Sugar Ray Leonard was the perfect ambassador and star for the sport of boxing: handsome, clean cut, a winning smile, confidence, as well as dazzling boxing skills and fighting heart. He came at a time when boxing was in the doldrums when Muhammad Ali was nearing the end of the road and fighting well past his prime. Without Leonard and the excitement he generated the sport could easily have fallen into decline, that’s taking nothing away from all the other great fighters of that era, but Leonard was the true star and figurehead of the sport for much of the 1980s. In a series of contests against the best in several weight divisions Leonard was huge box office and attracted interest on a global scale. He retired no less than five times from the sport but kept making awesome comebacks, setting himself new goals and challenges and achieving them. Yes he was cunning and manipulated the establishment but he was also a breath of fresh air. A rare thing: a boxer who fought on his own terms. This is his story.

Ray Charles Leonard (he would adopt the famous nickname ‘Sugar’ later) was born on 17 May 1956 in Wilmington, North Carolina. In 1960 the Leonard family moved to Washington DC. By the time Leonard was eleven years old the family upped sticks again this time moving to Maryland. His brothers Roy, Kenny and Roger were sports mad and it was his siblings as well as his father who encouraged the young Leonard to box. Surprisingly the shyest and most reluctant of the Leonard brothers became the most talented at the sport. As he grew older he developed, getting stronger and heavier. By 1972 Leonard won the local Golden Gloves at lightweight and even took part in a USA versus USSR amateur tournament in Las Vegas where he won his contest by a knockout.

In 1976 Leonard went to the 1976 Montreal Olympics representing his country at light-welterweight. He soon caught the imagination of his fellow countrymen and fight fans around the world with his dazzling displays of speed and skill. The young boxer boxed with photographs of his girlfriend Juanita and their son in his socks. The charismatic and articulate young man took the game by storm and won the Gold medal. Surprisingly he announced his retirement from boxing (not the first time he would do so only to change his mind) and planned to enrol at the University of Maryland.

Circumstances would soon change Leonard’s mind: he was hurt by a story that appeared in the Washington Post newspaper that revealed Juanita had served a paternity suit on him. Also his mother had a heart attack and his father was taken ill. He had many commitments and people to support and with a little persuasion from trainer Janks Morton Leonard considered turning professional.

Morton sought out two acquaintances of his a PR man, Charles Brotman and a lawyer, Mike Trainer. This proved to be an astute move as Trainer in particular helped to ensure that to a large extent the boxer was able to call his own shots and control his career, independent of the sharks that existed in boxing. Leonard in being independent could let the top promoters like Don King and Bob Arum attempt to outbid each other to get his services. By not fighting under any particular banner or promoter he was able to earn a lot more money and do as he pleased.

Dave Jacobs and Janks Morton took care of Leonards training and conditioning and legendary veteran trainer Angelo Dundee (who was still working with Muhammad Ali) was brought in for the final two or three weeks of preparation to fine tune things as well as to advise and take personal charge of the contests. It was a shrewd move on Manager Trainer’s part as Dundee as a part time trainer accepted fifteen percent of the fighter’s earnings rather than his usual thirty percent as a full time one.

On 5 February with Team Leonard very much in place and preparation over, he made his professional debut at the Civic Center, Baltimore against Luis Vega winning on points over six rounds. The contest was witnessed by a record crowd (for the venue) of 10,270 as well as millions on television. The money was great and a pattern had been set for the boxer, who fought in smaller towns, avoiding the big promoters, ensuring his independence whilst gaining plenty of experience and getting plenty of exposure thanks to the television networks.

By November 1979 Sugar Ray Leonard was very much a household name all over the world and thanks to astute management and guidance he had won all of his twenty five contests with sixteen of those wins coming inside the distance. As a professional Leonard’s attributes included excellent footwork, blindingly fast hands, accuracy, concussive hitting power and great mental strength. Yet there were still many detractors who remained unconvinced in his abilities. Many felt that Leonard was the ‘Golden Boy’ who had enjoyed things all his own way, he had not properly paid his dues and was a mere media creation. Now was his chance to prove himself to his critics as he was pitted against another exceptional fighter in WBC Welterweight Champion Wilfred Benitez who was the youngest boxer in history to win a world title (he was only seventeen years old when he won his first title).

Leonard was twenty three and the champion was twenty one when they met on 30 November 1979 at Las Vegas. On the undercard a fighter who would later prove to be a significant figure in Leonard’s career, Marvin Hagler controversially drew in his first bid to win the world middleweight title against Vito Antuofermo.

In a highly charged and evenly contested match, Leonard and Benitez thrilled the crowd with their speed, skill and defensive prowess. For much of the contest Benitez suffered with a nasty looking vertical cut on his forehead. Leonard took the decision out of the judges hands when he stopped Benitez with only six seconds remaining of the last round. The dramatic nature of his victory set the seal on Leonard’s mass public appeal. His earnings in the ring would now be stratospheric.

He married Juanita in January 1980 and things looked very rosy for the Leonard family indeed. His first defence was against Britain’s Dave ‘Boy’ Green, a hard hitting and uncompromising boxer with the heart of a lion. In the event Leonard pole-axed Green with a perfectly delivered left hook in the fourth round. It was a frightening punch really as Green looked unconscious before he hit the deck and several anxious minutes passed before Green regained consciousness. Leonard was visibly relieved and said of the hook ‘It was the hardest punch I have ever thrown.’ The two would later become good friends.

Next up was a challenge from the mighty former world lightweight champion, the rugged, tough macho man ‘Hands of Stone’ Roberto Duran of Panama, who with his constant sneer and bearded countenance was light years away from the erudite and glamorous Leonard. Duran’s style showed little regard for the rules; he loved nothing more than to slug it out with opponents eventually breaking their will. He wasn’t a straightforward slugger either; he had underrated defensive skills himself and would be a tough proposition for the welterweight champion.

The highly anticipated and much hyped fight took place on 20 June 1980 at the Olympic Stadium in Montreal. The experts and media spun the contest as the fearless macho man pitted against the smooth stylist and glamour boy. Whoever won would be regarded as pound for pound the best boxer in the world. Duran used his old intimidating tactics of trash talking in the build up to the fight and the usually calm and cool Leonard appeared to be uncharacteristically rattled by all of the taunts. He was furious at the crude gestures Duran made to Juanita and was determined to prove himself and give Duran a lesson.

Unfortunately in the event Leonard played right into his experienced challenger’s hands by becoming involved in a toe-to-toe slugfest. It was thrilling stuff for round after round as both boxers took turns to whale away on each other. Leonard proved that he could fight on Duran’s terms and still excel. Those previously who doubted Leonard’s character, courage, stamina and chin were left in no doubt by the contests conclusion: he had all of these qualities in spades. Sadly for Leonard he had fought the wrong fight tactically and lost his title to the snarling dervish that was Duran on a close points decision.

Cannily Leonard persuaded Duran’s management team to an early return contest, just five months later. Duran had a reputation for partying hard and after the Leonard contest he was practically deified in his own country where everyone wanted to buy the new champion a drink. In the build up to the rematch there were reports of a troublesome training camp for Duran and it was alleged that he struggled to remove the excess weight and get into top shape for Leonard so soon after their first contest.

On 25 November 1980 at the Superdome New Orleans Leonard boxed beautifully from the outside, dazzling and bewildering Duran with the new tactics. Leonard even wound up a bolo punch with one hand and managed to hit the humiliated champion with the other. Duran could not have looked more foolish if Leonard had pulled down his trunks and kicked his backside! This torment continued with Leonard in complete command and a mesmerized and increasingly frustrated Duran plodding after his tormentor until in the eighth round Duran arguably the toughest boxer who ever lived inexplicably turned his back on Leonard. The referee waved for the fight to continue but Duran refused allegedly repeating ‘No mas.’ (‘No more.’)

It was bizarre to see, both fighters were unmarked yet it seemed like Leonard had destroyed his opponent and former conqueror mentally. Whatever his reasons for quitting Duran would never elaborate and the whole episode remains a dark spot in an otherwise wonderful career. The important thing was that Leonard had regained his cherished title.

He defeated Larry Bonds in a routine title contest and then on 25 June 1981 he won a world title at a second weight by classily stopping tough Ugandan Ayub Kalule in the ninth round at the Houston Astrodome in Texas. Leonard was now WBA world light-middleweight champion as well as WBC world welterweight champion. On the same bill that night was rival WBA world welterweight champion Thomas ‘The Hitman’ Hearns, a tall undefeated in 32 contests, dynamite punching fighter from Detroit. The scene was now set for the two best welterweights in the world to meet each other.

Leonard v Hearns was simply huge. The contest set records for purses for both combatants as well as viewing figures for television across the world. The eagerly awaited fight took place in September 1981 in front of 25,000 fans at Caesars Palace. Hearns was made the slight favourite come fight time. At six feet one inch he was three inches taller than Leonard, but at the weigh in he was one pound lighter than Leonard at 145 pounds. The fight lived up to all of the hype and proved to be a classic. Hearns took the lion’s share of the early rounds and Leonard had to fight with an increasingly nasty looking swelling under his left eye. By the end of the twelfth round Leonard’s chief second Angelo Dundee famously reminded his charge ‘You’re blowing it son. You’re blowing it!’

Leonard knew that he had to do something special and fast. He tore out of his corner for the thirteenth and unleashed a furious barrage at the tiring Hearns. This desperate assault had Hearns reeling all around the ring, even sending him through the ropes at one point although no knockdown was awarded. A sustained flurry of lethal blows from Leonard had Hearns helpless against the ropes to end the round and he had the indignity of taking a standing eight count.

The assault continued in the fourteenth round with Leonard calling on all his experience and fighting heart to continue his attack. With Hearns not firing back and appearing almost helpless the referee stopped the contest to award victory to Leonard and to save Hearns from taking any more punishment. Hearns was ahead on all three judges scorecards at the time of the stoppage. It was a close run thing but Leonard had proved his fighting heart and tenacity against a hugely dangerous and talented rival.

Leonard defended his title by stopping Bruce Finch, then while training for another defence against Roger Stafford, hurt his left eye. A partly detached retina was diagnosed. The defence was cancelled and Leonard worked as a co-commentator for CBS while waiting on the doctors to give him the all clear to fight again. On 9 November 1982 where at first it seemed he was about to announce a fight with undisputed world middleweight champion Marvelous Marvin Hagler, he instead shocked the world by announcing his retirement.

Leonard was back in the ring in May 1984 after getting the all clear for his eye. He fought the unremarkable Kevin Howard yet was floored for the first time in his career in the fourth round. Leonard got up and eventually ground Howard down to a ninth round stoppage. The performance was not what Leonard had hoped for and he admitted ‘It just wasn’t there anymore.’ He again promptly announced his retirement and that really did look like that. He had earned a fortune, invested wisely and seemed to have the commentary job with television for as long as he wanted.

So it was quite a shock when in 1986 Leonard announced that he wanted a fight with Hagler. The WBA and IBF organisations stripped Hagler of these titles but the WBC were less concerned about the merits of Leonard suddenly getting his shot after so long out of the ring and never boxing as a middleweight before. The eagerly anticipated match-up took place on 6 April 1987 in front of a capacity crowd at Caesars Palace, Las Vegas as well as the millions watching at home.

Hardly anyone gave Leonard a chance against the fearsome Hagler who had reigned supreme as champion for seven years and had been totally dominant in his division seeing off all-comers. Many detractors of Leonard felt they would finally see him getting his come-uppance. Many felt that he would be lucky to even get past the sixth round. The odds did shorten days before the contest and by fight time Leonard was the 3 to 1 underdog.

For the first four rounds Leonard boxed like a dream, shedding the ring rust. He feinted, ducked, slipped and blocked. He managed to land enough impressive flurries at a surprisingly plodding and one-dimensional Hagler who had strangely elected to fight out of the orthodox stance for the first two rounds (Hagler was a southpaw). From the fifth round onwards the champion began to get into the fight and landed the heavier more telling blows.

From the ninth round onwards it was all Hagler yet Leonard was still there when a lot of people had written him off. He showed tremendous fortitude and courage in the ninth when Hagler had him backed up against the ropes and proceeded to work Leonard over, only for the challenger to rally back with a tremendous flurry of punches. Leonard was proving his fighting heart as he gritted his teeth and fought back.

At the end of the contest Leonard was clearly exhausted and relieved. He had survived the course and his smart boxing had taken many rounds. Just how many was now being debated by the ringside judges and the fans at the arena and watching at home. By lasting the distance he had scored a moral victory of sorts but when the decision was announced the crowd erupted in surprised cheers: Sugar Ray Leonard had become the new world WBC middleweight champion by a split decision. Hagler was seething believing that he had clearly won and many supported his view. He even claimed that after the fight Leonard went up to him and said ‘You won man.’ But the official line was that after nearly three years out of the ring Leonard was now a three weight world champion.

Leonard retired again, but this time no one was surprised when he announced a fight for not only the vacant WBC world super-middleweight title but also the WBC world light-heavyweight title held by Canadian Donny Lalonde. Leonard’s old rival Thomas Hearn’s was attempting to become a champion at five different weights and Leonard could not resist equalling this remarkable and unprecedented achievement.

Once again Leonard’s canny brinkmanship came to the fore. As in the Hagler fight where he had arranged for the fifteen round distance to be reduced to twelve, here he insisted that Lalonde who naturally came in at 175 pounds (twelve and a half stone) had to come in at the super-middleweight division limit of 168 pounds (twelve stone). Leonard was not a natural super-middle or light-heavy so this stipulation clearly suited him. Also his detractors could not resist pointing out that he had managed to get the WBC to agree to ‘two for one deal’ two different titles at different weights in one night and pointedly commented that this kind of deal would not be open to other boxers who could generate as much box office as the Maryland fighter.

In the event it proved to be an exciting fight. Leonard was floored in the fourth round by a wicked right cross from the tall blonde light-heavyweight champion. Leonard managed to get up, regain his composure before dominating so much that in the ninth round which saw Lalonde sent crashing to the canvas twice, the referee stopped the contest. Leonard now claimed world titles at five different weights. His rival Thomas Hearns had won his fifth title the WBO world super-middleweight title three days earlier and the scene was now set for a superfight between the two men, eight years after their first epic encounter.

In June 1989 the fading ring veterans Leonard and Hearns squared off against each other in a unification match for the WBC and WBO portions of the super-middleweight crown. In front of 15,000 fans at Caesars Palace they put on yet another scintillating performance after things warmed up after a dull first round. Hearns dangerous as ever floored Leonard for counts in the fourth and eleventh rounds. In the fifth and the last round Leonard had pounded Hearns from pillar to post nearly stopping him on both occasions. When the final bell rang opinion was again divided as to who had won. The judges score cards were totted up and it was declared a draw. Many at ringside as well as former and active boxers felt that this time Hearns had done enough to win it. Both men seemed happy and content with the result and notably Hearns did not complain.

Most now felt it really was time for Leonard to retire for good. He was still a brave and tenacious boxer but the lightning fast hard hitting welterweight of his prime was gone forever. He could only fight in flurries now and in each contest seemed increasingly vulnerable as his frequent trips to the canvas attested. Years ago he simply would not have been caught by the punches he was now getting hit with.

Leonard’s next opponent was another blast from the past: Roberto Duran who was now 38 years old and still boxing on. On a freezing cold December evening at the end of 1989 Leonard won a lacklustre and boring landslide points decision against the plodding and predictable Panamanian. It was clear to the booing crowd that both men had seen better days. Despite winning clearly Leonard still needed an incredible fifty six stitches to the various cuts on his face courtesy of Duran. The writing should have been on the wall but the lure of the ring would prove too great for him to resist.

In February 1991 at Madison Square Garden, New York the thirty four year old veteran challenged Terry Norris for his WBC light-middleweight title. Amazingly Leonard was made the favourite despite Norris being much younger, hard hitting and cunning boxer. Leonard took counts in the second and seventh rounds and struggled to last the distance. It was a sad night to see the once brilliant Leonard getting pounded almost at will by the younger man. He was almost fighting from memory. He lost on a wide margin and announced his retirement. Many felt this time for good.

Yet six years later the forty year old Leonard fought the flamboyant and flashy boxer Hector ‘Macho’ Camacho at the Convention Centre, Atlantic City. The lightly regarded IBC middleweight title was on the line. Leonard was never at the races and he suffered a humiliating and totally unnecessary fifth round stoppage loss against the fast Puerto Rican. It really was the end and this time Leonard announced his retirement from the ring for good. Everyone breathed a big sigh of relief. He could now enjoy his fortune and a happy retirement and continue to work on television as a commentator or on the popular ‘The Contender’ show as an adviser and mentor.

Without doubt he was arguably the greatest welterweight boxer of all time. He came at a time when boxing desperately needed excitement and this he provided. His epic contests against great rivals Duran, Hearns and Hagler will forever remain part of boxing folklore. Yes he could be calculating and cunning, but he was always a shrewd, independent operator and moved to his own beat, rare for the sport of boxing, when his career was finally over it lost one of its last true superstars.

World WBC Welterweight Champion: 1979 – 1980, 1980-1982 (World WBA Welterweight Champion 1981-1982)

World WBA Light-Middleweight Champion 1981

World WBC Middleweight Champion 1987

World WBC Super-Middleweight and WBC Light-Heavyweight Champion 1988-1989

World Title Fights: 13 Won: 10 Lost: 2 Drew: 1

Career Fights: 40 Won: 36 Lost: 3 Drew: 1 KO’s: 25