Roger Leonard

Last updated

Roger Leonard (born July 21, 1953) is a retired professional boxer from Palmer Park, Maryland. He is the older brother of boxing legend Sugar Ray Leonard, who he introduced to boxing. [1]

Contents

Career

Amateur career

Nicknamed "The Dodger," Leonard had over 100 amateur bouts. [2] He won four United States Air Force Championships and the 1978 National AAU Welterweight Championship, beating rival Clint Jackson. [3] While in the Air Force, he was teammates with another Palmer Park native, Henry Bunch. [4]

Professional career

Leonard turned professional in 1978. He regularly fought on the undercards of his famous younger brother, including when Sugar Ray fought Wilfred Benítez and Roberto Durán.

Leonard was 15-0 and ranked second in the world as a junior middleweight when he was stopped in ten rounds by Mario Maldonado in February 1981. [5] He retired after winning an eight-round decision against Herbie Wilens in March 1982. His professional record was 16-1 with 7 knockouts. [6]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roberto Durán</span> Panamanian boxer (born 1951)

Roberto Carlos Durán Samaniego is a Panamanian former professional boxer who competed from 1968 to 2001. He held world championships in four weight classes: Lightweight, welterweight, light middleweight and middleweight. Duran also reigned as the undisputed and lineal lightweight champion and the lineal welterweight champion. He is also the second boxer to have competed over a span of five decades, the first being Jack Johnson. Durán was known as a versatile, technical brawler and pressure fighter, which earned him the nickname "Manos de Piedra" for his formidable punching power and excellent defense.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marvelous Marvin Hagler</span> American boxer (1954–2021)

Marvelous Marvin Hagler was an American professional boxer. He competed in boxing from 1973 to 1987 and reigned as the undisputed champion of the middleweight division from 1980 to 1987, making twelve successful title defenses, all but one by knockout. Hagler also holds the highest knockout percentage of all undisputed middleweight champions at 78 percent. His undisputed middleweight championship reign of six years and seven months is the second-longest active reign of the 20th century. He holds the record for the sixth longest reign as champion in middleweight history. Nicknamed "Marvelous" and annoyed that network announcers often did not refer to him as such, Hagler legally changed his name to "Marvelous Marvin Hagler" in 1982.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sugar Ray Leonard</span> American boxer

Ray Charles Leonard, best known as Sugar Ray Leonard, is an American former professional boxer, motivational speaker, and occasional actor. Often regarded as one of the greatest boxers of all time, he competed professionally between 1977 and 1997, winning world titles in five weight classes; the lineal championship in three weight classes; as well as the undisputed welterweight championship. Leonard was part of the "Four Kings", a group of boxers who all fought each other throughout the 1980s, consisting of Leonard, Roberto Durán, Thomas Hearns, and Marvin Hagler. As an amateur, Leonard won a light welterweight gold medal at the 1976 Summer Olympics.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Thomas Hearns</span> American world champion boxer (b. 1958)

Thomas Hearns is an American former professional boxer who competed from 1977 to 2006. Nicknamed the "Motor City Cobra", and more famously "The Hitman", Hearns's tall, slender build and oversized arms and shoulders allowed him to move up over fifty pounds in his career and become the first boxer in history to win world titles in five weight divisions: welterweight, light middleweight, middleweight, super middleweight and light heavyweight.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sugar Ray Robinson</span> American boxer (1921–1989)

Walker Smith Jr., better known as Sugar Ray Robinson, was an American professional boxer who competed from 1940 to 1965. He was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 1990. He is often regarded as the greatest boxer of all time, pound-for-pound.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tony Canzoneri</span> American boxer

Tony Canzoneri was an American professional boxer. A three-division world champion, he held a total of five world titles. Canzoneri is a member of the exclusive group of boxing world champions who have won titles in three or more divisions. Canzoneri fought for championships between bantamweight and light welterweight. Historian Bert Sugar ranked Canzoneri as the twelfth-greatest fighter of all time.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kid Chocolate</span> Cuban boxer (1910–1988)

Eligio Sardiñas Montalvo, better known as Kid Chocolate, was a Cuban boxer who enjoyed great success both in the boxing ring and outside it during the 1930s. Chocolate boxed professionally between 1927 and 1938. His record was 136 wins, 10 losses and 6 draws, 51 wins coming by knockout and one no-decision bout, also making Ring magazine's list of boxers with 50 or more career knockout wins. He was inducted into the International Boxing Hall Of Fame in 1991.

Donald Curry, is an American former professional boxer who competed from 1980 to 1991, and in 1997. He held the WBA world welterweight title from 1983 to 1986, the undisputed world welterweight title from 1985 to 1986 and the WBC light middleweight title from 1988 to 1989, and challenged once for the IBF middleweight title in 1990. In 2019, he was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gene Fullmer</span> American boxer (1931–2015)

Lawrence Gene Fullmer was an American professional boxer and World Middleweight champion. He was known as TheUtah Cyclone, The Mormon Mauler, and as "Cyclone" Gene Fullmer.

Mike McCallum is a Jamaican former professional boxer who competed from 1981 to 1997. He held world championships in three weight classes, including the WBA super welterweight title from 1984 to 1988, the WBA middleweight title from 1989 to 1991, and the WBC light heavyweight title from 1994 to 1995.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Floyd Mayweather Sr.</span> American former professional boxer (born 1952)

Floyd Joy Mayweather Sr. is an American boxing trainer and former professional boxer who competed from 1973 to 1990. Fighting at welterweight during the 1970s and 1980s, Mayweather Sr. was known for his defensive abilities and overall knowledge of boxing strategy. He is the father and former trainer of Floyd Mayweather Jr., and also father to Justin Mayweather, an American boxer residing in Las Vegas.

Ayub Kalule is a retired boxer from Uganda, who first came to prominence when he won the Amateur World Welterweight Title at the inaugural 1974 World Championships in Havana, Cuba. As a professional, he held the WBA and The Ring light middleweight titles from 1979 until 1981.

David Robert Green, better known as Dave Boy Green, is a former British professional boxer who competed from 1974 to 1981. He challenged twice for the WBC welterweight title; first in 1977 against Carlos Palomino and again in 1980 against Sugar Ray Leonard. At regional level, he held the British and European super-lightweight titles in 1976, becoming the first British fighter to hold the latter, and the European welterweight title in 1979.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sugar Ray Seales</span> American boxer

"Sugar" Ray Seales, is an American former boxer. He was the only American boxer to win a gold medal in the 1972 Summer Olympics. As a professional, he fought middleweight champion Marvin Hagler three times. He is also the former NABF and USBA middleweight champion.

Denny Moyer was an American professional boxer who held the world light middleweight title between 1962 and 1963. He finished his career with a 98–38–4 record.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dicky Eklund</span> American boxer (born 1957)

Richard Eklund Jr. is an American former professional boxer who competed from 1975 to 1985. Known as "The Pride of Lowell", he held the USA New England welterweight title twice between 1979 and 1983. He is the half-brother and former trainer of former WBU champion Micky Ward. The 2010 biopic The Fighter is based on the two brothers' fall and rise to the boxing title.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Clinton McKenzie</span> English boxer

Clinton McKenzie is a former British professional boxer. He fought in the light welterweight division and became the British light welterweight title holder and briefly held the European title.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roberto Durán vs. Sugar Ray Leonard II</span> Boxing competition

Roberto Durán vs. Sugar Ray Leonard II, billed as The Super Fight, and later popularly known as the No Más Fight, was a boxing match which took place on November 25, 1980, at the Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans, United States. It was the second of three bouts between the pair. It gained its name from the moment at the end of the eighth round when Durán turned away from Leonard towards the referee and quit by apparently saying, "No más".

Tadashi Mihara is a former professional boxer who competed as a light middleweight throughout his career.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rocky Fratto</span> American boxer

Ralph "Rocky" Fratto, "The Pride of Geneva", is an American former professional boxer from Geneva, New York. Fratto was rated as the No. 1 Junior Middleweight in the United States by the USBA, and the second best Junior Middleweight in the world by the WBA. On April 25, 1981, Fratto became the North American Champion when he won the NABF Super Welterweight title, by defeating Rocky Mosley Jr. in Rochester, New York. Mosley was rated as the 4th best Junior Middleweight in the world by Ring Magazine prior to the fight. Ring Magazine crowned Fratto as the U.S. Junior Middleweight Champion in 1981 and 1982.

References

  1. "Sugar Ray was ring artist"
  2. The Milwaukee Sentinel 7 May 1977
  3. "Roger Leonard Bio at BoxRec"
  4. "Henry Bunch Bey - BoxRec". boxrec.com. Retrieved 2017-04-20.
  5. The Day New London, Connecticut 9 February 1981
  6. "Roger Leonard's professional record at BoxRec"