Sugar Ray Leonard had been the darling of the 1976 Olympic games in Montreal, and captured a gold medal in the light welterweight division. He had originally wanted to go to the University of Maryland and retire from boxing, but his father’s illness and medical bills forced him to turn pro. His first fight was on February 5, 1977 against Luis ‘The Bull’ Vega, and Ray won a unanimous 6 round decision on CBS television.
With Muhammad Ali’s career coming to and end, boxing was looking for a new face to attract fans. No one could have fit the bill more perfectly than the charismatic, good looking Sugar Ray. His career was starting to gain momentum at the same time HBO was becoming more serious about boxing. The two would become a perfect match!
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