By GEORGE WILLIS
Last updated: 12:35 pm
July 24, 2008
Posted: 3:22 am
July 24, 2008
Ray Leonard still remembers what's being called the "Last Great Era in Boxing;" A time when he, Tommy Hearns, Roberto Duran and Marvin Hagler, took turns beating up each other much to the delight of a sporting audience that eagerly awaited every mega-fight.
"There was such an abundance of talent back then," Leonard was saying yesterday from his office in Los Angeles. "Not just talent, but also superstars, people who had personalities and were characters."
A new book "Four Kings" by veteran boxing writer George Kimball chronicles that last great era in boxing, which took root with the legendary welterweight battles between Leonard and Duran in 1980. Memories of those epic bouts are being rekindled as the anticipation builds for Saturday's pay-per-view showdown between Miguel Cotto and Antonio Margarito at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.
Cotto (32-0, 26 KOs) is the unbeaten WBA welterweight champion from Puerto Rico, while Antonio Margarito (36-5, 26 KOs) is a two-time welterweight champion from Mexico. It is the most anticipated fight of the year and has the makings of a classic Puerto Rico vs. Mexico battle that will be remembered for decades.
"I'm excited because it's an intriguing bout," Leonard said. "I've never seen many boxers that are such incredible body punchers. You just don't see much of that any more. I've watched Cotto for years and always knew he had something special. He keeps getting better with every fight becoming more mobile and a better puncher. Margarito carries, like Tommy Hearns, dynamite in both hands. You make a mistake and it's lights out."
Leonard suggests the only difference between Cotto-Margarito and his bouts with Hearns, Duran or Hagler is the exposure fighters enjoyed in his era as compared to today where boxing is no longer on network television and receives less national media coverage. Ratings for HBO Boxing and buys for PPV events have been declining over the last year,
"A lot of people don't' know who the heavyweight champion of the world is," Leonard said, "and there's too many fights on pay-per-view that aren't pay-per-view material. But there are a lot of good fighters out there. You've got guys in the welterweight division that are exciting. There's more talent now than there has been for years."
Leonard stopped short on predicting a winner saying, "I only do that when I'm fighting." But he does expect a grueling test of wills.
"Don't go to the bathroom," he said. "You can't take the chance and miss that punch. It can go the distance, but I don't think it will because there's too much on the line."
