By Jeff Zimmerman
Photo: Jeff Zimmerman

Fightnews.com

Today’s marks the 30th anniversary of “The Super Fight” between Sugar Ray Leonard and Marvelous Marvin Hagler. Leonard was a huge underdog as he had been retired for a few years due to eye injuries and Hagler was the menacing middleweight champion who looked unbeatable except to the one person that mattered most, Sugar Ray Leonard. Richard Steele, who was in the middle of his hall of fame career, was the 3rd man in the ring that night. He shared his thoughts on the fight that ranks as one of boxing’s best and is still debated 30 years later.

The Hagler Leonard fight was a great fight. But Hagler’s downfall in that fight was he let Leonard get to him mentally. Leonard used all the things that he had to really tell him you don’t know how to box, you’re a puncher, you don’t know how to box, and I’m a better boxer than you. He used everything he could to get Marvin Hagler off of his fight plan and it worked. I kept saying when is Hagler is going to fight like he usually fights, but he didn’t until the middle of the fight and Leonard was so far ahead in points by that time. He ends up winning a controversial decision. He looked good at the end of the fight but Leonard had won so many of the early rounds and Leonard was so fast. He was hitting Marvin Hagler 3 to 1.

I feel like Leonard won that fight but it was so close, so close and I used to always say every time I see it, it gets closer and closer. But Leonard won the fight.

I just re-watched the fight again and scored it and had it 117-113 for Leonard. I had two rounds even and if I had given those two rounds to Hagler I would have had it 115-115. It was definitely a close fight but Leonard definitely won the fight. I believe I called the 8th and 10th round even I couldn’t make up my mind. If you give the 8th and 10th round to Hagler I would have had a draw – 115 to 115.

It was a close fight and it was a better fight than I even thought – it was a hell of a fight! The strategy that Leonard was using – this wasn’t 2 guys in there just swinging – they had planned this strategy and they delivered it to the fullest. If anything Hagler should not have tried to box in the first 4 rounds he was trying to prove to Leonard he can box just as good but it ended up a mistake. He gave those rounds away and trying to outbox Leonard instead of trying to rough him up – the Hagler style of fight.

But it was a hell of a fight – I didn’t realize how good of a fight – I really had to pay attention – as many of the great fights I have done I would definitely have to put that in the top 5.

I’m glad all I had to do was referee and not judge too like I did early in my career. With all of the action that was taking place and all the different things I had to do – if I had to score this it would have been a mess but just sitting there and watching it again I am glad I did and I always thought Leonard won the fight and he did – it was a close fight and it was a great fight.

I can see Hagler being a little mad at the decision but he has to put some of the blame on himself for fighting the first 4 rounds wrong.

It was a great fight and glad I sat down and really scored the fight and really understand the different opinions. I very seldom give an even round but those two rounds were so close I couldn’t come up with a winner. If I go back and look at those 2 rounds again and ended up giving them to Hagler the fight on my scorecard it would have been a draw.

I have been through Canastota [International Boxing Hall of Fame] and then the Marine Corps Hall of Fame last weekend and this to come up with everything going on good in my life, for me it makes me know I was involved with some of the greatest fights of all time.

It really hurts to know or to think that we don’t have the kids to put the work in like a Hagler, Hearns or Leonard, Duran or the kids dedicating their life to boxing. These guys just did boxing.

Every great boxer that you can name only did boxing. You didn’t see Muhammad Ali out there trying to play tennis or swim or play basketball. You didn’t see Leonard or Hagler do anything else, they were 100% focused on boxing. This was a great fight, the strategy – the way they conducted themselves. Their flight plan was fought the way they strategized. It takes so much to stay focused. To say you are going to do this but when a guy hits you in the nose it goes out the window. To put a fight plan together and stick to it like these guys was amazing.

That is the dedication these great champions had from round 1-12 – well that was the right plan, the right strategy. Today’ fighters just don’t have that determination, that dedication.

That’s one of things that gets me when they start comparing the fights we are having now to the ones back then. How can they compare a Thurman-Garcia with a Leonard-Hagler? It’s not the same quality, it’s not the same strategy. These were great fights, Leonard, Hagler, Hearns and Duran. To compare them, these announcers just say things to say things – no way in the world you can compare these fights to those fights.