SONAHR: LAS VEGAS, NV – June 26, 2016 – The standard for recent welterweight wars was set when Sugar Ray Leonard came from behind on points to score an amazing 14th-round stoppage of Thomas Hearns in their first fight in 1981 ? that is, if you?re willing to call 35 years ago ?recent.? Several subsequent 147-pound showdowns have fallen short of the Leonard-Hearns benchmark. In the Donald Curry-Milton McCrory unification match in 1985, which was touted as a possible replay of Leonard-Hearns, Curry blasted McCrory out in two rounds. The Oscar De La Hoya-Felix Trinidad ?millennial? confrontation of 1999 proved a disappointment, with De La Hoya inexplicably fighting in retreat over the last three rounds to allow Trinidad to capture the decision. Last year?s megafight between Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Manny Pacquiao generated buckets of bucks, but failed to please viewers.
Pacquiao and Mayweather have since retired, leaving the division they dominated wide open for a much-needed infusion of fresh blood at the top. On Saturday, two of the best of the newcomers, Keith Thurman and Shawn Porter, collided in a confrontation that promised to ignite fireworks that would recall the glory of Leonard-Hearns I.
Thurman and Porter have been on a collision course since their days as hot young prospects who signaled a bright future for the division as Mayweather and Pacquiao aged. Both battlers made good, with Porter garnering the IBF belt and Thurman winning the WBA strap. Both titles had been voluntarily vacated by Mayweather before he officially hung up his gloves.
Friends as well as rivals, Porter and Thurman were bound to face each other eventually. Even though Porter had lost his title to Kell Brook, his meeting with the still undefeated Thurman was much-anticipated ? even after several postponements that led to some trash-talking that overshadowed their previous respect for each other. When they finally crossed gloves on Saturday, the resulting contest more than lived up to its hype. Thurman won a unanimous decision, with all three judges voting 115-113.
It was a war for sure, with Thurman?s boxing skills prevailing over Porter?s high-pressure approach. But Thurman is more than just a boxer, as evidenced by his 22 stoppages in 27 wins. And Porter is more than just a slugger, as shown by the high number of jabs he landed over the course of the contest. The fight was close, and both men showed signs of wear and tear when the 12 rounds were over. There was no doubt about the decision.
So, how does Thurman-Porter compare with Leonard-Hearns? Well, the 2016 fight doesn?t quite measure up to the 1981 classic. Thurman-Porter was, indeed, intense. But it fell somewhat short of the edge-of-your-set, see-saw drama that characterized Leonard-Hearns. Also, Thurman and Porter do not possess the high pubic presence that Hearns and Leonard commanded at the time of their shootout. That?s nothing to be ashamed of, though ? especially considering that Thurman-Porter was a far better spectacle than Curry-McCrory, Trinidad-De La Hoya, and Mayweather-Pacquiao.
Contrary to pessimistic expectations, the end of the Pacquiao and Mayweather era has not left a void in the welterweight division ? not when warriors like Thurman and Porter are willing to step up and let it all hang out, Leonard-Hearns style.
