In the summer of 1981, the only fight on my mind was the September 16th ‘Showdown’ between Sugar Ray Leonard and Thomas Hearns. Ray was the WBC welterweight champ and Hearns the WBA champ, so the bout would unify the titles and let the world know who the best boxer on the planet was. I had been a serious boxing fan for two years at this point and Sugar Ray was my favorite fighter. There was no question as to who I would be rooting for in September as I trained along with him in my mind on my daily runs to prepare myself emotionally for the huge event.
Ray had defeated Roberto Duran in their rematch on November 25, 1980, while Thomas easily knocked out Pipino Cuevas in two rounds to win his title on August 2 in the summer. The two were on a collision course and as I made the hour long drive to Convention Hall in Atlantic City to see the closed-circuit card, my stomach was full of nervous anxiety.
I had a great seat in the first row on the floor of the old arena, the same one used to host the Miss America Pageant every September. There was a huge movie screen on the stage of Convention Hall and when the opening bell finally rang, I was ready.
Both men felt each other out in the opening round but Thomas took the advantage and was winning the fight through five rounds. Ray rallied back in both the sixth and seventh rounds by hurting Hearns with a series of hooks, but Thomas survived and came out in the eighth on his bicycle. Hearns had an illustrious amateur career as a boxer, but turned puncher under the tutelage of trainer Emmanuel Steward as a professional. Thomas won the next five round by staying on the outside of Ray and using his great left jab to keep him at bay. Going into the thirteenth round, he was way ahead on the cards which is why Leonard’s trainer Angelo Dundee told Ray “You’re blowing it son! You’re blowing it! You need to be quicker and take it away from him!”
Inspired by Dundee’s words, Ray went on the offensive in the thirteenth round, hurt Thomas and put him on the canvas twice along the ropes. Sugar Ray came out blazing again in the fourteenth, trapped Hearns again and battered him until referee Davey Pearl stopped the bout. I jumped from my seat with joy, hugging anyone I could see, thrilled by the fact that Sugar Ray Leonard was the new undisputed welterweight champ.
I was on cloud nine the whole drive home and on a high for days after thinking of the fight. In my 45 years plus of being a boxing fan, that Wednesday night in September of 1981 is one of my most memorable. On my list of great fights, Leonard vs. Hearns 1 is one of ‘Boxing’s Classics’.
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