Hagler/Hearns is a spectacularly overrated fight

[Violent Demise]

It's not overrated. For the simple fact that top fighters like that don't go at each other the way they went at each other. The way they fought is the way De La Hoya and Trinidad should of fought

[OumaFan]

It's not overrated. For the simple fact that top fighters like that don't go at each other the way they went at each other. The way they fought is the way De La Hoya and Trinidad should of fought

That's the argument for it.

It doesn't hold a candle to Castillo-Corrrales 1. Toney-Jirov shits all over it.

Hell, Ward-Burton is a lot better fight from a pure fight perspective, much less Ward-Gatti. And those are just well known "lower-level" fights, there are an endless amount of fights that were better from a pure action perspective.

[Violent Demise]

It's not overrated. For the simple fact that top fighters like that don't go at each other the way they went at each other. The way they fought is the way De La Hoya and Trinidad should of fought

That's the argument for it.

It doesn't hold a candle to Castillo-Corrrales 1. Toney-Jirov shits all over it.

Hell, Ward-Burton is a lot better fight from a pure fight perspective, much less Ward-Gatti. And those are just well known "lower-level" fights, there are an endless amount of fights that were better from a pure action perspective.

None of them were as highly ranked as them 2. It was the number 1 Junior middleweight against the number 1 middleweight. Ray Leonard was retired in 1985. So it was pretty much the number 1 pound for pound fighter vs the number 2 or 3 pound for pound fighter.

[OumaFan]

Well no fucking shit man

That's kind of the point, but not really the point.

[Violent Demise]

Well no fucking shit man

That's kind of the point, but not really the point.

That point is why it's so highly touted. Comparing Ward-Burton to it is just wrong. You should be ashame of yourself

[OumaFan]

Ashamed. I'm looking at it from a pure fight perspective, which, if you have any sort of reading comprehension, has been obvious from the beginning of this thread. From a pure fight perspective it's a bit lacking. From a pure fight perspective it's a bit crap compared to the truly great fights.

1 amazing round and that's about it.

[FinitoElDinamita]

I agree to an extent. Dont get me wrong cuz I know it was a short, thrilling brawl between two legends which doesnt happen too often but I dont put that fight on a pedestal like so many people do. There has been many more better and longer brawling matches thats for sure.. any three rounds of first chico-castillo, vazquez-marquez, and morales- barrera were better imo..

I think the fight is higly rated mainly because the names that are involved.. I mean cmon, its fuckin marvin hagler and thomas hearns abandoning what they do best and going balls out like they are on the streets and shit.. thats what makes it extra special..

Ray leonard - duran could have surpassed that fight only if it wasnt so sloppy with not many clean punches landed..

[OumaFan]

I feel like it's a very special case in that it's a war between two legendary fighters. If that's enough for most people to feel like it's the be all end all fight, fair enough. But every truly great fight gets compared to it, when a lot of those fights were simply far better fights, just not brawls between two legends. The next brawl between legends should be compared to it, but that's about it.

To me it's a really great fight for about 4 minutes tops. That's personally not enough for me to consider it one of the truly great fights, no matter who the participants were.

[Spicoli]

I can see a point of over saturation for sure. Considering before ESPN Classic it was on "SuperBouts" almost every week The 'event' part of it was massive and at a time when a guy moving up a division, a great, wasn't done on the scale or in carefree ease it is now. They were the top of the high profile food chain! Alot was made of the cuts but I don't think Hagler stepped it up because of it, he was Hell bent on wrecking Hearns after alot of bad blood in the first place and to the point of topic, he pretty much had it all his way.

[Beanz]

You can't take the two men out of the ring once the bell goes. From the beginning until the end the same two guys are in there. The idea that some fights are just a free for all brawl and that skill, resolve and fitness to explode into war are just attributes that anyone can employ kind of demeans all of the sport. I know that we all know it's more complicated than that but taking s fight out of context and getting all microscopic over it misses the point. The whole enterprise is a huge and pointless display of barbarity on one level and an artform on another. Marvin and Tommy condensed so much about life in that opening round though that even a complete noob would get it. That does not mean it is in itself a one dimensional experience or a shallow and vacuous piece of work that should be dismissed because there are more nuanced or similarly intense fights drawn out over 12 or 15 rounds. It is a breathtaking ride still, and deserves it well earned status.

[TitoFan]

I don't think rounds 2 and 3 were all that bad. Hearns was still throwing bombs. He just realized somewhere along the line that he wasn't going to hurt Hagler bad enough to make a difference. But he never stopped throwing. It was only 3 rounds, but damn... what 3 rounds they were. I wish we had more Hagler-Hearns fights in championship boxing history.

[OumaFan]

I fully accept that I do have a bit of a revisionist view on this because I didn't see it live. But I am old enough to have seen a replay of it without knowing what happened. And I was entranced by it.

Just looking back at it, the only argument that it's one of boxing's great fights (and every fight is judged by it, Castillo-Corrales was judged by it) is that it was two legendary fighters. Otherwise we've all seen better fights.

I think it's certainly the greatest first round between two elite all time fighters fighting in their prime for a major belt, but round 2 and 3 are a bit of a beatdown.

[TitoFan]

Well... to be fair, 10 great rounds beats 3 great rounds anytime. That being said, I think after seeing the 1st round, anything less in the 2nd round would've been a letdown. I thought Hearns resorted to moving more, because he knew he wasn't going to get Hagler out of there with one punch.... and he had good boxing skills. IMO, it was still a good round. Round 3, yeah.... Hearns was on wobbly legs from being hurt toward the end of the 2nd.

[VictorCharlie]

Better fights? Probably. Better 3 rounds of fighting? Not for me.

[VictorCharlie]

Wait a second...is this the boxing section? I must have got lost.