For all the hype over the May 2 fight between Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao, Hall of Fame boxer ?Sugar? Ray Leonard said on Friday that the mega-bout reminds him of his matchup with ?Marvelous? Marvin Hagler in 1987.
?There are similarities to the Hagler fight and this one,? Leonard said. ?It?s the significance of the fight. If I hadn?t fought Hagler, I would have been asked and he would have been asked, ?How come y?all didn?t fight???
Leonard won a 12-round, split-decision over Hagler, in what turned out to be Hagler?s final fight. ?They asked me how come I didn?t give Hagler a rematch? He never asked for one,? Leonard said. ?Hagler is the only guy I know that could just walk away.?
As for Mayweather-Pacquiao, Leonard said that bragging rights are important to boxers. ?It?s more than the money, and there?s a lot money,? Leonard said. ?Now we?re talking legacy, authenticity. Being the best one.?
Leonard acknowledged that despite what boxers say, there is a sense of fear before entering the ring against an accomplished rival. ?We, as fighters, don?t say this because we have machismo, but we have concerned about our opponents,? Leonard said. ?When I fought Hagler, I was ? scared. When I fought [Roberto] Duran, scared. When I fought [Tommy] Hearns, scared. [Wilfred] Benitez, scared. Because I knew what they brought to the table.?
On Saturday, Leonard will be ringside as an analyst for NBC?s ?Premier Boxing Champions? telecast (8:30 p.m. ET) of the Danny Garcia vs. Lamont Peterson bout at Brooklyn?s Barclays Center.
