By Randy De La O
This fight has always been painful for me to watch. This and Duran v Leonard II are difficult for me. Hearns was at the top of his game that night. This is the fight that convinced Hearns and his people that they could beat Marvin Hagler and maybe on another night he might have beaten him but on the night they fought, Hagler was too much for Hearns plus he was spurred on by the cut. He was afraid the fight might be stopped and it might have. He took matters into his own hands and gave us a classic, both of them did.
Even with his losses and the flaws in his career Roberto Duran is my favorite fighter. Leonard, Hagler and Hearns got him past his best. Duran, a natural lightweight took on the Welters and Middleweights and did pretty damned good all things considered. As far as I'm concerned he's right there with Robinson as the greatest fighter that ever lived. As a lightweight maybe he was the very best. As good as Manny Paquiao seems to be, there is no Leonard, Hagler or Hearns on his resume or in his future. Duran was special.
Even with his losses and the flaws in his career Roberto Duran is my favorite fighter. Leonard, Hagler and Hearns got him past his best. Duran, a natural lightweight took on the Welters and Middleweights and did pretty damned good all things considered. As far as I'm concerned he's right there with Robinson as the greatest fighter that ever lived. As a lightweight maybe he was the very best. As good as Manny Paquiao seems to be, there is no Leonard, Hagler or Hearns on his resume or in his future. Duran was special.
3 comments:
No, and certainly Duran was one of the best ever, many might argue the best other than Ray Robinson. But he was 1-4 against those guys you named. Doesn't hurt him historically, but still. Manny went 6-1-1 against Barrera, Marques, Morales, and Oscar, all first ballot Hall-of-Famers. He is the only man to be lineal champ in four divisions. He fought and beat Oscar ten divisions above his initial weight class. If he retired today, then twenty years from now people would rate him at least top 10 all-time. Something I've learned is that it often takes a while for people to come to terms with and accept how great a fighter really was. And I'm not saying that Pac is greater than Duran, all I'm saying is look at what he's done. Really, just look at it. He is one of the very best who ever lived and people don't fully realize it yet.
If you read the book on Duran "Hands of Stone"it states that he was weak and ill leading up to the fight with stomach problems and couldn,t train properly,the fit Duran who beat Barkley would of put on a lot better show that,s for sure.
I don't care if Duran had the best training camp under the best health conditions with the best trainers, Hearns would STILL tear him apart. The styles were horrid for Duran. And the best lightweight was Mayweather, unquenstionably. Even Freddie Roach (Pac's trainer) said he never saw a better lightweight than Floyd and he should have never left that division.
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