Thought-about probably the greatest fighters of all time, Ray Leonard burst onto the worldwide scene by profitable the light-welterweight gold medal at the 1976 Olympic Video games in Montreal. He turned professional with a lawyer, Mike Coach, dealing with the business aspect of his profession whilst hiring the legendary trainer Angelo Dundee to information him in direction of the top. Dundee's success with Muhammad Ali and Trainer's business savvy ensured that three years later, Sugar Ray Leonard was not only a millionaire, however ready for his first world title.

Puerto Rican Wilfredo Benitez, himself a world champion for the reason that age of 17, surrendered the WBC welterweight title in 1979, and Sugar Ray was on his way. The subsequent seven years noticed Leonard engage in some of the most famous battles in ring history with his three most famous rivals; Thomas "The Hitman" Hearns, Roberto "Fingers of Stone" Duran, and "Marvelous" Marvin Hagler. Duran was the victor in early 1980, taking the WBC crown after a brutal contest. Nevertheless honor was restored later that very same yr, with the famous "No Mas" victory. Duran was out-boxed, out-sped, and humiliated and within the eighth round surrendered with the phrases "No Mas - No Extra".

1981 noticed the WBA/WBC welterweight unification bout with Hearns. Victory got here in the fourteenth round after a see-saw fight that saw both fighters damage before Sugar Ray prevailed. Retirement followed, however in 1984 returned at gentle-middleweight, though he retired once more soon after. Clearly he wasn't the same fighter as in his hey-day. However, the pull of the limelight was an excessive amount of and in 1987 returned to the ring with an audacious problem for the WBC world middleweight crown against the fearsome champion Marvin Hagler in Las Vegas. Despite being a heavy underdog, Leonard confounded the critics by beating Hagler for the primary time since 1980, and taking his beloved world title. Hagler retired, claiming he was robbed.

Many dispute Leonard's victory, and opinion is split, even to this day. Although he won the WBC tremendous-middleweight & gentle-heavyweight titles, it was clear that Sugar Ray's greatest days had been behind him. A hollow rubber match victory towards Duran and a draw with Hearns carried little weight, and he took a beating in a WBC gentle-middleweight title against "Horrible" Terry Norris in 1991, getting knocked down twice and sustaining a nasty beating. Six years later, a non-title contest in opposition to Hector "Macho" Camacho lastly persuaded Sugar Ray Leonard that his time was up.

After some years establishing himself as a prime promoter, he joined forces with ex-British paratrooper & reality TV mogul Mark Burnett to create "The Contender". With film star Sylvester Stallone additionally on board, "The Contender" offers an perception to the hopes & fears of young professional prize-fighters as they compete for a $1 million prize and a headline-grabbing fundamental event in Las Vegas. It was of explicit importance to Leonard, as he wanted the general public to see that though he had all the trimmings of success, reminiscent of wealth & glory, the highway to the top was crammed with setbacks and issues, each bodily & emotionally, which he himself had to overcome in his boxing days. Ray Leonard nonetheless stays within the public eye to today, and his legacy as one of many sport's greatest exponents signifies that his place in boxing historical past is without end secure

 

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