the greatest 4 way rivalry in boxing. [ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4tu3bxJOmm4&feature=related"]The Fabulous Four - Hagler, Hearns, Leonard, Duran - YouTube[/ame]
Hagler was always one of my favorites! And for some reason I really disliked Leonard. I can't really put a finger on why. I need to sit down and go back over his fights. I don't even know that it's his boxing... maybe it's the image... I dunno.
of the fab 4, leonrad was my villain. unlike the other 3 who went there to work it and play it to the bone, leonard went there to dance.
you might find this book interesting as well: [ame=http://www.amazon.co.uk/Four-Kings-Leonard-Hagler-Hearns/dp/1845963598]http://www.amazon.co.uk/Four-Kings-Leonard-Hagler-Hearns/[/ame]
If Leonard went to fight to the bone AND dance - like Ali, he would be classed as one of the true greats.
don't get me wrong, he was still part of the fab four. he is still a great boxer. i just think that he is too much flash.
I think that Leonard was warned by his doctor about a detached retina, and this may have played into his game plan for his latter fights i.e. using evasion too tire the opponent out with wasted energy and shots. As I am nearly 53, skinny with bad eye-sight, and not particularly strong, but somewhat blessed with a lot of agility and suppleness, I use evasion a lot as a strong point BUT I also work on stamina, energy, strike rate, combo attacks, counter attacks, strike accuracy as well; as I know that my principle weaknesses - I lose my footing/balance too easily in standup grappling; have to be compensated for somehow. So I empathise with anyone who has evasion and speed in their arsenal. Yes Leonard may well have been a tad flash for a ring contest. Roberto Duran, arguably the gutsiest fighter of modern times, defeated Ken Buchanan (arguably Scotland's greatest boxer) - who evaded Duran's firepower to great effect. Duran only won by punching Buchanan's groin illegally - so evasion can work. A more interesting example is Ali vs Foreman. If Ali had gone toe-2-toe with Foreman, he would have been slaughtered. Ali's trademark shuffle, dropped guard and rope-a-dope tactics are all essentially evasive. In the end Ali's concentration was greater than Foreman's firepower. Im not saying that evasion is the be-all and end-all, but if you are up against someone stronger and more powerful than you, some kind of tactical gameplan may take you that extra inch or 2.
Hagler-Hearns was an amazing,if short,fight.Hagler-Leonard,now that was a bummer...never could figure out why Hagler started out in an orthodox stance in that fight,I think it cost him...
Agreed. Hagler should have stood in the center of the ring and called Leonard out. He ended up chasing him around and played into Leonard's strength.
i agree with you and see the logic of what you said. it still doesn't changed the fact that i saw him dance more than fight and that made it sad for me.
Damn I miss the 80s boxing scene when fighters were men and fought each other to see who was the best. Hagler was one of my Favorites of all time. Like a lot of people I never really like Lenord don't know why but I just never really liked him. I wish boxing would go back to those days, but I guess those days are long gone. Sad to see.
