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Mark KriegelESPN
The great fighter retires with his fortune and his faculties intact.
Then he is retired – resisting the pleas of prosecutors, the public and the fierce power of his own ego, which made him great in the first place.
It is the most unlikely story of boxing.
And he is happier.
And it’s Marvelous Marvin Hagler, forever.
“When I wonder what the hell I was doing in boxing all these years, I think of Marvin Hagler,” said Bob Arum on Saturday, shortly after being informed of Hagler’s passing. “He was the most loyal and dedicated fighter I have ever promoted.”
This came from a 55-year-old man in the business, a guy who couldn’t convince Hagler to come back for one more time. Not for want of a try, though, and it doesn’t matter the price.
Arum remembers being at Caesars Palace in the late 1980s. Muhammad Ali was there. Tommy Hearns was there. The same happened with Roberto Duran and Ray Leonard, about a year after Leonard won his controversial decision about Hagler.
“Tell Marvin that we must do it again, a rematch,” Leonard told Arum. “We will make a fortune. Tell him.”
Since Leonard’s logic was unassailable, Arum delivered the message.
Hagler glared at the prosecutor. “Tell Ray to start a life,” he said.
No slander for the great Leonard, but that is the most difficult part. For fighters, fighting is easy. Not fighting is more difficult. Having a life, being happy, healthy and rich enough to have fun after the fight, is the most difficult proposal of all. And when you evaluate Hagler’s place in boxing history – Leonard’s ever-disputed decision, the less ambiguous decision about Duran, Alan Minter’s stoppages, Vito Antuofermo, Hearns (watch on ESPN +) and John Mugabi – that should count as your biggest win.
Grande himself could not do that. I remember the first time I saw Ali in person, signing a retrospective at Macy’s. Someone had to wipe the drool from his mouth. It was a terrible thing to see, but even in the midst of this prolonged celebration of Ali-Frazier’s 50th birthday and the remembrance of Ali’s majesty, it is worth remembering.
Hagler did not return after Leonard’s fight.
He didn’t owe the IRS.
He did not feel the need to sell himself in an “exhibition”.
He didn’t need to nurture his ego or appease his regret. Others may argue about the meaning of your career, or Leonard’s own struggle. Hagler knew what he did. He spoke his part in the ring at its peak, as it should be. And when he finished, he finished.
In fact, he wanted to finish before. “He wanted to retire after Hearns,” said Arum, referring to the pattern of three rounds for hard-hitting title battles. “But he was a big deal at the casinos. That was the biggest weekend of all time at Caesars Palace.”
Arum remembers the casino increasing its offer by “a few million”, when a few million meant something. After all, Hagler would be fighting Mugabi, 25-0, all stoppages, when 25-0 really meant something.
Hagler eventually allowed himself to speak to Mugabi, whom he knocked out in the 11th round. So, 13 months later – when he knew his skills were wearing out – it was Leonard.
“I remember driving five hours with Pat Petronelli, his manager, in the middle of the night,” recalls Arum. “When we finally get to his house in New Hampshire, Pat tells me to wait in the car. He’s going to meet Marvin. They talk in this little picnic area next to the house. It goes on and on. Finally, I see Marvin banging his fists on the table. I’m thinking, ‘This is not going very well.’ So Pat went back to the car. “
“What was what all about? “asked Arum
“You will not believe this,” said Petronelli, who, along with his brother Goody, Hagler’s coach, offered to cut his fees by 50 percent to make the fight happen.
“What did he say?” asked Arum.
“He said, ‘I don’t know if I’m going to fight this bastard, but if I do that you better get all your pay.'”
Hagler and Leonard fought on April 6, 1987 (watch on ESPN +).
“He never hurt me,” said Hagler later.
“Where is he going now?” asked Leonard. “I’m sad for him. Really.”
It turns out that Hagler made a living, as was delightfully reported in 1990 by Rick Telander in Sports Illustrated. He moved to Milan and became an actor, mainly thugs in action films. He still had most of his money, most of $ 40 million, his health and memories intact.
“I saw Joe Louis at the door of Caesars Palace, just shaking hands, and it left a bad taste in my mouth,” he told Telander. “So I saw Jersey Joe Walcott doing the same thing in Atlantic City.”
Earlier that year, Hagler traveled back to the United States to see his daughter graduate from high school. He found Petronelli.
“For the first time in my life, I am happy with myself,” he said to the coach. “I am retired.”
Even though he was still refusing incalculable riches for a rematch with Leonard.
“I just spoke on the phone to Ray,” said Arum on Saturday night. “He’s really finished.”