, and this time controversy, not a Leonard rally, robbed Hearns of his revenge. At the end of the 12th round, Leonard’s trainer, the legendary Angelo Dundee, yelled to Leonard that he was blowing the fight. The judges could have ruled that I lost. Hearns’ outstanding jab, just like my father predicted, totally carried rounds nine through twelve. [1] The two fighters had met previously nearly 8 years before with Leonard rallying in the 14th round to defeat Hearns by technical knockout after trailing on all three of the judge's scorecards. He would make one of the most incredible comebacks in boxing history when he defeated Marvin Hagler to win the WBC Middleweight title. First to Five? Watch: Sugar Ray Leonard Wants To Knock Out Hearns Even At 64. boxingnewsandviews.com - Niall Doran • 40m. It was promoted as "The War". Hearns scored the only two knockdowns of the fight, dropping Leonard in the third after grazing him with a right cross that caused Leonard to lose his footing and again in round 11 after landing consecutive right hands. My father was amazed at how Hearns utilized his height advantage by keeping all his opponents at bay with a sledgehammer of a left jab. A $500,000 per pound fine was to be paid by one fighter to the other should either come into the fight above the catch-weight,[3] though this turned out to not be an issue as Leonard weighed 160 pounds and Hearns came into the fight at 162. The contracts were signed at a press conference in New York City on January 31. The 1981 Fight of the Year between the WBA World Welterweight Champion Tommy Hearns and WBC World Welterweight Champion Sugar Ray Leonard. Quote from the article: "The victory made Leonard the first boxer to win titles in five weight divisions." Hearns was badly hurt and took a beating throughout the round. It was one of the rare times that the two best fighters on the planet would face each other. He easily outboxed Duran in the worst closed circuit fight my father and I ever attended. Leonard was 29-1, his only loss being the 15-round decision to Roberto Duran 15 months earlier. He got up just as the bell sounded to end the round. Sugar Ray Leonard vs. Thomas “Hit Man” Hearns. Wally McNamee/Getty Images "What the fans got to understand is: It was hot as hell in that ring," said Leonard, pointing out that this event was staged outdoors in the searing desert heat of Vegas, with temperatures that climbed into the mid-90s. In 1984, he would become the only man ever to put Roberto Duran to sleep as he knocked him out cold for several minutes in the second round. "[6], ^Note 1 For WBC and WBO Super Middleweight titles, Brother of Boxer Thomas Hearns Arrested in Weekend Shooting of Girlfriend, Woman, 20, Is Fatally Shot in Hearns’ Home : Boxer Says Fight Won’t Be Affected; Brother at Police Station in Michigan, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Sugar_Ray_Leonard_vs._Thomas_Hearns_II&oldid=1005951459, Boxing matches involving Sugar Ray Leonard, June 1989 sports events in the United States, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, This page was last edited on 10 February 2021, at 06:41. On February 9, 1991, I took my father to Madison Square Garden to see Leonard’s only fight ever in the Mecca of boxing against WBC Super Middleweight Champion Terry Norris. I'm proud I had a draw. He poured it on before referee Davey Pearl stopped the fight. Leonard then vacated his light heavyweight title, deciding to stay in the super middleweight division. Ray Leonard vs Thomas Hearns Fan scorecards. Ray Charles Leonard (born May 17, 1956), best known as "Sugar" Ray Leonard, is an American former professional boxer, motivational speaker, and occasional actor.Often regarded as one of the greatest boxers of all time, he competed from 1977 to 1997, winning world titles in five weight divisions; the lineal championship in three weight divisions; as well as the undisputed welterweight title. Late in the round Hearns went down, a combination of both fatigue and being hurt. He would engage in a rematch with both Hearns and Duran in 1989. Round seven saw Leonard race out and stalk Hearns. He needed a knockout in order to win. Then, late in the round, Leonard hurt Hearns again with a left hook to Hearns’ ribcage. Thomas Hearns (born October 18, 1958) is an American former professional boxer who competed from 1977 to 2006. Midway through the 13th round, Leonard staggered Hearns with a rocket of a right cross. Dubbed "The Showdown," the Sept. 16, 1981 unification bout for the undisputed welterweight championship between unbeaten Thomas Hearns and 30-1 Sugar Ray Leonard paired fighters thought by … “Without those guys, there is no Sugar Ray Leonard,” the 60-year-old Hall of Famer told The Ring. Sugar Ray Leonard Vs Thomas Hearns I. September 16, 1981 Las Vegas, Nevada Venue: Caesars Palace. In the summer of 1981, only two boxers mattered in America: WBA welterweight champion Thomas Hearns, and WBC welterweight champion Sugar Ray Leonard.Since the previous fall, when both men won huge fights – Hearns knocking out the dangerous Pipino Cuevas; Leonard forcing the great Roberto Duran to quit — this was the biggest match boxing could offer, the contest the whole world … Sugar Ray Leonard vs Thomas Hearns — September 16, 1981 [Full Fight] Best Boxing Matches. Though Leonard did not score a knockdown over Hearns, he would have a big round five, winning the round 10–8 on all three scorecards after dominating Hearns throughout the round. He didn’t look physically terrifying like Thomas Hearns. ... Sugar Ray Leonard, Thomas Hearns and 'The Showdown' of 1981. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. It would be the biggest fight in the history of the 147-pound division until the May 2, 2015 snorefest between Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao. Required fields are marked *. Sugar Ray Leonard vs. Thomas Hearns II, billed as "The War", was a professional boxing match contested on June 12, 1989 for the WBC and WBO super middleweight titles. Best Boxing Matches. Hearns won by revealing how great of a boxer he was and the incredible heart he showed surviving the sixth and seventh round when he was in deep trouble. As we sat in the same Puerto Rico Theater where we saw many of the great closed circuit fights of that era, my father explained to me that Hearns would control the fight by keeping Leonard at bay with his incomparable left jab. Sugar Ray Leonard and Tommy Hearns feature in fight one of a BBC Sounds look back at some of boxing's greatest fights. Leonard’s left eye was badly swollen, a result of the punishment that Hearns was inflicting with his jab. “Eight years of pain, with a little monster following me around,” was how “The Hit Man” described the time between Leonard vs Hearns I and Leonard vs Hearns II. Hearns, the WBA welterweight king was … Sugar Ray Leonard, after making Roberto Duran quit in their November, 1980 rematch to regain the WBC Welterweight title, now turned his attention to a unification fight with Hearns. Your email address will not be published. So I'm thankful for what I have. The first two years of his career, I read every article I could find about him in newspapers and magazines. See Also: Sugar Ray Leonard vs. Thomas Hearns I; Notes. Leonard was winging shots but was thwarted by the constant jabbing of Hearns. Leonard vs Hearns II wasn’t about Sugar Ray adding to his legacy by blasting a shot fighter out of the ring; it was about Hearns getting the revenge for which he had waited so long. A little over a year after defeating Hearns, Leonard was forced to retire due to a detached retina that he suffered as a result of the punishment he took in the Hearns fight. Hearns vs Leonard 2 lived up to the hype, and both men produced one of the best fights ever in the sport. My father disagreed vehemently. Sugar Ray Leonard Vs Tommy Hearns ll ( … SUGAR RAY LEONARD draw pts 12 THOMAS HEARNS June 12, 1989; Caesars Palace, Las Vegas, NV HEARNS spent most of the eighties chasing this rematch with Sugar Ray Leonard … You had two of the best, if not the best, fighters on the planet with the winner to be regarded as the best in all of boxing.Leonard, the reigning WBC welterweight champion, had avenged his only defeat to Roberto Duran in the infamous “No Mas” rematch. In fact, Sugar Ray Leonard has even stated publicly that he gives their second fight to Tommy. Both fighters, however, accepted the decision with Leonard stating "I think we both showed we're champions. The draw was controversial as most who watched the match, including the television announcers had Hearns winning by enough to be surprised by the official scoring. Las Vegas, Nevada Brace For IMPACT: Should IMPACT sign Samoa Joe? Sugar Ray Leonard vs Thomas Hearns II. The eighth round saw a complete reversal of roles. "[5], In a hard fought bout, Leonard and Hearns would go the full 12-round distance and ultimately fight to a draw as one judge (Jerry Roth) scored the fight 113–112 for Hearns, another (Tom Kaczmarek) scored the fight the same albeit in Leonard's favor and the third (Dalby Shirley) had the fight even at 112–112. The first half of the sixth round followed the same pattern as the first five rounds until Leonard rocked Hearns with a vicious right cross, left hook combination that stunned Hearns. Nicknamed the "Motor City Cobra", and more famously "The Hitman", Hearns' tall, slender build and oversized arms and shoulders allowed him to move up over fifty pounds in his career and become the first boxer in history to win world titles in five weight divisions: … I accept the decision." Norris gave him a one sided beating, as Leonard barely survived the entire 12 rounds. Thomas Hearns was the first fighter I idolized whose career I followed from the very beginning. Jake Paul’s KO Of Ben Askren, Oscar De La Hoya’s Commentary Highlight Absurd Triller PPV, Greatest Knockouts in Boxing History: 10. The first two years of his career, I read every article I could find about him in newspapers and magazines. Then in 1985, he would challenge Marvin Hagler for the Undisputed Middleweight title. Sugar Ray Leonard found some extra energy in the later rounds to finish Thomas Hearns in the 14th. Round 14 saw Leonard land another crushing right hand that had Hearns all but out on his feet. Leonard was behind on points entering the thirteenth, when--inspired by a legendary tirade from Angelo Dundee ("You're blowin' it, son!") The fight was billed as "The War." Thomas Hearns vs Sugar Ray Leonard rematch. 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