After winning the WBC welterweight title on November 30, 1979 vs. Wilfred Benitez, Sugar Ray Leonard made his first title defense on March 31, 1980. His bout titled “The Champ Comes Home” was held at the Capital Centre in Landover, Maryland, and would be broadcast live on ABC TV in prime time. His was one of four bouts to be shown live on Monday night, held in 3 different venues. The show would end with Larry Holmes defending his title against Leroy Jones in Las Vegas, which turned out to be the only stinker shown that night.
I grew up in south Jersey, and we had an early spring snowstorm that dropped about 8 inches of snow in our town. A perfect night to sit in front of the tube in my bedroom, to catch all of the action. After two opening bouts from Knoxville, Tennessee which saw Eddie Gregory defeat Marvin Johnson, and Mike Weaver knock out John Tate to win the WBA Heavyweight Title, it was Ray’s turn to perform.
Sugar Ray Leonard had quickly become the face of boxing, and was my favorite boxer as well. He was talented and fun to watch, and made you excited every time he was scheduled to step into the ring. His hand-picked opponent was a fringe contender named Dave ‘Boy’ Green from England, a perfect choice for an easy first title defense. Most every champion chooses a safe foe after a tough bout to win the championship, and is part of boxing history.
Green came out aggressive, while Leonard stayed on the outside landing sharp jabs, and an occasional right hand for the first three rounds. The difference in talent was obvious, and you knew it was a matter of time before Sugar Ray caught up to him. The end came in dramatic fashion late in the fourth round when a spectacular combination that ended with a perfect left hook, knocked Green out cold. He laid motionless for several minutes, and even threw a scare into Leonard, who admitted in his post-fight interview “I really got worried for a minute because I thought I hurt the guy bad.” It couldn’t have been a better showcase on prime-time national television for Ray, and left me counting the days until his next fight.
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