BoxRec

Former Olympic Gold medalist and World Heavyweight Boxing Champion, Leon Spinks, dies of prostrate cancer at age 67.

On Friday, February 15, 1978 in Caesars Palace in Las Vegas, Spinks, only 24 years old, upset the great Muhammad Ali by split decision. It was the greatest victory of his career as a pro. He won the title against an aging Ali in his 8th pro fight.

R.I.P, champ! Nobody will forget what you did on that night of Friday, February 15, 1978.

Oh that's really sad. RIP Leon. You were one of a kind.

Having only seven professional bouts under his belt, Leon Spinks made the most of his opportunity by fighting aggressively with tremendous determination to win by a split-decision and the world heavyweight title when facing an aging champion, Muhammad Ali, in a fifteen-round bout. To be sure, Leon lost the title to Ali in a rematch and went on to have a very spotty career, much of the latter due to some severe personal problems, but to win the world heavyweight title with so little previous pro experience was a tremendous achievement, even if Ali was far past his peak. RIP, Champ.........

- Chuck Johnston

Sad to hear. For all his troubles, he seemed like one of the good guys.

rip

does anyone else have a bigger mismatch between their top win and the overall quality of their career?

I got to know Neon Leon a bit over the years, first interviewing him in New Orleans ahead of the second Ali fight, and again in 1985 when he was in negotiations to fight 1984 Olympic silver medalist Willie de Wit. He showed up for the HOF induction weekend in Canastota every year and was always a huge hit with the fans. He was very personable, with a great sense of humor. If an autograph seeker was pushy or rude, he would sign "fornicate you! Leon Spinks". He'll be missed.

Sad to hear.

The man was a gold medal Olympian, served as a U.S. Marine and captured the undisputed Heavyweight Champion of the World. Remarkable.

Without a doubt Leon was one of the most exciting amateur fighters to ever step into the ring. That and his exhibition of determination and non-stop punching when he upset Ali will is what I will remember.

RIP Champ.

Remember his incredible win over Ali, but sadly, he failed to find any peace for the remainder of his boxing career and should have been pulled out of the sport by Michael.

RIP.

A memorable character in and out of the ring with his highlight and lowlights.

Sad news, though I was surprised he survived as long as he did, being arguably the most self-destructive fighter ever.

He had the perfect camp and took boxing seriously for one fight and the result was a wonderful performance against a waning Ali. He was too crazy to develop or mature so unfortunately he was mixing it up with the likes of Coetzee, Mercado, Holmes et al when he should have been quietly built back up.

His foray into the cruiserweights was a disaster and he should have retired there and then. RIP Neon Leon!

RIP Champ

RIP Neon Leon

bennie wrote: ↑07 Feb 2021, 03:12 Remember his incredible win over Ali, but sadly, he failed to find any peace for the remainder of his boxing career and should have been pulled out of the sport by Michael.

I think Michael tried with zero luck. This also relates to hanging onto his rind earnings. Ditto result, with Leon being allowed by his management to be used as a human punching bag later in his career

RIP Leon

RIP Champ.

I have been vegging out on his fights today.

It's fair to say that although greatness never would have beckoned, he was a talented boxer who was as game as they come.

Although I believe that winning the HW title so early was arguably the worst thing that happened to his boxing career, Leon did go to his grave being able to tell his grandchildren that he was the real HW champion and did it by beating Muhammad Ali.

Not many people can say that.

Leon was a real character. He was a flash in the pan as a heavyweight champ. He was entertaining and never lived up to his potential as a pro. I enjoyed some of the stories about him in Mr.Ts book. He was a real partier and really enjoyed the bright lights and night life i guess that is were the name Neon Leon originated. RI.P. Leon you sure gave the fight fans many memories.

Syntax Error wrote: ↑07 Feb 2021, 15:10 RIP Champ.

I have been vegging out on his fights today.

It's fair to say that although greatness never would have beckoned, he was a talented boxer who was as game as they come.

Although I believe that winning the HW title so early was arguably the worst thing that happened to his boxing career, Leon did go to his grave being able to tell his grandchildren that he was the real HW champion and did it by beating Muhammad Ali.

Not many people can say that.

Only he can say that actually

Very sad news....he shone brilliantly for a while and was a character.
Neon Leon

He was very talented and courageous. Fast hands, aggressive and inexhaustible stamina. Of course, he could've accomplished more had he been more disciplined and less reckless.
It's miraculous that he survived his childhood in the projects of St. Louis, became an amateur star, stopped a favored Cuban in the Olympics, and of course, scored the huge upset against Ali.
In my opinion, his other best career performances were against Scott Ledoux, Alfio Righetti, Eddie Lopez, Bernardo Mercado and Franco Thomas.
I had the opportunity to meet him in 2008 at an autograph signing. He was gracious with me and my wife. Also, his wife (Brenda) seemed like a nice gal. I complimented him on doing well against Holmes for a couple of rounds. As I remember, he had Holmes backing up in the 2nd round. Spinks remarked, "I wasn't in no kind of condition."