I'm 57, and a fight fan. That said, I'vd never seen a more well rounded fighter in all of my life who can match the Sugar-Man. Mof, Ray Leonard is the fighter who made it possible for the lower weight divisions to earn the BIG BUCKS. This is a FACT that even other fighters don't realize. Pound for pound in the golden age of the 70's & 80's, there was no one better. NO ONE!!! WWG1WGA
Ray Leonard as far as I know was the 1st boxer who after winning a gold medal, was followed via television from his pro debut all the way until finally winning the welterweight title. There were other very talented lighter division amateur boxers in the late 70s--Howard Davis, Clint Jackson, Davey Armstrong, & others--but when they got into a particularly tough bout, they just seemed to give up. Leonard had that something extra, winning bouts that appeared to have been lost (Hearns, Hagler, Lalonde) with dynamism, heart, & killer instinct.
@@pamle1 The 1976 Olympic team and Rocky 1 jump started the last golden age of boxing. And yes, Ray Leonard brought the mega bucks to the lower weights.If pay per view existed when Ray fought and half the world was free from Communism to purchase and watch,like it is now,Leonard would have made as much as Mayweather.
Sugar Ray Leonard é um verdadeiro campeão de boxe. Ele é bailarino, dançarino e muito rápido nos golpes eficientes. Em suma, o Sugar Ray Leonard é um grande pugilista guerreiro.
I was watching boxing when I was barely 1yrs.old. I always liked the light weights and welter weights Ray was my childhood favorite hands down win or losing a fight. Ray was a lean speed fighting machine. He hurt many an old man's pride in the ring. By the way I am 47yrs. old now.
This was risky here.Kalule was 38-0,and this was like a prelude to the Hearns fight.Ray won the Jr Middleweight title just before his Super fight with Hearns.It seems he never got credit for this accomplishment.He never Cherry picked an opponent!
Eddie Lester ....💯!! Unlike the one claiming to be the best PFP crybaby Floyd 👿 Ray not only a great fighter but a classy Champion...he would've knocked the crap out of the 🍒🍒 picker in his prime...plus Hearns and Duran would have bullied him silly
@@harrysher7329 yes Harry.. Look how long it took for him and Manny to fight. This fight should have taken place 12 years earlier when they were at a lower weight!
@@MrDuds1984 Mr Duds in respect to your comment remember this was also a timing issue on Ray's part...Detached retina..coming out of retirement over and over. Remember there are risks in this sport. Not to mention Ray had to grow into a Natural Middleweight. Hagler perfected his weight class and weight. 1983 would have been a perfect time for them to fight. Leonard also came straight to Hagler after retirement. Five years....no tune up.I still think Hagler had a lot in the Tank...Because Mugabi was never the same after Hagler beat him.He took the most punishment in my opinion.
Eddie Lester I love Ray but he could have gone straight to Hagler after the first Hearns fight but he took on Bruce Finch which was an easy fight, Am award of the retinal issues but there were many doctors out there who said it wasn’t an issue. Ray also had also successfully moved up to Jr Middleweight by defeating AK so Hagler naturally should have been next. He also had his chance after coming out of retirement to fight Kevin Howard he could have kept going but choose to hang them up again. The Mugabi fight took a lot out of Hagler as well that was a war that’s where Ray saw his opening. Their fight in 87’was not exactly a classic but would have been better three years earlier same with Mayweather and PAC
the bit about the witch doctor before the fight was just so stupid and phony. Here's Kalule's quote about the "doctor": " "I am embarrassed, why do they do this to me, like I am a fool? I didn't just come out of the jungle. Take him away."
What a brave performance from Kalule who gave everything he had to defend his title. Relatively one sided as it was, Leonard had to work hard for this victory. A very entertaining fight.
Ayub wasn't questioning the stoppage. He was a good sport about it. He was still staggering minutes later, yet Ferdie Pacheco and Tommy wanted to see him go back out in the 10th? Great fight!
Ray really was the most complete fighter we had ever seen at that time. He was the 1st fighter to leave the game with his head and his bank accounts intact.
@Sidney Lordjones OK, so we both think that Robinson was the greatest fighter ever... Then why do you have an issue with me disagreeing with somebody who said that someone else was the most complete fighter ever?? And incidentally, the word is 'millennial'...
I rank Leonard in the top 20 P4P all time.He always finds a way to win.One of the best chins in boxing history He was also out of boxing for 5 years & those were the prime years of his career.He took Hearn;s (one of the hardest punchers p4p all time) best shots in one of the greatest ww champion ship fights all time,Stopping him in round 14.
Sports mainstream it was, but fights like this were commonplace on network TV all the time through the seventies and eighties. And the BIG fights were as big as anything in U.S. sports.
I wouldn't call it a "terrible" stop, but yeah Kalule was in trouble. And Sugar Ray Leonard could have really knocked him out, ala davey boy green/lalonde etc. which wasn't necessary. SRL had the fight in control so it wasn't like Kalule was going to get a decision if it had gone on. It would have been a worse stop had it been close in points, too.
Not a terrible stop! Kalule would've, gotten killed, had the fight, went on. And we do not need that! Kalule didn't want to continue, he even said that he couldn't continue.
I wonder if Leonard was already looking toward an eventual fight with Hagler at this point? Kalule a right-handed southpaw, compact, strong, although a light-middle probably as close to Hagler stylistically as anyone out there.
Both Leonard and Hearns fought on this card in Houston Texans Pipino Cuevas also fought a 1 round knockout of Jangen Hanson Hearns knockout of Pablo Biased. Ray Leonard a 9th round knockout of Kalule to win the junior middleweight titlem Then the big fight September 16. 1981
He gave us spectacular fights back then when I was coming up. Sugar, Hearns, Hagler, Duran. All of them were great! I only wish Roy Jones Jr. was their age. I don't think any of them would stand a chance with Roy! Jmho
This version of Sugar Ray would've mopped the floor with Macho Camacho and Terrible Terry Norris. He's a fast, strong, young mean fighting machine right here.
Duran would have beat Ray in the rematch if Ray would have wanted to face Duran when Duran was at his best. Ray paid off Don King and Duran's corner to convince him to fight when he couldn't be fully prepared. IF, what if Duran was young and in his prime and Ray had moved up 2 divisions after 70+ fights to challenge Duran.....Ray leaves in a body bag.
@@davidchung1697 that is because Duran was not prepared for the fight. Watch the 2 fights, compare the conditioning with Duran in both fights, he doesn't even look like the same guy. Ray threw most of his purse at Duran's team to get them to sign for a fight that they knew Duran could not be ready for. Ray knew it and that's how he wanted it and that's how it shook out because Ray was the American boxing darling and they wanted Ray to have the Title. Ray says it himself even to this day, that his 'strategy' was to get Duran in the ring at less than 100%. What kind of 'champ' does that?
And these young kids think that Mayweather or Pacquiao or Hopkins could do ANYTHING with Leonard?! Todays fighters wouldn't have a chance against him! Sugar Ray literally just fought Kalule just to get some work in. He had the power and speed over him yet chose to come in flat footed and bang this guy into submission! It would've been interesting though to see Sugar in his prime versus a Roy Jones Jr or Shane Mosely in their primes.
Leonard was nothing but a second rate Ali clone whose career was propped up with fixes, two duran fights, two hearns fights ,benitez, this fight,and the Hagler fight. When he was no longer protected he got beaten and carried by Terry Norris and knocked out by a washed up light hitting Hector Camacho,. mayweather and Paciauo would mop the floor with him just like all his fixes would have if they were not fixed with the exception of Kalule.
@@aracelyemmett3493 are you a child? You must be a kid.....who didnt get to follow him. He was a pitbull in the ring with an indomitable will to win.......My only beef is yes, he didnt stay in the game and would have yrs of inactivity, only to come back and fight whoever he wanted. This is a slap in the face to hard working boxers who had to do it the hard way......HOWEVER...Ray paid in full for that privilege early on by being sensational and his charisma (ppl loved him) Not least of all....HE WON!! He beat some amazing talent....Duran, Stopped Benitez!!, went up to ko Kalule (who was legit), Had a back and forth show of courage against Hearns, then we all know he VERY closely edged out the invincible Hagler.......so be careful when throwing your OPINIONS around and remember.....That is all they are.....and everybody's got one.
@@aracelyemmett3493 your a joke go play with your fraud dolls oh i mean floyd he was a cherry picker fab four would have knocked. Fraud out cold know your boxing before you spew garbage out of it get a life!!😂😂😂
As great as leonard was, he never gave hearns nor Benitez rematches and definitely not at 154. Hearns at 154 is more dangerous than at 147, at least against leonard. leonard proved to be stronger. Benitez was a tough one for Ray to hit and a better chin than hearns. I thought like many that hearns was invincible at 147. once leonard exposed him, that changed.
Left the game with his money and his brains, a thinking man's fighter, moves in and out side to side good head movement great foot speed and hand speed, good chin, doesn't get hit too often.....as close to a complete fighter as he could be....also moved up from welterweight to jr. Middleweight and then dropped back down welterweight and defeated Tommy hearns
With this fight, I was a bit scared that,Leonard was going to loose😮. But Leonard proofed me wrong. I steamed so loud, that everybody heard me that morning. I was so happy 😅
I'm wondering if the stoppage was against the rules. When the count went to 10, the referee asked if he was okay and he looked relatively okay. The issue is; how can the referee stop the fight after the round is over? They always say if the bell rings to end a round, if a fighter is down, he still has to get to his feet,......he has to beat the count. What that means is that getting to his feet is the only factor necessary for the man to be able to continue the fight. It doesn't say anything about the referee making a call based on his opinion of the fighter's condition, only that the fighter has to beat the count and get to his feet. In other words, the round had ended, and the referee basically intruded on his rest period. Kalule should have automatically been allowed a one minute rest period at that time. Everyone knows a fighter can recover during a one minute rest. If the fighter comes out for the next round and isn't steady on his feet, or doesn't raise his gloves to protect himself, then the referee can stop the fight within the first exchange. I don't think the referee should be able to go into a fighters rest period to make that call. What if Kalule, for example, had been knocked down and it happened right in his own corner. He could have stood up, just like he did, then sat right down if the stool had been put there for him. Under those circumstances, what could the referee say? The man got to his feet, the round clock had expired, if Kalule sat down quickly without waiting for the referee to make a decision about his condition, the referee wouldn't have the right to object, and to force him to stand up and then to examine his condition. What makes it worse is that Kalule was the champion, but he got no respect that's due a champion. The round is over and should be beyond the referee's control as soon as the fighter stands up before the count of ten. I think Kalule was robbed of having another chance. Nobody knows if it would have made a difference, but that doesn't matter. The rules are what count, and they weren't followed here I believe. I think the referee didn't know the clock expired, and that could be because nobody rang the bell. if the guy didn't ring the bell because he was waiting for the knockdown to play out, then he made a mistake. The bell should be rung regardless, because a situation just like this wouldn't happen if the referee hears the bell. I'll bet if the bell had been rung, the referee would have automatically sent Kalule back to his corner to continue the next round. If not, I think that he would have been making a mistake. I would like to see what the rules are in that situation.
@@blite13 beat Benitez 32-0-1,Duran 72-1,Kalule 36-0,Hearns 32-0(30) and Hagler 62-2-2 after 1 fight in 5 years and Hagler's first loss in 11 years.Lineal,real champion from 147-160.I'll put those stats and opponents against anyone.You must have lost a ton of money betting against him.
@@jeremysipes44 now look at the stories behind those wins. he beat Hagler? Ray waited for Marvin to get really old before he would 'fight' him. Ray didn't want a prime Marvin, just like he didn't want a prime Duran. He lost to Hearns in the rematch and should have lost the 1st fight, if only Manny wouldn't have weighed Tommy in 2 lbs under the limit on the day of the fight. Some how Manny messed that up? Manny was good friends with Ray and we know how much Ray liked to pay people off to get what he wanted....context is a good thing.... Benitez and Kalule were no big deal. Benitez beat an under trained Duran and that is about all he did.
There was saving by the bell and the stoppage was against the rules but nothing was done in their appeal. They stopped it just in case Kalue could get lucky because the big hearns fight was next, Money talks in boxing.
At no point was Sugar Ray ever in jeopardy. He stayed right in front of Kalule and fought him. As far as suggestions that the fight was stopped prematurely, I think Kalule said something that compelled the referee to stop the fight. The problem was instead of the cameramen staying focused on Kalule and the referee, they cut away briefly to Leonard in the neutral corner then returned to Kalule, who, from what I could tell, shook his head albeit rather faintly, as if to answer "no" to the referee's probable question along the lines of "do you want to continue?". I don't believe the fix was in.
My THEORY here is that RAY LEONARD took this FIGHT because he and his CAMP were UNCERTAIN about VICTORY in the UPCOMING MEGA FIGHT with THOMAS HEARNS......so the LEONARD CAMP figured that if RAY had lost to Thomas Hearns in their upcoming WELTERWEIGHT TITLE UNIFICATION bout in SEPTEMBER [1981]....at least RAY would STILL hold the WBA JUNIOR MIDDLEWEIGHT title....and still be a CHAMPION......RAY knew that KALULE would NEVER beat him..... even if the BOUT had somehow gone to the SCORECARDS......RAY would have certainly won by UNANIMOUS DECISION.......so this was a BRILLIANT move by the LEONARD CAMP.......Kalule was a GAME FIGHTER.....and at times [in the BOUT] fought fairly well against LEONARD.....but RAY was in a whole other TALENT LEAGUE [far above KALULE]......the few pounds difference did NOT give KALULE ANY real advantage in the BOUT......besides RAY had fought MUCH BETTER COMPETITION than KALULE ever did.....this was a BOUT tailor made for RAY......
Lots of low blows by Leonard. He should have been at least warned. It was stopped too early. But then, Leonard got the breaks from the refs and judges in every fight he was in.
@@buckeyesmith782 your a poor looser and a p. Y what your mouth boy hagler lossed period cry some more i was there fans told ya hagler loss by 3 rd. Me best friend is a hagler fan and said marvin (rip) fought the wrong fight got out smarted and lost end of story go cry on hagler page
he was scared of Hagler....that is why Ray waited until Marvin's legs were shot before he would step in the ring with him. AND, Ray paid off Duran and his corner to take a fight everyone knew Duran could not be ready for. Ray said his strategy was to get a less than 100% Duran into the ring, it's the only way he felt he could win. Pathetic.
@@samestuffdifferentday5712 Duran wasn't scared of him. Duran fought Hagler at his peak. Ray, kept quitting and looked very bad vs Howard. Ray waited until the old guys got older before he would agree to fight them. Ray felt like he had to have an advantage before entering the ring, IMO, that is because deep down, he felt he could not win without it. Ray was lucky Tommy weighed in 2 lbs under the limit of 147 in their 1st bout. Tommy's legs went as Ray was about to lose. Ray IMO, is overrated and was promoted to be the next Ali, Ray didn't fight enough to be called great.
@@blite13didn't fight enough. Are u insane. Your opinion is shitty and u know nothing. Leonard is rated top ranked by all boxing experts. Just because you don't like him doesn't mean he isn't a legend. I don't like Michael Moorer but he could fight.
Leonard ain't n his prime like here beats hagler in his prime no doubt Leonard could take a punch and walk through so many shots he was always confidence could adopt to any fighter and the Heart of a Kodiak bear!!
@ 5:22 ............. SUGAR RAY LEONARD's son predicted that his Dad would "win by 10th ROUND KNOCK OUT" !!!!......... and his prediction was 100% correct , lol ....... Well, he missed by only 1 round, lol
What a pity Sugar Ray missed the most important years of his carreer beween '82 and '87be cause of repeated injuries,he could have a dozen of championship victories .He could be the greatest of the history.Anyway,I consider him better than Ali because more various in his blows,better puncher and let's don't forget that Ali benefited of his reach then Leonard was not tall and should move all his body.It would be interesting to ask to Angelo Dundee who trained both of them who was the best.
Frédéric Avalli Ali's best years were stripped from him between 67-70. In 1966 and early 1967 you saw the Ali that had devastating speed, punching power, reflexes, skill, and stamina. Leonard was a great boxer/puncher, worked the body well, stamina, and chin. But, the Ali of the mid to late 60's was as good as there has ever been in boxing history.
Eugene McGirt I am not sure that the young Ali would have beaten Foreman.In 1973-1974 he was smarter and stronger.In the 60's he hadn't beaten anybody at the contrary of the young Leonard.And the Leonard's missing years were a misfortune the the Ali's missing years were a political choice.
Ali would have defeated Foreman in the same manner he defeated Sonny Liston. George was quite similar to Sonny in size, style, and power... Muhammad dealt with guys like that because he could handle their power. Ali was special in that regard with his ability to absorb major punishment. Leonard's missing years were a hazard that come with the profession. Ali's missing years were caused by governmental influence. Ray "retired" on his own. Ali was "prevented" from boxing by commissions. There's a difference.
When Ray Leonard won this fight an AMB 154 pound in june 1981. Wilfred Benítez won 154 pound CMB title in may 1981. And said fight unificación title with Benítez remach and Leonard said no way fight with Benítez in 154 pound. And Leonard quit 154 AMB title. To down to 147 pound again. And fight with Thomas Hearns in sept. 1981.
The reason he went up to take this fight was because he knew he could beat him ; and that would mean that if he should lose to Hearns he would still hold a world title ! Thinking about the money
@@deankeith830 you are ok. But when Benítez fight with Durán Durán in 1/30/1982. Leonard will fight with the winner that fight. Beacuse all people san Durán win that fight. And Benítez dominate Durán clearly. Leonard again say not fight with Benítez. After Benítez, Durán fight. Howard Cossell ( RIP) make a question to Benítez. How next. Leonard again or Hagler. Benítez say both fighter. And Cossell say all ready for Sugar Ray Leonard fight. Or maybe Marvin Hagler. Leonard had two choice for fight with Benítez. And Leonard decline fight again with Benítez.
Ray missed seven punches leading up to 11:25 point, I`m comparing this fight to Norris v Brown 2. Just starting watching the Norris rematch and he looked quicker than Ray did here, only saw opening moments but Terry missed a hook but it wasn`t as sloppy as Ray`s misses. Ray misses 3 shots up to 11:56, Ray has missed 10 here while watching he had missed only 3 early boxing economically compared to Ray. Sugar caught by a rare jab at 12:05.
Ray misses wildly with a right but follows with a left hook to finish a quick effective combo at 11:59. Ray missed nine punches after this point up to 12:35, McCallum also missed a lot v Kalule. Lead right to the body misses from Ray at 12:41.
Leonard did have a flaw in his game. When he went after a guy and was the aggressor he was not as good as when he was boxing in the middle of the ring or counter punching. He struggled with Larry Bonds this way and he struggles here. Remember the Hearn's fight where Hearns was effective moving and boxing. That was not Leonard's strength. Ray also relies a bit too much on his chin getting sloppy and being hit with too many clean punches. Ray also had problems in fights where he went in believing he was the stronger guy or that the other guy did not have the chin to take his punches. That was his problem with Hearns in the 2nd fight and in the Norris fight where he used the Julian Jackson KO of Norris to think he could do the same thing.
He is the most complete fighter I ever saw. Brave as a lion, fit as a flea , could counter box , on the front foot or side to side. , was very clever and hand speed was on a different level. Incredible athlete
Quite sad. Kalule was not hurt, the ref asked him if he could continue, Kalule said "yes" in bad english. The ref thought he said "no". At that time, Kalule was taking over the fight. Perhaps too late, but he was beginning to dominate Leonard.