This is Rummy's Corner.
Sugar Ray Leonard got his first opportunity to fight for a major world title on November
30th, 1979 when he challenged WBC welterweight champion Wilfred Benitez.
This one was a tactical chess match of elite level boxing at its finest.
Leonard dropped Benitez was a quick snappy left late in round 3.
The tactical chess match resumed with a lot of feinting and maneuvering for position.
With both smooth operators studiously searching for openings, there were also a lot of heated
explosive exchanges.
In the 15th and final round the two boxers traded furiously.
With just 30 seconds left in the round, Leonard dropped Benitez.
The champion rose and battled on, but Leonard moved in for the finish and referee Carlos
Padilla stopped the fight.
It was a 15th round technical knockout, and Sugar Ray Leonard had just become the new
WBC welterweight champion.
Leonard made the first defense of his WBC title on March 31st, 1980 when he faced challenger
Dave �Boy' Green.
Leonard was patient and measured with his approach, and Green was having difficulty
coping with Ray's speed and athleticism.
In round 4 Sugar Ray unloaded a 4 punch combination that was punctuated by a mean left hook.
Green was down, and he would not be beating the count.
The fight was over.
It was a 4th round knockout for Leonard.
On June 20th, 1980, Leonard made the second defense of his WBC title when he went up against
former long time lightweight champion Roberto Duran.
This one was an absolute showcase of tactical infighting prowess from both combatants.
It was a gruelling war of attrition, and both boxers were frequently engaged in furious
exchanges.
Duran was dictating the terms of the fight, and Leonard was perfectly willing to fight
Roberto on his own terms.
But this wasn't something that was typically working out in Ray's favor.
At the conclusion of 15 rounds of high tempo action, Duran was awarded a unanimous decision
victory with scores of 146-144, 145-144, and 148-147.
Roberto Duran had just become the new WBC welterweight champion.
Leonard had an immediate rematch with Duran on November 25th, 1980.
This time around Leonard was using more lateral movement and utilizing more ring space.
Leonard was dancing around and he was effectively able to stick and move while keeping things
on the outside.
Leonard was the one dictating the terms of the rematch, and Duran was having a difficult
time closing the distance.
In round 8 a frustrated Duran informed referee Octavio Meyran that he did not wish to continue.
The fight was over, and Sugar Ray Leonard had just reclaimed the WBC welterweight championship,
making him a two-time welterweight champion.
Leonard made the first defense in his second reign as welterweight champion when he squared
off against challenger Larry Bonds on March 28th, 1981.
Leonard played the role of the aggressor against his southpaw challenger and he was in control
of the action.
Leonard dropped Bonds in round 4 and once again in round 10.
Bonds made it to his feet and tried battling on, but Ray's follow-up attack prompted referee
Arthur Mercante to wave it off.
It was a 10th round technical knockout for Leonard.
On June 25th, 1981, Leonard moved up to 154 where he challenged undefeated WBA junior
middleweight champion Ayub Kalule.
Leonard took command of the action early on, but Kalule started coming on a bit stronger
during the middle portions of the scheduled 15 rounder.
With just seconds remaining in round 9, Leonard unleashed a monster assault that sent Kalule
down.
Kalule made it to his feet, but referee Carlos Berrocal didn't like what he saw and he waved
it off.
It was a 9th round technical knockout, and Sugar Ray Leonard had just become the new
WBA junior middleweight world champion, marking him as a two-division world champion.
Leonard moved back down to 147 when he made the second defense of his WBC welterweight
title on September 16th, 1981 when he squared off against WBA welterweight champion Thomas
Hearns.
This was a unification bout for the undisputed welterweight championship.
Early in the contest Hearns was patiently pressing forward behind a long piston-like
jab, and Leonard was using movement to try and create angles.
But Leonard was having difficulty dealing with the long range jab of The Motor City
Cobra.
Leonard broke through in round 6 and he rocked Hearns with a left hook.
The momentum had shifted in Leonard's favor, and over the next few rounds, the earlier
trend in the fight had been completely reversed.
Now it was Leonard doing the stalking, and Hearns bouncing around and and using movement
to stay out of reach.
Hearns re-seized command of the momentum during the later rounds but in round 13 Leonard came
on strong and he dropped Hearns.
The Hitman bravely battled on, but in the 14th round, a relentless barrage from Ray
prompted referee Davey Pearl to call it off.
It was a 14th round technical knockout, and Sugar Ray Leonard had become the new undisputed
WBC/WBA welterweight champion of the world.
Leonard made the third defense of his welterweight championship on February 15th, 1982 when he
faced challenger Bruce Finch.
Leonard dropped Finch with a booming right hand in round 2.
Finch beat the count, and Leonard soon had him down again.
Finch survived the rest of the round, but in the 3rd round Leonard knocked him down
yet again.
Finch again beat the count, but referee Mills Lane waved it off.
It was a 3rd round technical knockout for Sugar Ray Leonard, in what ultimately turned
out to be his third and final defense of his welterweight championship.
Leonard's next championship bout happened on April 6th, 1987 when he challenged middleweight
world champion �Marvelous' Marvin Hagler.
This was a tactical match-up and Leonard got off to a fast start as he was looking to patiently
score from the outside.
Hagler started fighting more effectively during the middle portions of the contest when he
was doing a much better job closing the distance.
Things remained close and competitive during the later portions of the fight, where each
boxer was having his moments.
At the conclusion of round 12, both boxers optimistically raised their hands in triumph.
When the final verdict was announced it was a split decision where one judge scored it
115-113 for Hagler, overruled by the other two judges who both had it for Leonard 115-113
and 118-110.
Sugar Ray Leonard had just become the new WBC middleweight world champion, which provided
Ray with the distinction of being a 3-division world champion.
On November 7th, 1988 Leonard moved up and challenged WBC light heavyweight champion
Donny Lalonde.
This contest took place at 168 pounds where the newly formed vacant WBC super middleweight
title was on the line along with Lalonde's light heavyweight belt.
Lalonde landed a heavy right hand that dropped Leonard in round 4.
And Leonard had some difficulty coping with Lalonde's size and awkwardness.
In round 9 Lalonde appeared to have Leonard in trouble again, but suddenly Ray started
attacking and he dropped Lalonde with a terrific left hook.
Lalonde made it to his feet, and cool as an assassin, Leonard soon had him down again
and referee Richard Steele had seen enough.
It was a 9th round technical knockout, and Sugar Ray Leonard had just become the new
WBC super middleweight and light heavyweight world champion.
This made Ray a five-division world champion.
Leonard defended the WBC super middleweight championship on June 12th, 1989 when he had
a long-awaited rematch against Tommy �The Hitman' Hearns.
The rematch happened 21 pounds north of where they first met nearly eight years earlier,
but it still had a similar flow of tactics.
Hearns dropped Leonard with a strong right hand in the 3rd round, and from that point
there were a lot of shifts in momentum where each boxer was having spots of success.
In round 11, Hearns unloaded a series of well-placed booming right hands that sent Leonard down
for the second time in the contest.
But Leonard persevered and he came back strong and was doing better work down the final stretch.
At the end of 12 rounds of action, one judge had it 113-112 for Hearns, one judge had it
113-112 for Leonard, and the final judge had it a draw at 112 apiece.
So the contest was officially ruled a draw and Ray retained his title.
Leonard made the second defense of his WBC super middleweight crown on December 7th,
1989 when he had a rubber match against Roberto Duran at a contracted catchweight of 162.
Leonard took command of the action early and basically never looked back.
Leonard utilized good lateral movement to control the range and Sugar Ray was able to
expertly neutralize Duran throughout most of the twelve round contest.
Leonard was awarded a unanimous decision victory with final scores of 116-111, 120-110, and
119-109.
Leonard's next championship fight happened on February 9th, 1991 when he challenged WBC
junior middleweight champion �Terrible' Terry Norris.
Leonard had a lot of problems dealing with the youth, the skills, and the quickness of
Norris.
Leonard was dropped by a left hook in round 2, and he was dropped again by a right hand
in round 7.
Despite being outclassed by his younger foe, Sugar Ray's will remained strong and he made
it to the final bell.
Norris was awarded a unanimous decision with scores of 116-110, 120-104, and 119-103.
For Sugar Ray Leonard, this wound up being the last championship contest during his long
and illustrious Hall of Fame career.
In conclusion, with regards to championship contests:
At welterweight Leonard had 6 victories and 1 defeat, with all 6 wins coming by way of
knockout.
At junior middleweight Leonard had 1 victory and 1 defeat, with the lone victory coming
by knockout.
At middleweight Leonard had 1 victory, that by decision.
At super middleweight Leonard had 2 victories, 0 defeats, and a draw with 1 win coming by
way of knockout.
And at light heavyweight Leonard had 1 victory by stoppage.
So the final championship record for Sugar Ray Leonard consisted of 13 contests, with
10 victories, 2 defeats, 1 draw, and 8 victories coming by way of knockout.
Thanks for watching everyone!
Hope you enjoyed, and have a wonderful night.
This is Rummy's Corner.