[1] He was named after Ray Charles, his mother's favorite singer. Many felt that Hagler deserved the decision because he was the aggressor and landed the harder punches. [75] He was scheduled to fight Tony Menefee on February 15, 1998, in Australia, but he pulled out of the fight, saying that he didn't have the motivation. In establishing The Sugar Ray Leonard Foundation in 2009, Leonard and his wife, Bernadette took changing the world into their own capable hands. Now I want to go to school." [74], Leonard said he planned to have a series of tuneup fights before fighting a champion. He knocked Leonard down with a left hook in the second round, and in the seventh, he dropped Leonard again with a short right. His two older brothers, who had begun to dabble in boxing, convinced him to visit the Palmer Park Community Center (their local recreation center) and strap on some gloves. "He almost knocked me out", Leonard said. By the fifth, Leonard, who was moving a lot, began to tire and Hagler started to get closer. Leonard's reverence for Robinson ran so deep that he eventually took the nickname "Sugar Ray," which stuck. After hurting Hearns with a right, Leonard exploded with a combination of punches. Kalule, who was 36–0, had been the WBA Light Middleweight Champion for two years. Several of his high school peers died due to violent crimes; many others were sent to prison. Many were critical of the fact that Lalonde's light heavyweight title was on the line when the weight limit of the fight with Leonard was at 168 pounds, and critical of Leonard for stipulating that his opponent—a natural 175 pounder—should weigh less than his usual fighting weight, which could possibly weaken him. Leonard looked to be in trouble, but he furiously fought his way out of the corner. They fought before a live crowd of 23,618. "To make a man quit, to make Roberto Durán quit, was better than knocking him out."[37]. But the TV show came about and made my decision a lot easier. The referee stopped the fight with Bonds taking punishment in a corner.[38]. Leonard kept it up, continuing to move, stop, and mug. On March 28, 1981, Leonard defended his title against Larry Bonds, the WBC sixth-ranked contender, at the Carrier Dome in Syracuse, New York. "I will not run."[29]. [14], Sarge Johnson, assistant coach of the US Olympic Boxing Team, said to Dave Jacobs, "That kid you got is sweet as sugar". © 2021 Biography and the Biography logo are registered trademarks of A&E Television Networks, LLC. ', American fantasy and horror author Ray Bradbury is best known for his novels 'Fahrenheit 451,' 'The Illustrated Man' and 'The Martian Chronicles.'. [43], On February 15, 1982, Leonard defended the unified title against Bruce Finch, the WBC fourth-ranked contender, in a bout at Reno, NV. by Scott Jenkins on May 24, 2020. He took control, attacking and driving Leonard against the ropes, bulling him back, hitting him with lefts and rights to the body as he maneuvered the champion against the ropes from corner to corner. The live gate was $5.9 million, and the revenue from pay-per-view was $7.5 million. When Leonard was 3 years old, he and his family moved to Washington, D.C. The British challenger had a record of 33–2. After the quick and slick Leonard won the first two rounds on all three scorecards, Hagler started the third round as a southpaw. In October 1996, the 40-year-old Leonard announced that he was coming out of retirement to fight 34-year-old Héctor Camacho for the lightly regarded International Boxing Council (IBC) Middleweight Championship. "I felt it in me, and I had to keep going.". Sugar Ray Leonard showed he still possesses some of his famous old talents as he put on a display of blistering hand speed this week. Boxing great Sugar Ray Leonard certainly felt that way. He said he quit using drugs in early 1986, when he woke up one morning and "what I saw in the mirror was scary." He went to a doctor and discovered that he had a detached retina. I snapped his head back with a jab. "[57] A month after Hagler's formal retirement in June 1988, Leonard would announce another comeback. There was a capacity crowd of about 4,600. However, Camacho was also considered to be past his prime. [22][23], On August 12, 1979, Leonard knocked out Pete Ranzany in four rounds to win the NABF Welterweight Championship. Leonard started boxing at the Palmer Park Recreation Center in 1969. The real Leonard (a Seinfeld fan) mentioned that he was told about the episode by friends and family, but had never seen it for himself until a friend gave him the DVD set for a gift. He continued to taunt Durán mercilessly. The judges scored the fight a draw and Leonard retained the title. He was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 1990. "There was no indication that he was in pain or getting weak. His opponent was Luis "The Bull" Vega, whom he defeated by a six-round unanimous decision. However, less than a week after the fight, Leonard said he planned to fight again. "The Fabulous Four" created a wave of popularity in the lower weight classes that kept boxing relevant in the post–Muhammad Ali era, during which Leonard defeated future fellow International Boxing Hall of Fame inductees Hearns, Durán, Hagler, and Wilfred Benítez. "It was a crutch, something that enabled me to forget." The time was 2:54 of round fifteen.[27]. Sugar Ray Leonard’s age is 64 years old as of today’s date 8th February 2021 having been born on 17 May 1956. On June 20, 1980, Leonard returned to the Olympic Stadium in Montreal to defend his title against Roberto Durán before a crowd of 46,317. Robi is the daughter of Paul Robi, one of the original Platters, and she is the ex-wife of Lynn Swann. Sugar Ray Leonard walked away from boxing for good in 1997 when, at the age of 40, Hector Camacho ended his ill-fated comeback by stopping him in five rounds. In round seven, Leonard started to taunt Durán. Sugar Ray Leonard’s age is 64. "But you guys know me. [49], Leonard and Howard fought on May 11, 1984, in Worcester, Massachusetts. Leonard retired in 1997 with a record of 36-3-1 and was inducted into the Boxing Hall of Fame. Leonard had no plans for becoming a professional boxer; he had hoped to cash in on his Olympic success, and never step back in the ring again. Asked if Leonard was the best he ever fought, Durán thought for a moment and then answered, "Si, si." She is the daughter of famous boxer named Sugar Ray Leonard. The fight was cancelled, and Leonard had surgery to repair the retina on May 9, 1982. [86] He appeared as a guest at the chef's table, along with Tito Ortiz, during the tenth season of Hell's Kitchen. His most famous commercial was a 7 Up ad he did with his son, Ray Jr., Roberto Durán and Durán's son Roberto Jr. in the early 1980s. [68] He then offered Hearns a third fight, but Hearns said he could no longer make the weight and moved up to the light heavyweight division. Being born on 17 May 1956, Sugar Ray Leonard is 64 years old as of today’s date 16th February 2021.
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