News Marvin Hagler has passed away

[Kovalev's "Man Bag"]

Thanks, man. If any loss is every boxing fan’s, it is Marvin Hagler’s.

100%. This one really stings. The guy was the embodiment of a natural fighter. Hagler never actually needed any fanboys because everyone was a fan. He'll be missed by all like you said.

 

[Mr2urbo]

For a boxing atg he lived a pretty quiet low key life after retirement which is cool

No one can draw their opponents into a fight like Hagler did, except SRL but the debate on the decision is infamous

RIP champ, whoever you are with is going to be glad to have you at their side.

 

[defjaam]

If there were a Mount Rushmore of boxers, I've got to imagine Hagler is a part of it.

Mount rushmore of the middleweight division, easily - the others being Monzon, Hopkins, possibly Robinson. (Although RJJ at 160 beats them all in my opinion).

Mount rushmore P4P, different story.

 

[Shoemaker]

Mount rushmore of the middleweight division, easily - the others being Monzon, Hopkins, possibly Robinson. (Although RJJ at 160 beats them all in my opinion).

Mount rushmore P4P, different story.

Like the HOF, I don't think it has to be based solely on accomplishments. Its more like who's beloved, and Hagler ranks very high amongst beloved fighters.

Considering it's literally etched in stone, trying to make it a monument to objective accomplishment means its going to get outdated.

 

[bjjHERRERA]

rip champ-

 

[djacobox372]

For a boxing atg he lived a pretty quiet low key life after retirement which is cool

No one can draw their opponents into a fight like Hagler did, except SRL but the debate on the decision is infamous

RIP champ, whoever you are with is going to be glad to have you at their side.

He had a short run as a movie star in the 90s, that’s more than most boxing greats

 

[Misery Signals]

Dan Rafael had a pretty good take. People always have bad things to say about fighters. Ali, Louis, guys always have some detractors. Some more than others. But no one ever seems to have a bad thing to say about Marvin.

Boxing fans can be brutal so it's pretty rare for a big named fighter to be so universally liked.

 

[Mr2urbo]

He had a short run as a movie star in the 90s, that’s more than most boxing greats

That’s right, he was pretty famous Italy, he moved there and even married an Italian woman.

 

[Jonny Ninja]

Mountain of a man. Almost impossible to hurt him, and equally as tough to keep him at bay. He absolutely destroyed one of my all time favourite fighters, yet I could never hold that against him. Will always be a huge fan

A true warrior, ATG and one of the most universally popular fighters of the last 40 years
RIP champ

 

[BluntTrauma21]

I think that it's important we underscore what several of you have mentioned already. Not everybody was a huge Hagler fan but nobody was NOT a Hagler fan. He embodied the sport. His discipline, chin, power, stamina, and savagery along w/ a boxing iq/skillset that can be underrated at times b/c of the aforementioned qualities he was probably more known and lauded for, they were all world class.

I still feel like I saw him doing an interview or some shit just the other day. Life is finite, and nothing proves that more than one of the toughest humans to ever walk the planet succumbing to Father Time. I'm still super upset and I'm positive that feeling won't subside for quite sometime. I know that's how most of us boxing fans feel.

RIP Marvin, I've said this so many times but I can't quite stop myself from harping on it. We love you, you are a legend, you will never be forgotten. We didn't deserve you but we needed you. Thanks for everything, you truly were a marvelous human being.

/rant.

 

[PHATV]

Marvelous Marvin Hagler :: Official Website of the World Middleweight Champion
Marvelous Marvin Hagler was the undisputed middleweight champion of the world from 1980 - 1987. Today he is a movie star, boxing sports commentator and does television commercials and personal appearances all over the world.
www.marvelousmarvin.com




Hearns bout:

 

[Athenry04]

RIP to a fucking legend.

 

[froggyluv]

Any details though? Covid-19? He didn't seem weak at all in interviews. No slurred speech, nothing.

Here's one of his newer interviews:

Yo this put a huge smile on my face -thanks for sharing. Havent seen MH in some time and looks like he really branched out -living in Italy and acting -good for him Salut!

 

[mozfonky]

That’s right, he was pretty famous Italy, he moved there and even married an Italian woman.

Interesting that he died at "home" which was in the US. I say it's interesting because Marvin always kept a lot to himself, his facebook page would give pics and videos but not a lot of info about him and his fans generally didn't ask a whole lot, I know I didn't. I didn't know if he was in europe or the us, no idea, none of my business unless he wanted to say. I don't think I saw a photo of his wife until yesterday, you never hear about his kids or his ex wife and the last he mentioned family was in his Las Vegas speech where his mom was present. Refreshing in this age where celebs and civilians post a pic of every little turn of their lives. I sure wish he'd gotten around to a book, he always said "when it's time" when I'd ask and now it'll never happen. None of us know how long we have here, that is the big takeaway anytime I lose anyone, family, friend, hero or foe. We all have to make that journey someday, none of us gets special treatment as far as that goes.

 

[mozfonky]

I can tell you that he was very sour about that Leonard decision. Hagler is my all time favorite and I actually got to meet him at the IBHOF in 2013. Got pictures with him and everything. Totally forgot to tell him I thought he beat Leonard and was kicking myself after he left. Two weeks later, I literally bumped into him coming out of a Tedeschi's in Boston. My dude had a black track suit on and white sneakers. He was by himself and I didn't waste the opportunity to tell him I had just met him two weeks before and that I wanted to tell him I thought he beat Ray. Hagler was in his humble mode until I said that. His face lit up and he said "Oh yeah I did and he knows it too. I think he'll admit it one day too." I asked if he really thought Ray would do that and he just tapped his head and said, "Oh yeah, you can't live with something like that. He knows he lost."

This one hurts. Reading about Hagler's legendary training, he was one of my focal points while I was training for the Boston Marathon last year. I'll never be anywhere near Hagler's greatness or athletic ability, but people always elevate the greats and use them as inspiration. Hagler was my inspiration for a lot of things. Everything he faced was just fuel to him. He didn't even get to enjoy winning his title after smoking Minter. Can you imagine him fighting while the whole crowd is chanting the N-word? They should have forced everybody in that stadium to line up to take a beating from Hagler one by one.

I don't recall your name but I recall your story about that from a few years ago. Right after the Leonard fight everyone assumed Hagler would be devastated by it and I'm sure he was but he was almost always classy about it with the media. Leonard, for his part, never did escape the need for leaving the stage(ring) and his ego tormented him by his own admission until finally did a successful rehab. What's more important is that many of us fans turned against Leonard, beginning with his shoddy treatment of Hagler where he negotiated unfairly at the bargaining table, just business, ok, but then what really started the back lash was when he won and he toyed with Marvin on and off about a rematch, he fucked with him for five years for the first one and he tried to keep it going for, I think around another 9 or 10 where hagler described a las vegas scene where they met in a men's room and Hagler said he got so angry he wanted to shove Ray's head into a urinal because he had accepted something Ray couldn't "we can't do it now!!" so Ray went on and got kayoed by an old junior lightweight named Hector instead and finally hung them up for good.

Ray has mellowed and humbled with age but many fans, myself included, never forgave him for his prima donna antics not just with Hagler but later with Hearns and Duran. To illustrate the kind of person he was, a story was making the rounds in the late 80's that boxing newest golden boy, Michael Nunn, had been approached by a drunk Leonard in some nightclub and told him he wanted to fight him and that he'd "fuck up your life like I fucked up Hagler's" Which was in reference to Marvin throwing rocks at his wifes car and leaving the country apparently. I know rivals are not supposed to be bosom buddies but fans don't like that kind of thing and so far they've never forgiven Ray and still love Marvelous.

 

[mozfonky]

Hagler was visibly slower in the Mugabi fight and I think that fight took the last bit of his prime. If he got the nod against Ray Leonard, he would have kept fighting and into the time Toney, McCallum, McClellan, Norris, etc. started dominating. I'm sure he would have rematched Hearns as well.

certainly, actually, his hands had already begun to slow by the time he won the title, you can see his peak handspeed in the Sugar Ray Seales, i think the rubbermatch, fast fucking hands. Yet and still, he managed to improve as a champion, fighting and winning with skill that most people overlooked, fighting differently each time because he felt his opponents needed to be fought diffferently. Whether it was age or a sated ego, he'd just won all the stardom he wanted after Hearns and fighters usually let off when that happens, the Hagler who fought Mugabi won with an all time great chin, determination and brawn, not skill. Ray saw that and he jumped on the opportunity.

 

[Hagler]

certainly, actually, his hands had already begun to slow by the time he won the title, you can see his peak handspeed in the Sugar Ray Seales, i think the rubbermatch, fast fucking hands. Yet and still, he managed to improve as a champion, fighting and winning with skill that most people overlooked, fighting differently each time because he felt his opponents needed to be fought diffferently. Whether it was age or a sated ego, he'd just won all the stardom he wanted after Hearns and fighters usually let off when that happens, the Hagler who fought Mugabi won with an all time great chin, determination and brawn, not skill. Ray saw that and he jumped on the opportunity.

An over-the-hill Hagler basically broke Mugabi, who was damn promising. The Beast was an Olympic silver medalist with great physical assets and he was never the same after this beating. He got hurt by jabbing 154-pounders.

 

[mozfonky]

An over-the-hill Hagler basically broke Mugabi, who was damn promising. The Beast was never the same after this beating. He got hurt by jabbing 154-pounders.

yes indeed, I said it many times when Marvin would post that fan favorite of a fight, (he posted it recently as last week) Mugabi's management ruined him, Mickey Duff was the guy wasn't it? The same guy who brought in Honeyghan to upset Curry. Mugabi was a gifted fighter, one of the most naturally gifted punchers of all time and he had some great athletic abillity, he was in no way ready for any long time champion and it ruined him. I think it was 2 fights later where he quit against Duane Thomas and never accomplished anything. What I've said was his managers should be hung or words to the like on Hagler's page, not a good matchup and Hagler did what he was suppossed to do but as a fan, you don't want to see potential wasted like that.

 

[Hagler]

yes indeed, I said it many times when Marvin would post that fan favorite of a fight, (he posted it recently as last week) Mugabi's management ruined him, Mickey Duff was the guy wasn't it? The same guy who brought in Honeyghan to upset Curry. Mugabi was a gifted fighter, one of the most naturally gifted punchers of all time and he had some great athletic abillity, he was in no way ready for any long time champion and it ruined him. I think it was 2 fights later where he quit against Duane Thomas and never accomplished anything. What I've said was his managers should be hung or words to the like on Hagler's page, not a good matchup and Hagler did what he was suppossed to do but as a fan, you don't want to see potential wasted like that.

He basically got a career-ending beating at 26.

 

[mozfonky]

He basically got a career-ending beating at 26.

ya, that's all it takes, depends on the fighter, some guys have one bad beating and it's over, Azumah Nelson was in a similar position against Sanchez and he regrouped quite famously. Depends on the person. Mugabi did not embarrass himself in that fight, the boxing world took notice and was warning Thomas Hearns against fighting him, which was the talk, until Ray came back and dashed any hopes of making a Hagler Hearns 2, which, who knows, maybe would have been different.