I was working at a local department store in November of 1979 when I saw a commercial advertising the fight between Sugar Ray Leonard and Wilfred Benitez on one of the televisions in the TV department. As I was walking past with a girl I worked with, I said, “I can’t wait to see this fight!” She smiled, and I remember how excited I was to see Ray Leonard fight for the welterweight title that coming Friday, November the 30th.
As I sat in my room watching ABC Sports on my 11″ inch black and white TV, I watched as Marvin Hagler and Vito Antuofermo fought to a draw. To me, Marvin got the shaft, and deserved the decision. Since then I’ve learned that Antuofermo was owned by the mob, and had influence with the judges. He wasn’t in the same league as Marvin Hagler as a fighter, and when they fought again in June of 1981, Marvin beat him to a pulp.
The main event was now about to start, and I felt my nerves getting me excited. Ray had a clinched jaw as he and Wilfred stared at each other at ring center, moments before the opening bell rang. Benitez had won his first world title at just 17, and was a tremendous boxer, sure to give Leonard all he could handle. In the third round, Ray put Wilfred on the seat of his pants with a stiff left jab. It was a statement, but the action throughout the bout was close and brisk. Leonard said after the fight “I never missed so many punches in a fight. It was like looking in a mirror fighting Benitez.” I gave Ray the edge however, and as the championship rounds began, Benitez started to wilt and tire.
With just seconds remaining in the 15th and final round, Ray dropped a faded and bleeding champion in his corner. Despite the fact he got up, referee Carlos Padilla called a halt to the action. Leonard was the new WBC Welterweight Champion of the World, and ran to his corner and jumped up on the ring ropes with his arms raised to celebrate.
Howard Cosell praised the young champion throughout the night, and he deserved every word. Boxing had a new good-looking, charismatic young champion in Sugar Ray Leonard, and a new star to replace the retired Muhammad Ali. I was a Leonard fan from the start, and couldn’t wait to see when he would fight again.
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