roberto duran vs sugar ray leonard 1

[boxerbob]

i have recently bought a ray leonard career set , 2 fights on it i couldnt wait to see as i have only seen brief highlights of....leonard vs hearns 1...... and leonard vs duran 1.

leonard vs duran....what a f.ucking fight , i scored it 7-7-1 a draw but had no problem with the judges scores as duran was the agressor

i think i will need to watch that fight again but i will wait till i finish watching the set.

2 men at thier best producing such a war....both beat each other in thier prime.

i need a lie down after watching that , i bet sugar ray sides must have bean dead after that body attack by roberto.

[ringsider]

Roberto beat the shit out of him. If you scored it 7-7-1 then you might want to make an appointment with the eye doctor.

[Ezzard]

It was close on the cards but Duran controlled the bout, took time iff when it suited him.

Brilliant performance by both men. Leonard showed that he had the heart of a lion whilst Duran showed his speed and boxing skill.

One of my favourites.

[boxerbob]

look mate , been judgeing fights for over 15 years , the fight was close

i do think duran deserved to win but i had leonard stealing the last 2 rounds to get the draw....as said i will watch it again when i finish watching the career set.

most of the rounds duran won he won them big , some of the rounds leonard won he won by a whisker , i look forward to watching the fight again as the round i gave even was the 11th.

in that round it was shot for shot but thinking back to it duran had leonard on the ropes so as said he was the agressor , this would have made my card 8-7 to duran but you cant change your mind during a fight!

great fight

[Goodnight, Irene]

i have recently bought a ray leonard career set , 2 fights on it i couldnt wait to see as i have only seen brief highlights of....leonard vs hearns 1...... and leonard vs duran 1.

leonard vs duran....what a f.ucking fight , i scored it 7-7-1 a draw but had no problem with the judges scores as duran was the agressor

i think i will need to watch that fight again but i will wait till i finish watching the set.

2 men at thier best producing such a war....both beat each other in thier prime.

i need a lie down after watching that , i bet sugar ray sides must have bean dead after that body attack by roberto.

Actually Duran was at his peak as Lightweight, a few years before. He was even better there than when he faced Leonard at Welter.

Still, it was indeed a beautiful contest. I had it 8-6-1 Duran.

[thunderfromdownunder]

personally i had duran winning by wider margins than all the judges

[elmersalsa]

personally i had duran winning by wider margins than all the judges

I got to agree with you on that....That fight was not close at all...Leonard made it "look close" by clutching and grabbing the whole entire fight. It would have been much worse if Leonard wouldn't grab so much.

[dempseyfire]

Duran-Leonard 1 was a very close fight. I haven't scored it in ages but I remember scoring it for Duran by one point and it could've easily been a draw. Those who say Duran won by a lopsided score simply don't like Leonard and/or are HUGE Duran fanatics.

[BroughtonRulesRefuge]

Duran-Leonard 1 was a very close fight. I haven't scored it in ages but I remember scoring it for Duran by one point and it could've easily been a draw. Those who say Duran won by a lopsided score simply don't like Leonard and/or are HUGE Duran fanatics.

--- Duran whupped the sugar out of the house fighter.

Doesn't matter what corrupt judges score, the fighters and the public knew, and as a huge Leonard fan in the day before I stopped drinking kiddie koolaide, I was shocked how easily Duran put a beating on him.

Made him announce his retirement the next day at the start of his prime. In the next breath you'll be telling us about a horrible beating Leonard delivers on Duran in the rematch, when actually Duran dismisses him for being such a weenie, and what does Leonard do?

Why he jumps on Duran walking away and hits on him the back like any proper weenie would. Case closed.

[Goodnight, Irene]

Duran-Leonard 1 was a very close fight. I haven't scored it in ages but I remember scoring it for Duran by one point and it could've easily been a draw. Those who say Duran won by a lopsided score simply don't like Leonard and/or are HUGE Duran fanatics.

I think the point of your second sentence was just validated by the post below you.

[elmersalsa]

Duran-Leonard 1 was a very close fight. I haven't scored it in ages but I remember scoring it for Duran by one point and it could've easily been a draw. Those who say Duran won by a lopsided score simply don't like Leonard and/or are HUGE Duran fanatics.

It's not that I am a Duran fanatic, it was the TRUTH...Duran, smaller, went 12 pounds to challenge Sugar Ray and still whupped him with all the supposed speed that he should have had. A Draw? my ass.

All that talk of a close fight was all about media coverage to protect Sugar Ray's legacy. According to the media, he elected to brawl instead of box, he fought Duran's fight, blah, blah, blah,....like if Duran was not supposed to win the fight or something. There was no talk of how Duran made him miss in close encounters, how surprisingly Duran was as fast as Leonard, and even Leonard was SURPRISED of the hand and foot speed of the great Roberto Duran. NOBODY TALKS ABOUT THAT.

Then comes that MEDIA GARBAGE of how "perfectly" Leonard fought his fight this time around running around in circles, but NOBODY remembers the speed and sharpness of Duran was not even in the fight. Nobody talked that Duran looked slow, even gunshy, but media claims that Leonard outboxed him? What a bunch of garbage...I wonder if Duran was an American and Leonard Panamanian, would they said that?...I don't think so.

[ringsider]

Duran-Leonard 1 was a very close fight. I haven't
scored it in ages but I remember scoring it for Duran by one point and
it could've easily been a draw. Those who say Duran won by a lopsided
score simply don't like Leonard and/or are HUGE Duran fanatics.

It's
not that I am a Duran fanatic, it was the TRUTH...Duran, smaller, went
12 pounds to challenge Sugar Ray and still whupped him with all the
supposed speed that he should have had. A Draw? my ass.

All
that talk of a close fight was all about media coverage to protect
Sugar Ray's legacy. According to the media, he elected to brawl instead
of box, he fought Duran's fight, blah, blah, blah,....like if Duran was
not supposed to win the fight or something. There was no talk of how
Duran made him miss in close encounters, how surprisingly Duran was as
fast as Leonard, and even Leonard was SURPRISED of the hand and foot
speed of the great Roberto Duran. NOBODY TALKS ABOUT THAT.

Then
comes that MEDIA GARBAGE of how "perfectly" Leonard fought his fight
this time around running around in circles, but NOBODY remembers the
speed and sharpness of Duran was not even in the fight. Nobody talked
that Duran looked slow, even gunshy, but media claims that Leonard
outboxed him? What a bunch of garbage...I wonder if Duran was an
American and Leonard Panamanian, would they said that?...I don't think
so.

Absolutely right on the mark!!!

[Goodnight, Irene]

"It's not that I am a Duran fanatic, it was the TRUTH...Duran, smaller, went 12 pounds to challenge Sugar Ray and still whupped him with all the supposed speed that he should have had. A Draw? my ass.

All that talk of a close fight was all about media coverage to protect Sugar Ray's legacy. According to the media, he elected to brawl instead of box, he fought Duran's fight, blah, blah, blah,....like if Duran was not supposed to win the fight or something. There was no talk of how Duran made him miss in close encounters, how surprisingly Duran was as fast as Leonard, and even Leonard was SURPRISED of the hand and foot speed of the great Roberto Duran. NOBODY TALKS ABOUT THAT.

Then comes that MEDIA GARBAGE of how "perfectly" Leonard fought his fight this time around running around in circles, but NOBODY remembers the speed and sharpness of Duran was not even in the fight. Nobody talked that Duran looked slow, even gunshy, but media claims that Leonard outboxed him? What a bunch of garbage...I wonder if Duran was an American and Leonard Panamanian, would they said that?...I don't think so." - Elmer

I see what you're getting at, &, in truth, I agree with you --- on everything except your assertion the fight wasn't close. It was. Duran won deservedly, but the win was relatively narrow, without being in doubt. Still, the rest of what you say rings true to me.

[dempseyfire]

Duran-Leonard 1 was a very close fight. I haven't scored it in ages but I remember scoring it for Duran by one point and it could've easily been a draw. Those who say Duran won by a lopsided score simply don't like Leonard and/or are HUGE Duran fanatics.

It's not that I am a Duran fanatic, it was the TRUTH...Duran, smaller, went 12 pounds to challenge Sugar Ray and still whupped him with all the supposed speed that he should have had. A Draw? my ass.

All that talk of a close fight was all about media coverage to protect Sugar Ray's legacy. According to the media, he elected to brawl instead of box, he fought Duran's fight, blah, blah, blah,....like if Duran was not supposed to win the fight or something. There was no talk of how Duran made him miss in close encounters, how surprisingly Duran was as fast as Leonard, and even Leonard was SURPRISED of the hand and foot speed of the great Roberto Duran. NOBODY TALKS ABOUT THAT.

Then comes that MEDIA GARBAGE of how "perfectly" Leonard fought his fight this time around running around in circles, but NOBODY remembers the speed and sharpness of Duran was not even in the fight. Nobody talked that Duran looked slow, even gunshy, but media claims that Leonard outboxed him? What a bunch of garbage...I wonder if Duran was an American and Leonard Panamanian, would they said that?...I don't think so.

To be honest, I was much more of a Duran fan than Leonard. And yes the media favord Ray, and I think the logic of Leonard only losing b/c he 'fought Duran's fight' is bogus.

But that still doesn't change the fact that the fight was close. Duran lost at least 6 rounds and others were close. To claim otherwise is just not true.

[ringsider]

Duran beat the shit out of Leonard in that fight. End of story......

[boxerbob]

great debate i have started....now...

having jus watched the rematch , why the hell did roberto quit?? , he was behind yes but i had it 4-3 (sugar ray) at that point and roberto looked like he was winning the 8th

in sugar rays book he says that after 7 rounds he felt he was ahead but knew there was alot of time left and he felt the fight style was changing a bit to more of a brawl

did roberto ever give a reason why he suddenly quit???

ps: i thought duran looked a bit out of shape for the rematch , he did fight at a very controlled pace although nothing like the first fight...was thier any problem with weigh from duran from this fight as this might have explained his slow pace.

great debate and as mentioned when i finish my sugar ray set i will have another look at the leonard / duran 1st fight again

[BroughtonRulesRefuge]

great debate i have started....now...

having jus watched the rematch , why the hell did roberto quit?? , he was behind yes but i had it 4-3 (sugar ray) at that point and roberto looked like he was winning the 8th

in sugar rays book he says that after 7 rounds he felt he was ahead but knew there was alot of time left and he felt the fight style was changing a bit to more of a brawl

did roberto ever give a reason why he suddenly quit???

ps: i thought duran looked a bit out of shape for the rematch , he did fight at a very controlled pace although nothing like the first fight...was thier any problem with weigh from duran from this fight as this might have explained his slow pace.

--- Usual debate started by new fans unfamiliar with the territory and waged by fanatical fans who either don't know what went down or don't care what went down.

Well known Duran had to drop something like 40 something lbs in 6-7 weeks. Ate two full steak dinners after the weighin, rested for a couple of hours, stepped into the ring and found his steak dinners rattling round his bowels looking for an exit. Never a welt again.

Go see Joan Guzman as a Duran lite modern example. Backed out of three fights now because he couldn't make weight in spite of continuing to climb the divisions as one of the most formidable talents of this era.

The only reason Leonard fans can claim the first fight was close was because Duran backed off the last 3 rds, celebrating and clowning Leonard. Got to give Leonard credit for never giving up, but we know who took the beating that fight. That was one of Duran's easiest bouts because he really got his hackles up for this fight, joy in his element waging the worst kind of war on a soft American Sugar Boy.

[Seamus]

Roberto Duran was known for huge weight gains between fights as a LW, and that was with an active schedule. Carlos Eleta, his manager, said he didn't do anything different after the first Leonard fight, that he didn't normally do between bouts.

[Goodnight, Irene]

Duran established himself as a Lightweight at a young age, though. He was nearly ten years removed from his victory over Buchanan when he first met Leonard. Perhaps years of going up & down in weight, coupled with advancing age (even at twenty-nine, going up-&-down can take a toll --- look at Riddick Bowe) had an enhanced impact on Duran, Seamus.

[elmersalsa]

Roberto Duran was known for huge weight gains between fights as a LW, and that was with an active schedule. Carlos Eleta, his manager, said he didn't do anything different after the first Leonard fight, that he didn't normally do between bouts.

It is true of what have you said, but IT WAS NEVER BEFORE A BIG FIGHT and for the kind of opponent that Leonard was.

[vagabundo55]

I've always felt this fight was a testament of Duran's greatness. Many times a lightweight has moved up to welterweight and challenged for a title, though so few times has that lightweight won a fair battle. What makes it even more impressive is that Leonard was a great fighter in his own right. When I watch this match, I must give credit to Leonard who tried to duke it out with arguably the greatest lightweight of all-time. The next fight he got on his bicycle and realized that would be the only way he'd beat Duran. Still, the fact that Leonard was in fact a natural welterweight in his prime while Duran was a natural lightweight at his best, (or to say the very least both fighters were at their optimum weight in those weight classes) and yet Duran was able to use his amazing brawling and counter-punching skills to outwork the speedier, bigger Leonard in what can without be a doubt be called a great fight.

[elmersalsa]

I agree with the post above...To me, this fight was not "close" like the media want to call it...Duran whupped him...Close my ass!!!

[SUGARRAYSMELEE]

I think people are getting confused on this topic.

To say the "fight" was close, is just not true.

There were a lot of close "rounds" which Duran won in the fight, because of the close "rounds", the actual "fight" looked closer than it was. However, since Duran won most of those close "rounds", the "fight", was not close.

[SaadOffTheDeck]

It was competitive throughout, there is no denying Duran won. Any draw card is nonsense. Leonard pretty clearly won the last 2 rounds, so that makes an 8-6-1 or 9-6 look closer than it really was. He took a terrible beating in there and he took it like a man. It should be one of Leonard's proudest ring moments. Not many men could have absorbed that type of ass kicking for 45 minutes.

[Deadendgeneration]

It was competitive throughout, there is no denying Duran won. Any draw card is nonsense. Leonard pretty clearly won the last 2 rounds, so that makes an 8-6-1 or 9-6 look closer than it really was. He took a terrible beating in there and he took it like a man. It should be one of Leonard's proudest ring moments. Not many men could have absorbed that type of ass kicking for 45 minutes.

Pretty much the way I see it too. Duran put a bit of a beating on Sugar Ray but by giving the last 2 rounds away, made it a bit closer than it needed to be.