COMMISSIONER’S CORNER HOUSEHOLD NAMES FOR A REASON By Randy Gordon
Duran. Gerry Cooney. The Spinks brothers. Wait! Here are more: Thomas Hearns, Marvelous Marvin Hagler, Aaron Pryor, Wilfred Benitez, Matthew Saad Muhammad, Salvador Sanchez, Danny “Little Red” Lopez, Howard Davis Jr., Frank “The Animal” Fletcher, Alexis Arguello, Ray “Boom Boom” Mancini. Back then, these guys didn’t fight once a year. They fought often. They fought on television. On network television. For free. On weekend afternoons, in front of millions of eyeballs. They even fought each other. Many of their rivalries are etched into not only boxing history, but in sports history’s greatest events. Sugar Ray Leonard against Roberto Duran. Twice. Leonard vs. Hagler. Holmes vs. Cooney. In 1981, in the span of 17 days, came two unforgettable fights: Sugar Ray Leonard vs. Thomas Hearns and Alexis Arguello vs. Ray Mancini. I wrote about Leonard-Hearns in last month’s column. Allow me to tell you about Arguello- Mancini. It would have been 1981’s “Fight of the Year” had it not been for Leonard-Hearns. I had mixed feelings about the fight. As a boxing writer, there was no matchup at 135 pounds I – or the entire boxing world – wanted to see more. The 29-year-old Arguello had won the Ring and WBC
A sk a friend who is nowhere near the boxing fan you are to name one active fighter. Just one. The fighter can be a champion, contender or any other fighter, so long as they are active today. It’s sad, but few can name even one. I know. I tried it with my neighbors. For many, their first answer was “Mike Tyson.” Several shot out the name “Jake Paul.” A few others said “Mayweather,” unable to think of “Floyd.” One said “Merriweather” but remembered “Floyd” as being his first name. Sad. Very sad. Such wasn’t the case when Bert Randolph Sugar and I took over the reins of The Ring in 1979. Many fighters back then were household names. Here are a few: Muhammad Ali. Larry Holmes. Sugar Ray Leonard. Roberto
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