Pat Putnam (December 10, 1979). " Sports Illustrated December 10, 1979". Sports Illustrated . Retrieved May 16, 2014.

Perhaps, to quote another of his famous observations about earning millions of dollars after being born into poverty, life had become too comfortable. “It’s difficult to get up to do roadwork at five in the morning when you are sleeping in silk pyjamas.” Their meeting was marketed simply by the promoter Bob Arum as The Fight, though this astonishing contest became known as The War in the years thereafter. With both men casting caution to the wind, the normally slow-starting Hagler elected to meet the big-punching “Hitman” Hearns head-on in an opening round of frightening ferocity. The scorecards from the ringside press and broadcast media attest to the polarizing views and opinions of the fight:After the loss to Leonard, Hagler moved to Italy, where he became a well-known star of action films. His roles included a U.S. Marine in the films Indio (1989) and Indio 2 (1991). In 1997, he starred alongside Terence Hill and Giselle Blondet in Virtual Weapon. Hagler also provided boxing commentary for British television. Another foray by Hagler into the entertainment field included work on the video game Fight Night: Round 3. His first marriage, to Bertha, with whom he had five children, Charelle, Celeste, James, Marvin Jr and Gentry, ended in 1990. He married again in 2000, to an Italian woman, Kay Guarrera, and they kept homes in Milan, where he had some success working in Italian films, and New Hampshire in the US.

a b Berger, Phil (April 8, 1987). "Judgment Day For Ring Judge". The New York Times . Retrieved December 16, 2014. Clive Gammon (October 6, 1980). "It Was Blood, Sweat And Beers". Sports Illustrated . Retrieved May 16, 2014. Campbell, Brian (March 13, 2021). "Legendary boxing champion 'Marvelous' Marvin Hagler dies at 66". CBSSports.com . Retrieved June 24, 2021. Marvin Hagler on his way to victory against Britain’s Alan Minter in 1980 at Wembley Arena. The referee stopped the fight in the third round. Photograph: AP The former champion was hurt badly and shaken by the shot and it ended up altering his game plan drastically. Hagler had accumulated a large amount of scar tissue around his eyebrows and Leonard planned to exploit this.Both men were landing huge punches, but when Hagler sustained a deep cut on his forehead in the third round it was clear the contest could not conceivably last the full 15 rounds. As blood gushed into Hagler’s eyes, the referee Richard Steele was forced to call the ringside doctor to examine the wound. When asked if he could see, Hagler replied: “I ain’t missing him, am I?” and this has become one of the great quotes of boxing folklore. Hagler had five children with his first wife, Bertha: Charelle, Celeste, James, Marvin Jr., and Gentry. [42] Although he owned a home in Bartlett, New Hampshire, Hagler lived in Milan. [44] In May 2000, he married his second wife, Kay, an Italian, in Pioltello, Italy. [45] Hagler attending Parade of Champions at International Boxing Hall of Fame in Canastota, NY, 2008

Received the Golden Plate Award of the American Academy of Achievement in 1983, presented by Awards Council member Herschel Walker at a ceremony in Coronado, California [49] The fight lasted only eight minutes and one second, but it was regarded as a classic. Commentator Al Michaels uttered the famous line, "It didn't go very far, but it was a beauty!" The fight was named " Fight of the Year" by The Ring. A fight against Roberto Durán followed on November 10, 1983. Durán was the first challenger to last the distance with Hagler in a world-championship bout. Durán was the WBA light middleweight champion and went up in weight to challenge for Hagler's middleweight crown. Hagler won a unanimous 15-round decision, although after 13 rounds, Durán was ahead by one point on two scorecards and even on the third. Hagler, with his left eye swollen and cut, came on strong in the last two rounds to win the fight. Judge Guy Jutras scored the bout 144–142. Judge Ove Ovesen scored it 144–143. Judge Yusaku Yoshida scored it 146–145. Awarded the Excellence Guirlande D'Honneur and was entered in the FICTS Hall Of Fame during the 2016 edition of " Sport Movies & TV – Milano International FICTS Fest" [50] McIlvanney also referred to Budd Schulberg's contention about a 'compound optical illusion', namely that by being the underdog and more competitive than expected against the dominant undisputed champion in Hagler meant that Leonard appeared more effective and to be doing more than he actually was. Leonard himself had said to journalists before the fight "the reason I will win is because you don't think I can". [36] Harry Gibbs, the British judge who had been rejected by Pat Petronelli from Hagler's camp and replaced by JoJo Guerra, said he scored it 115–113 for Hagler when he watched the fight at home.

Marvin Hagler t-shirts are a great way to show your appreciation for one of the greatest boxers in history. Showcase his iconic face and powerful punches with these t-shirts. Featuring images from Hagler's decade long reign as middleweight champion, these unique pieces are sure to stand out. Born in Newark, NJ, Marvin Hagler fought in 67 professional fights and won 62 of them - 52 by knockout! Get your hands on one of these stylish tees and wear a piece of boxing history proudly.

Obviously, Hagler was the aggressor, but he was not the effective aggressor. You can't chase and get hit and chase and get hit, and get credit for it. Besides, the hardest punching was by Leonard. [34] Although the Marvelous one was asked to return, amid much speculation that there would be a money-spinning rematch with Leonard, his retirement proved to be permanent. Never the chosen one, and not given to colourful pre-fight hyperbole, he preferred to speak though his performances. The fight was available on pay-per-view to about three million homes in the United States, and there were between 1,500 and 1,600 closed circuit locations, with about three million seats, in the United States and Canada. The fight was also televised in about 75 foreign countries.

Wainwright, Anson (April 20, 2020). "Best I Faced: Marvelous Marvin Hagler". The Ring (published May 2014) . Retrieved June 24, 2021. Leonard was announced as the winner and new middleweight champion of the world by split decision (118–110, 115–113, 113–115), a result which remains hotly disputed to this day. The Hagler vs. Leonard fight divides fans, pundits, press and ringside observers arguably more than any other fight in boxing history, with scorecards varying as widely as 117–111 Hagler to 118–110 Leonard and everything in between. The only near universally agreed views about the fight are that Hagler was foolish for starting the fight in an orthodox stance, that Leonard won the first two rounds and that Hagler won the fifth round. Every other round in the fight divides people as to who actually won it, or if the rounds were even. Hagler later said that, as the fighters embraced in the ring after the fight, Leonard said to him, "You beat me, man." Hagler said after the fight, "He said I beat him and I was so happy." Leonard denied making the statement and said he only told Hagler, "You're a great champion." HBO cameras and microphones supported Hagler's version of events. Hagler Retires From Ring". The New York Times. New York City. June 13, 1988 . Retrieved April 21, 2021. Learning the hard way, taking fights against tough opponents for small financial reward, Hagler became something of an avoided man. As a southpaw, leading with the right hand instead of the normal left, he had an awkward style as well as a near freakish ability to take punches without them having any discernible effect. Two early defeats, on points, hardened his resolve.Jim Murray, long-time sports columnist for the Los Angeles Times felt that Leonard deservedly got the decision, arguing that Leonard showed better defense and ring generalship, landed more punches and writing: Marvin Hagler (centre) strikes a pose with Nelson Mandela and Lennox Lewis in 2001. Photograph: Juda Ngwenya/Reuters Winderman, Ira (April 5, 1987). "After A Year's Prefight, Bell Tolls For These". Sun-Sentinel. Fort Lauderdale. Archived from the original on November 12, 2016 . Retrieved December 16, 2014. Minter was given a savage beating. The referee Carlos Berrocal halted the contest in the third round with Minter horribly cut around his eyes. Fleeing the ring, Hagler had to be shielded from bottles and glasses as he was pelted with missiles on one of British boxing’s most shameful nights.