On June 10, 1977,
On the same card, Marvelous Marvin Hagler, a middleweight from Brockton, Mass., had a third-round knockout of Roy Jones. Courant columnist Owen Canfield described the night this way: "The Hartford crowd which came to this boxing show, even the ones who paid $15, didn't waste a nickel."
Fifteen bucks? Days gone by.
The victory was just Leonard's third as a pro; he had won a gold medal at the 1976
"Yes, he's the fastest guy I ever fought," DeBarros told reporters after the fight. "He's very scientific."
Pep's take on Leonard: "He's good, but it's too early to tell."
Hagler came into the fight with a 37-2-1 record, had more than 20 family members in the audience and came away with the North American middleweight title. He would go on to win the middleweight title and eventually face Leonard. In 1987, Sugar Ray beat Hagler in 12 rounds in Las Vegas for the WBC middleweight title.
Today, boxing cards are at the Connecticut Convention Center or the casinos, and one wonders - just where have the Leonards and Haglers gone?